Home oxygen electricity refunds: check you are receiving the right payments

Contact the oxygen supplier, not just the electricity company

NHS guidance directs questions about supplied equipment to the home-oxygen supplier. The oxygen company can explain the reimbursement process; the energy company’s bill is a different account. Check the supplier name on your equipment paperwork rather than assuming your electricity supplier will automatically credit the cost.

This article concerns concentrators supplied through an NHS service. It does not establish reimbursement for privately bought equipment, CPAP machines, stairlifts or every electrically powered medical aid. Ask the service responsible for a different device about its own arrangements.

Sources: NHS: prescribed home oxygen and supplier contacts

Two providers: what to check in their payment process

Baywater says it reimburses oxygen-machine usage on behalf of the NHS using a standard NHS tariff, excluding standing electricity charges. Its process uses actual readings and intervening estimates, with payments generally every three months. It needs payment details and access for equipment servicing.

Vivisol’s England page says an application must be received and approved before rebate payments can be made for use from that point onwards. It also describes meter readings, estimated periods and servicing requirements. Ask promptly if you have not received an enrolment form; do not assume installation itself completes the payment application.

Sources: Baywater: reimbursement tariff, readings and payment process; Vivisol England: application, payment and rate information

Estimate the electricity cost with the right units

For a constant draw, divide watts by 1,000 to get kilowatts, then multiply by running hours and days to get kWh. Multiply kWh by the unit price in pounds. A label may show rated power rather than measured average consumption; ask the supplier for the correct information before relying on an estimate.

Illustration: 300 W ÷ 1,000 × 16 hours × 30 days = 144 kWh. At a hypothetical 30p/kWh this costs £43.20 for those thirty days. This is teaching arithmetic, not a typical device or usage recommendation. A standing charge is not added to this incremental-use example.

Your tariff and the reimbursement rate can differ

For the same illustrative 144 kWh, a household tariff of 30p gives a £43.20 cost. If a hypothetical reimbursement calculation instead used 27p/kWh, the payment would be £38.88, a £4.32 difference. Neither price in this example is asserted as the current NHS reimbursement rate.

The checked Vivisol England page displays a rate effective from July 2026 and says it was due for review on 1 October 2026. Because that review date has passed, this guide does not present its displayed figure as a verified October rate. Ask the provider which rate applied to each part of your payment period.

Sources: Baywater: reimbursement tariff, readings and payment process; Vivisol England: application, payment and rate information

If a payment is missing or looks wrong

Compare the statement’s start and end dates, running-hours readings, device details, actual versus estimated status and payment amount. A whole-house electricity meter reading is not the same as the machine’s running-hours meter. Ask the oxygen supplier which reading it requires and how to supply it safely.

Keep the application confirmation and service records. Use the verified provider contact route to check payment details and request a written explanation of any gap. Baywater warns against giving bank details to unexpected callers; arrange updates through its established channels. If electricity costs are unaffordable, tell the oxygen service and energy supplier promptly rather than changing prescribed use.

• Confirm reimbursement registration or application approval.
• Check the payment dates and any estimated reading.
• Ask for the current rate and how usage was converted to kWh.
• Check that servicing and payment details are up to date.
• Request the correction process and a reference for missing payments.

Sources: Baywater: reimbursement tariff, readings and payment process; Vivisol England: application, payment and rate information; Baywater: safe contact and payment-detail checks