What was claimed
People will face a £300 charge for using too much electricity after 9pm, from December 2025.
Our verdict
False. No such charge is being introduced.
You won’t be charged £300 for using too much electricity after 9pm
Posts on Facebook have falsely claimed that people are about to face a £300 fine if they use too much electricity after 9pm.
We’ve also seen similar posts on TikTok.
One video, presented in the manner of a TV news report, says: “From December 2025, a new UK energy rule will change how households use electricity. If you use more power than the recommended amount after 9pm, you could face a £300 charge”.
This is not true. Neither the official website of the Department for Energy Security & Net Zero, nor of the energy regulator, Ofgem, contains any reference to such a charge. Nor has it been mentioned in Parliament.
Some people are on contracts that mean their energy is more expensive at peak times (and cheaper at off-peak times). But this doesn’t involve a £300 charge for using too much energy at a specific time of day.
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The hours after 9pm would also be a strange time to implement such a charge, as this is typically when energy consumption peaks are coming to an end. Typical peak hours would be between 4pm and 7pm, with off peak hours falling overnight and at weekends.
The Facebook posts both include labels saying they were generated by AI, but the comments suggest they were believed by some people.
We’ve seen a lot of posts announcing nonexistent policies to curb personal freedoms recently. We wrote about this phenomenon in more detail in September.
Before sharing videos like this on social media, first consider whether they come from a trustworthy and verifiable source. Our Full Fact toolkit can help you do this.