Electricity bill guide
Is your electricity bill right? Check it every month.
The DISCOM meter decides what you pay. A meter of your own, reading the same supply, tells you whether that number is fair. Most bill mistakes are small, and they repeat every month until someone compares.
What a check meter is
The DISCOM meter stays the billing meter. A check meter is your own meter, on your side of it, reading the same incoming supply.
The multifunction meter already in your main incomer panel can usually do this job. It has to log readings, not just display them: a number you saw once on a screen does not help in a complaint.
A check meter does not replace the bill. It gives you dated readings, so when a figure on the bill looks wrong you can say by how much, and when.
What to compare each month
Line up the same reading dates as the bill first. Then go through the bill line by line.
| Bill line | From your meter | Look closer when |
|---|---|---|
| Energy (kVAh or kWh) | Units between the two reading dates | The gap is more than a small reading-time difference |
| TOD zone units | Units in peak, normal and off-peak hours | Peak units on the bill are higher than your meter shows |
| Maximum Demand | Highest 15- or 30-minute demand, and when it happened | Billed MD is higher, or was set on a day the plant was shut |
| Billing demand | The higher of MD and the share of Contract Demand your tariff sets | The fixed charge uses a figure you cannot match |
| Power factor | Average power factor for the month | A power factor penalty when your meter shows it above the limit |
| Solar export | Units sent out to the grid | Export is not netted, or is netted at the wrong rate |
Bill lines differ by state, DISCOM and consumer category. Your tariff order lists which ones apply to you. Work out the full bill with the electricity bill calculator.
The usual mistakes
- Reading dates differ. Your month and the DISCOM’s month do not line up. Compare the same dates before anything else.
- Wrong multiplying factor. After a CT or PT change, the meter constant on the bill was not updated.
- Estimated reading. The bill says average, provisional or assessed instead of an actual reading.
- Wrong zone split. Units moved into peak hours, or one season’s TOD hours applied in the wrong months.
- Demand on the wrong base. Minimum billing demand applied when your MD was higher, or the other way round.
- Arrears and adjustments. Old amounts, rebates or surcharges added without a line you can trace.
A worked example
Take an illustrative plant on a kVA demand tariff. The bill shows an MD of 412 kVA. The plant’s own meter shows that its highest 30-minute demand that month was 368 kVA, on the 14th at 11:30.
| Illustrative month | Value |
|---|---|
| MD on the bill | 412 kVA |
| Highest demand on your meter | 368 kVA |
| Gap | 44 kVA |
| Demand charge | ₹300 per kVA |
| Extra on this month’s bill | ₹13,200 |
Illustrative figures. Demand rates and how billing demand is worked out differ by state, DISCOM and consumer category. Check your tariff order and bill.
The plant may still owe the 412 kVA: a meter in a different place, or a different interval, can read differently. But with a dated reading, the plant can ask the question and get an answer, instead of paying and moving on.
A wrong multiplying factor or a stuck estimated reading does not fix itself. It repeats on every bill until someone compares, so a small gap can add up to a large amount over a year.
When the numbers do not match
- Recompute on the same dates. Most gaps close once the reading dates line up.
- Write to your DISCOM sub-division with your dated readings, and ask for a meter test if the gap stays.
- Not settled? Take it to your DISCOM’s Consumer Grievance Redressal Forum, and then to the Electricity Ombudsman, under Section 42 of the Electricity Act, 2003.
Free downloads
No signup. Use them as they are, or change them to suit your plant.
- HT bill checklist (PDF). Two pages to print: every bill line, what to check, and what to do if a number does not match. Download the checklist
- MD, PF and kVAh log sheet (Excel). One row a month. It works out power factor, load factor and billing demand, and flags what to check. Download the log sheet
How KONDUKTOR® EMS helps
KONDUKTOR® EMS reads the multifunction meters already on your panels and keeps every reading on a gateway inside your plant.
- Every meter logs energy, TOD zone units, Maximum Demand with the time it happened, and power factor.
- The Bill page works out the month’s bill in your DISCOM’s format, from the tariff you enter.
- Type the DISCOM’s net payable into Reconciliation and see the gap straight away.
- As part of your project, a monthly bill history keeps every DISCOM bill next to the EMS figure, line by line, with the billing month set to your DISCOM’s reading date.
Common questions
Can I put my own meter next to the DISCOM meter?+
Yes, on your side of it. The DISCOM meter stays the billing meter. Your own meter, on the same incoming supply, gives you dated readings to back up a complaint.
Which meter do I need to check my bill?+
A multifunction meter on the main incomer that records energy, demand and power factor. Many plants already have one in the panel; it only needs to log readings, not just display them.
How close should my meter and the DISCOM meter be?+
Compare the same dates first. After that, a gap of a fraction of a percent is normal. A steady gap of several percent, or a demand figure you cannot find on your own meter, is worth taking up with the DISCOM.
Not sure your bill is right? Send us your last 3 bills.
We check them line by line and tell you what to look at, free.