Q: Do I get my bill before my Direct Debit is taken?

Monthly Direct Debit If you are paying by Monthly Direct Debit (equal monthly payments) you will receive a bill as usual each quarter, but your Direct Debit will be taken out each month. Quarterly Direct Debit If you pay by Quarterly Direct Debit (full bill amount every 3 months) you will receive your bill in advance of your payment being made each quarter. Payment is usually taken 14 days after the date on the bill.

Question 1

What are the Direct Debit options?

Accepted Answer

There are two options available if you prefer to pay by Direct Debit: Quarterly and Monthly Direct Debit.

	Quarterly Direct Debit (Variable)	Monthly Direct Debit (fixed)
Overview	You pay for what you use each quarter straight from your bank account.	You pay the same amount each month straight from your bank account.
Payment frequency	Your payment will be taken from your bank account 14 days after your bill is produced	Choose a payment date between 1st and 28th each month to suit you.
Payment amount	This will vary depending on how much electricity you've used in the billing period	We look at your historical energy consumption to forecast your costs for the next 12 months. Your set monthly payment amount is reviewed annually and on occasion 6-monthly to ensure you're paying the right amount.
Bill or statement	Bill every 3 months	Bill every 3 months
Discount applied	2.5%*	4%**

If you choose to register for an online account you’ll also receive a 2%*** discount (on top of your Direct Debit discount!).

* Quarterly Direct Debit customers get 2.5% discount, up to £6.50 per quarter, equivalent to £26 per year. The maximum discount would be obtained by a customer spending £250 each quarter on electricity. To view Power NI standard rates please visit our
unit rates page.

**Monthly Direct Debit customers get 4% discount, up to £10 per quarter, equivalent to £40 per year. The maximum discount would be obtained by a customer spending £250 each quarter on electricity. To view Power NI standard rates please visit our unit rates page.

*** Online billing customers with Monthly Direct Debit get 4% discount, off the Power NI standard rate, up to £10 per quarter equivalent to £40 per year and will receive a further 2% off the Power NI standard rate, up to £5 per quarter equivalent to £20 per year. The maximum discount would be obtained by a customer spending £250 each quarter on electricity. To view Power NI standard rates please visit our unit rates page.

*** Online billing quarterly Direct Debit customers get 4.5% discount, up to £11.50 per quarter, the equivalent to £46 per year. The maximum discount would be obtained by a customer spending £250 each quarter on electricity. To view Power NI standard rates please visit our unit rates page.

Question 2

How is my Monthly Direct Debit calculated?

Accepted Answer

If we have your historical energy consumption, we will forecast your energy costs for the next 12 months. If we do not have historical data, we will calculate your monthly payments based on some property details e.g. property type – detached, flat, number of bedrooms, number of rooms in total and number of occupants.

This cost is then split into equal monthly amounts to enable you to make regular instalments instead of having to pay the entire bill in one payment each quarter.

We’ll send you a letter to confirm your monthly amount and the date on which your Direct Debit will be taken. If for any reason you need to change your payment date, you can do this in your online account. To discuss changing the amount simply contact us and we’ll be happy to help.

Question 3

How do I change the bank account my Direct Debit is taken from?

Accepted Answer

You can change the bank account your direct debit is taken from within your online account.

Login to your online account
Go to ‘My Account’ and select ‘My Details’
Within ‘My Details’ select the option ‘Payment Details’
To update your bank details, click on ‘update’
Edit your account number and sort code
Save your changes to complete the request.

Don’t have an online account. Why not register today and manage your energy online.

Question 4

Why has my Direct Debit changed?

Accepted Answer

We try to average out the amount you're paying each month over a 12-month period. But some things can affect those payments and, if they do, then we'll adjust your Direct Debit accordingly.

For example:

You may simply be using more or less energy than we expected due to a change in your circumstances.
You may have a large credit or debit from the previous period, which we've carried over.
Your bills may have been estimated. If you want to find out if your bill has been estimated you can look at your bill and see if there is an ‘E’ beside the meter reading. When we obtain actual meter readings, we can see exactly how much energy you're using. If we’re unable to obtain an actual meter reading, we'll estimate how much energy you're using.

Question 5

Do I get my bill before my Direct Debit is taken?

Accepted Answer

Monthly Direct Debit
If you are paying by Monthly Direct Debit (equal monthly payments) you will receive a bill as usual each quarter, but your Direct Debit will be taken out each month.

Quarterly Direct Debit
If you pay by Quarterly Direct Debit (full bill amount every 3 months) you will receive your bill in advance of your payment being made each quarter. Payment is usually taken 14 days after the date on the bill.

Bills & Payments

How do I change my Direct Debit amount?

More billing questions