Are you due an energy supplier refund?

The mild British winter led to some 13 million households being given excessive energy bills (AFP/Getty Images)

The relatively mild winter means you could be in line for a refund from your energy supplier, and it won't be peanuts! New research published this week suggests the average household in credit with their energy company could be owed £86.

Comparison site uSwitch reckons some 13 million households – around half of all – could be owed money, leading to a bill for the big gas and electricity companies of £1.2bn.

More than a fifth are in credit by £100 or more, while 260,000 households across the country could potentially be able to reclaim more than £500 back from their supplier. That's almost half the cost of an average annual bill.

Ann Robinson of uSwitch said: "Energy bills are often based on estimates rather than usage, and so they can be very far off the mark. Reclaiming this credit has never been easier as new rules from Ofgem mean suppliers must refund this money to customers whenever they request it."

Meanwhile, regular Your Money reader Colin Andrews from Wivenhoe has no plans to reclaim a credit from his energy company. Why?

"We are with OVO Energy and in credit to the tune of almost £300," he explains. "But I'm quite happy to leave it with them because they pay us 3 per cent interest." A heads–up to other suppliers.