What to do if you can't pay your electricity bill in Sweden
Many people across Sweden will be receiving sky-high energy bills over the next few days, following high rates in December and a higher-than-average usage for many over the Christmas period. What options do you have if you're not able to pay?
The average price for electricity reached record highs over much of Sweden last month, and with cold winter weather and the Christmas holidays causing people to use more electricity, many people will be in for a shock as electricity bills reach households.
"During the month of December, we started to notice more phone calls to our customer service from customers who were worried about their January bill, which will be arriving shortly," the press officer of electricity company Vattenfall, William Fredriksson, told The Local.
"Looking ahead, we're expecting a lot of customers to need help with their bills."
The situation looks slightly different for electricity provider E.ON.
"We've seen an increased pressure on our customer service throughout the whole year," E.ON's press officer Mikael Bladh told The Local.
"It's been lower over the last month, maybe because prices have been lower than expected during the autumn, but bills for December are going to be record-high for many, so it's likely that pressure on customer service will increase."
How expensive will energy bills be for December?
During December, the TT newswire states, a standard detached house will use around 11 percent of its yearly electricity, meaning that a home in the southernmost electricity zone with a usage of 20,000 kWh per year could be looking at a bill of almost 9,800 kronor for December, with taxes and fees factored in.
A similar home in zone three could be billed around 9,700 kronor, TT calculates, with the same kind of property in zones one and two paying 8,000 kronor.
People who live in apartments will obviously have lower electricity costs than that, and in many cases the electricity bill may be included in your monthly fee to the housing association instead.
We can expect energy bills to remain high for a few months, so it's a good idea to keep that in mind and budget for this in the coming weeks.
"Generally, usage is much higher from around December to March," Fredriksson told The Local. "So there are a few months coming up now where you can expect slightly higher bills than usual."
What are my options if I can't pay?
"What you can do, first and foremost, is already start working on lowering your usage now," Fredriksson said. "Afterwards, get in touch and discuss delaying your bill or setting up an instalment plan."
"Take a look at your usage, lower your usage. Do as much as you can. That's the best way to lower the cost," Bladh said.
Having said that, if you absolutely cannot pay your bill, you should always reach out to your electricity company as soon as possible and let them know. If possible, do this before your payment is due, so that you don't start accruing extra fees for reminders and delayed payments which will only make things worse.
"Don't just put the bill to one side - deal with it as soon as possible," Bladh said.
"We have the possibility to offer payment plans, where you can, for example, pay half when the bill is due and half in a month or so."
"If you can see that you really can't pay, contact customer support as soon as possible. Even though we've increased our staff, there's a risk there'll be a lot of pressure at the end of the month," he added.
Some providers may allow you to split a bill up over the course of a few months, or extend the due date on your bill so you pay it next month. If you are interested in this, ask your electricity provider about the possibilities for delbetalning (paying in instalments) or att skjuta fram/upp (delaying) your bill.
Bear in mind, however, that winter is by no means over, and both of these options will result in having to pay two bills at once further down the line, which will be even more difficult to pay.
"It's smart to think one step ahead and make sure you can pay future bills, too. If you delay your bill, you'll have two bills to pay at once next month, so make sure you've thought about how you're going to pay for them," Fredriksson said.
Electricity companies are also less likely to offer this option if you have a history of not paying your bills on time or are a new customer, so bear that in mind.
"The general rule is that you need to have paid all your earlier bills. Of course, we can always have a dialogue and see what's possible, but if you've paid all your previous bills before you get in touch, we've got a good chance of being able to find a solution," Fredriksson said.
An alternate option which won't result in a larger bill further down the line is asking your electricity company to start billing you every month if you currently pay every quarter, which can make planning your finances easier.
"There are fewer lump sums and it's easier to plan your expenses," Fredriksson said.
What happens if I don't pay?
"At the end of the day, the bill needs to be paid," Bladh told The Local. "The absolute best thing to do is try and pay the bill. Accumulating debts is not a long-term solution."
Neglecting to pay the bill completely is best avoided, as it will just make the problem worse and more expensive. On top of the original bill, you will be charged reminder fees and delayed payment fees by your energy company.
Even more so if your bill is handed over to a debt collection agency. The agency will try to contact you on your energy company's behalf, and each time they contact you, this will also incur a fee. In the long run, this can end up costing you hundreds - or even thousands - of kronor more in fees, on top of your original bill.
"You should be aware that when you go down this debt collection route, every debt collection measure also incurs a cost for the customer," Bladh said. "So it's not good for anyone to end up in the debt collection system. It only makes things more expensive."
"If you don't pay, more letters will arrive, new reminders, then the social services will get in touch, and then you'll be issued with a legal notice before any further measures are discussed. Generally, it's quite a long process," Fredriksson said.
If you never pay, the electricity company will eventually cut off your electricity. Not only is this a pain, it also means that you will incur yet another fee to reconnect your electricity in the future, and your electricity company may be more reluctant to have you as a customer.
"You'll get a reminder, and then it will be passed on to the debt collection company we use. If, despite this, you still don't pay, you risk your electricity being cut off," Bladh said.
