How we helped a Brackley Farming Business recover £76,000 on their electricity bill

Our client, TJH Nunnely, is a farming business based near Brackley with significant electricity consumption across its agricultural operations and business park. Like many similar businesses, energy is one of its largest operating costs, making accurate billing and effective account management essential.

Clear Utility Solutions supports hundreds of farming businesses across the UK, helping them secure competitive farming energy contracts while providing ongoing support throughout the life of those agreements.

The Challenge

Toby at TJH contacted us after receiving an unexpected electricity bill for almost £140,000.

The size of the bill immediately raised concerns, particularly as the customer had always made every effort to manage their account correctly by regularly submitting meter readings to their supplier.

Following an initial review, it became clear that this wasn't simply a case of increased energy usage.

For several years, the supplier had failed to use the customer's submitted meter readings and instead continued billing using incorrect estimated readings. As a result, the account significantly understated the farm's actual electricity consumption over a prolonged period.

At the same time, the account had remained on expensive out of contract rates for years. During our investigation, we uncovered a series of failures in the supplier's communication which meant the customer was never properly informed that their contract had ended or that they had been moved onto significantly higher out of contract prices. When the supplier eventually updated the account to reflect the correct meter readings, the additional electricity consumption was charged at these inflated rates, resulting in a demand of almost £140,000.

Understandably, the customer wanted to know whether the bill was legal and correct before making such a substantial payment.

Our Approach

We carried out a forensic audit of the account, reviewing several years of invoices, meter readings, consumption data, contract history and supplier correspondence to establish exactly how the account had reached this position. Our investigation identified several serious issues.

Despite the customer consistently providing accurate meter readings, these had not been applied to the account. Instead, the supplier continued relying on estimated readings, meaning the customer was repeatedly billed for far less electricity than they had actually consumed.

We also identified that the account had remained on out of contract tariffs for an extended period. This meant that when the supplier eventually reconciled the account, much of the historic consumption had been priced using some of the highest commercial electricity rates available.

Drawing on our experience in complex commercial energy billing, we challenged the supplier's handling of the account, questioned why customer readings had been ignored and disputed the application of prolonged out of contract pricing.

We gathered supporting evidence, managed all communication with the supplier and pursued the dispute on the customer's behalf until a fair outcome was achieved.

Throughout the process, the customer was kept informed while we handled every stage of what became a lengthy and technically complex investigation.

The Results

Following detailed negotiations and a full review of the account, the supplier accepted that significant corrections were required.

Clear Utility Solutions successfully secured a refund and billing adjustment worth more than £76,000, dramatically reducing the customer's financial liability.

The outcome delivered:

• £76,000+ recovered through corrected billing.

• A near 55% reduction in the supplier's original demand.

• Years of historic billing errors identified and corrected.

• Incorrect use of customer meter readings successfully challenged.

• Full management of the dispute from investigation through to resolution.

• Complete peace of mind for the customer.

Most importantly, the customer avoided paying tens of thousands of pounds in charges that were either unfair or should never have been applied.

Client Testimonial

"Receiving a bill for almost £140,000 was incredibly stressful and we genuinely didn't know where to turn. Clear Utility Solutions investigated the account thoroughly, identified issues that had built up over several years and handled the entire dispute on our behalf.

They kept us informed throughout and fought our corner every step of the way. Thanks to their persistence and expertise, they secured corrections worth more than £76,000.

Without their support, we would almost certainly have accepted the supplier's figures. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Clear Utility Solutions to any farmer or business looking for an energy consultant that genuinely looks after its customers." Toby Nunnely (owner) – TJH Nunnely

Why Choose Clear Utility Solutions?

Our team is proud to deliver better energy solutions for farming businesses across the UK. Whether reducing financial pressure by finding more affordable options, or making our customer’s operations easier through our post-contract support, we help to solve your energy problems with your business goals in mind.

Our sales agents endeavour to secure the best deals for you, and our customer support means you’ll always speak to a human. 

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