The collective cost of late fees is close to $300 million, Commonwealth Bank research shows

Esther Han

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Australians were hit with a shocking financial penalty of $286 million for failing to pay their bills on time in the past year, a new survey shows.

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A new report reveals Australians are being charged unfair fees on their power bill, with most households paying the inflated fees regardless of how much energy they use.

One-third of Australians admitted to paying a bill late, with the top reasons being "forgot when it was due", "didn't have enough money", and "misplaced/deleted the bill".

The Commonwealth Bank's survey of more than 1000 people found the average fee for a late payment of a bill was $24, leading it to conclude Australians were unnecessarily forking out $286 million a year.

Generation X customers, those born between the mid-1960s and the early 1980s, accounted for nearly half of all late fees paid. Gen Y paid $88.5 million, and Baby Boomers $46.4 million.

A quick scan of the websites of major telcos and energy providers showed late payment fees of up to $15.

EnergyAustralia and Origin charge $12 for the late payment of a bill. Telstra and Optus whack their customers with a $15 penalty.

Telstra was once the target of a multi-million dollar class action, accused of fleecing customers with its late payment fees. At the time, it was claimed Telstra alone had collected $272 million in "late fees and other miscellaneous fees" in the 2014 financial year.

The Commonwealth Bank is using the startling survey findings to launch its new "Better Bill Experience" feature on its Commbank app and Netbank platforms, which may help customers avoid paying late fees.

The new feature allows customers to have their bills sent directly to the CommBank app and NetBank, rather than via the post or email, view new bills in a calendar, providing a snapshot of where upcoming bills are scheduled and when they are due, and choose to automatically pay bills.

For the first time, customers with an Apple iPhone 5 or newer model can take a photo of the bill using the app. The app will prepopulate the BPAY, amount and due date fields, making bill paying quicker and easier.

"Photo-a-bill in the CommBank app not only ensures fewer mistakes, but it gives our customers a much easier way to pay their bills," said Danielle Murrie, the bank's general manager of deposits and transactions.

"It also speeds up the process, as we know Australians are spending on average 15 hours a year managing their bills."

The survey also found 61 per cent, or 10 million Australians, considered themselves "very organised" when it came to paying bills, 31 per cent said they had missed or forgotten a bill in the past, and 2 per cent admitted they often forgot to pay bills on time.

About one-third said they mostly received their bills online, half said they used a mix of paper and email, while 9 per cent said they solely relied on paper bills.

Ian Johnson, a self-employed builder from Haberfield, estimated that over the course of a year he could be paying up to $200 in various late payment fees.

"It can be high pressure, business wise, to keep up with what's happening, especially when you don't have someone just doing the admin. If you're a one-man band, it can be hard to always check, know what's in the account, invoices, what bills need to paid," he said.

"The fees can build up very quickly. I used to go overseas on a semi-regular basis and missed the mail, so I paid late fees," he said.

"It's happening less now, I've really clamped down on it, by setting up automatic payments and doing as much as possible online."