"It's usually a few weeks before disconnecting electricity is up for discussion," Fredriksson said. "Usually more than ten weeks from the date the original bill was due."
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The average price for electricity reached record highs over much of Sweden last month, and with cold winter weather and the Christmas holidays causing people to use more electricity, many people will be in for a shock as electricity bills reach households.
"During the month of December, we started to notice more phone calls to our customer service from customers who were worried about their January bill, which will be arriving shortly," the press officer of electricity company Vattenfall, William Fredriksson, told The Local.
"Looking ahead, we're expecting a lot of customers to need help with their bills."
The situation looks slightly different for electricity provider E.ON.
"We've seen an increased pressure on our customer service throughout the whole year," E.ON's press officer Mikael Bladh told The Local.
"It's been lower over the last month, maybe because prices have been lower than expected during the autumn, but bills for December are going to be record-high for many, so it's likely that pressure on customer service will increase."
How expensive will energy bills be for December?
During December, the TT newswire states, a standard detached house will use around 11 percent of its yearly electricity, meaning that a home in the southernmost electricity zone with a usage of 20,000 kWh per year could be looking at a bill of almost 9,800 kronor for December, with taxes and fees factored in.
A similar home in zone three could be billed around 9,700 kronor, TT calculates, with the same kind of property in zones one and two paying 8,000 kronor.
People who live in apartments will obviously have lower electricity costs than that, and in many cases the electricity bill may be included in your monthly fee to the housing association instead.
We can expect energy bills to remain high for a few months, so it's a good idea to keep that in mind and budget for this in the coming weeks.
"Generally, usage is much higher from around December to March," Fredriksson told The Local. "So there are a few months coming up now where you can expect slightly higher bills than usual."
What are my options if I can't pay?
"What you can do, first and foremost, is already start working on lowering your usage now," Fredriksson said. "Afterwards, get in touch and discuss delaying your bill or setting up an instalment plan."
"Take a look at your usage, lower your usage. Do as much as you can. That's the best way to lower the cost," Bladh said.
Having said that, if you absolutely cannot pay your bill, you should always reach out to your electricity company as soon as possible and let them know. If possible, do this before your payment is due, so that you don't start accruing extra fees for reminders and delayed payments which will only make things worse.
"Don't just put the bill to one side - deal with it as soon as possible," Bladh said.
"We have the possibility to offer payment plans, where you can, for example, pay half when the bill is due and half in a month or so."
"If you can see that you really can't pay, contact customer support as soon as possible. Even though we've increased our staff, there's a risk there'll be a lot of pressure at the end of the month," he added.
Some providers may allow you to split a bill up over the course of a few months, or extend the due date on your bill so you pay it next month. If you are interested in this, ask your electricity provider about the possibilities for delbetalning (paying in instalments) or att skjuta fram/upp (delaying) your bill.
Bear in mind, however, that winter is by no means over, and both of these options will result in having to pay two bills at once further down the line, which will be even more difficult to pay.
"It's smart to think one step ahead and make sure you can pay future bills, too. If you delay your bill, you'll have two bills to pay at once next month, so make sure you've thought about how you're going to pay for them," Fredriksson said.
Electricity companies are also less likely to offer this option if you have a history of not paying your bills on time or are a new customer, so bear that in mind.
"The general rule is that you need to have paid all your earlier bills. Of course, we can always have a dialogue and see what's possible, but if you've paid all your previous bills before you get in touch, we've got a good chance of being able to find a solution," Fredriksson said.
An alternate option which won't result in a larger bill further down the line is asking your electricity company to start billing you every month if you currently pay every quarter, which can make planning your finances easier.
"There are fewer lump sums and it's easier to plan your expenses," Fredriksson said.
What happens if I don't pay?
"At the end of the day, the bill needs to be paid," Bladh told The Local. "The absolute best thing to do is try and pay the bill. Accumulating debts is not a long-term solution."
Neglecting to pay the bill completely is best avoided, as it will just make the problem worse and more expensive. On top of the original bill, you will be charged reminder fees and delayed payment fees by your energy company.
Even more so if your bill is handed over to a debt collection agency. The agency will try to contact you on your energy company's behalf, and each time they contact you, this will also incur a fee. In the long run, this can end up costing you hundreds - or even thousands - of kronor more in fees, on top of your original bill.
"You should be aware that when you go down this debt collection route, every debt collection measure also incurs a cost for the customer," Bladh said. "So it's not good for anyone to end up in the debt collection system. It only makes things more expensive."
"If you don't pay, more letters will arrive, new reminders, then the social services will get in touch, and then you'll be issued with a legal notice before any further measures are discussed. Generally, it's quite a long process," Fredriksson said.
If you never pay, the electricity company will eventually cut off your electricity. Not only is this a pain, it also means that you will incur yet another fee to reconnect your electricity in the future, and your electricity company may be more reluctant to have you as a customer.
"You'll get a reminder, and then it will be passed on to the debt collection company we use. If, despite this, you still don't pay, you risk your electricity being cut off," Bladh said.
"It's usually a few weeks before disconnecting electricity is up for discussion," Fredriksson said. "Usually more than ten weeks from the date the original bill was due."
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