An Empirical Analysis of Delayed Electricity Bill Payment and Its Effect on Revenue Collection and Financial Health of Power Utilities
Delayed electricity bill payment has become an important behavioural and financial concern for power utilities, as delayed recovery may affect revenue collection, cash flow stability, arrears management and long-term financial sustainability. This study examines the impact of delayed electricity bill payment behaviour on the financial health of power utilities, with specific attention to consumer category-wise variation in payment delay behaviour. The study adopted a quantitative approach using primary data collected from 400 electricity consumers belonging to domestic, commercial, industrial, agricultural and institutional or other categories. The instrument measured delayed electricity bill payment behaviour and financial health of power utilities through structured Likert-scale statements, and the data were analysed using descriptive statistics, reliability analysis, simple linear regression and one-way ANOVA. The regression result indicated a strong positive relationship between delayed payment behaviour and financial health-related concerns, with delayed payment behaviour explaining 49.6 per cent of the variation in the dependent construct. The ANOVA result further showed a statistically significant difference in delayed payment behaviour across consumer categories, with agricultural consumers reporting the highest mean score and industrial consumers the lowest. The study highlights the need for category-specific collection strategies, improved billing accuracy, accessible payment systems and consumer awareness to strengthen the financial sustainability of power utilities.