If you decide to move or you have already relocated to your new house, you need to get in touch with your energy supplier. There are good reasons why you should do this. There are a couple of things you have to take to ensure that you don’t find yourself paying a lot of money for your gas and electricity or even paying for energy that you didn’t utilize.
Besides, there are also a few things you should do if your new house has a prepayment meter. With a prepayment meter, you need to ensure that it has money before you can have gas and electricity. This article discusses the right way to deal with gas and electricity suppliers during your move.
Before your move
Before you decide to move, you need to tell your gas and electricity about your move. You should do this at least 48 hours before the move. It’s also crucial to read the meters on the day you are moving. You can give the energy supplier these readings, but keep a note of the meter readings as well as the dates you took them.
Also, you should give your energy supplier a forwarding address so that they can send you the last energy bill. If the last or final energy bill indicates that the energy supplier owes you money, then you can claim it back.
And, if you want to terminate the contract, there are some things you need to be aware of. For example, if you have a fixed-term tariff, the energy supplier can charge you for breaking the energy contract early. This charge is also called an exit fee. You can find this exit fee on the energy bill. Sometimes, it can be cheaper to maintain your current energy supplier and simply use Utility Bidder to help you move your energy tariff to the new home, though this is a hard thing to do.
If your home has a smart meter, you need to make sure that it’s in smart mode before your move. Smart mode is when the meter transmits automatic readings to the energy supplier. But if the meter is not in smart mode, then you have to take the last reading and give it to your energy supplier.
After your move
It’s a good idea to contact your energy supplier when you have relocated to your new home to inform them that you have moved in. The energy supplier can automatically place you on a deemed contract. You should also read your energy meters on the day you occupy your new home and give the meter readings to your current energy supplier. This can assist them to give you the correct first energy bill. You should remember to pay your old energy supplier any outstanding bills. If your new house doesn’t have electricity or gas supply, then you need to check how your house can get connected to electricity or gas.
Switching to a new energy supplier can sometimes be a good idea. There is a good chance that you can make significant savings by switching. It’s worth noting that the energy market is quite competitive, so you can find cheaper deals out there.
If you visit price comparison websites, you can find many energy tariffs. But if you can’t find the one that meets your needs you can choose to wait until cheaper ones are available or contact an energy broker. The good thing about energy brokers is that they work with several energy suppliers and they can find you the right energy tariff.
If you are struggling to pay the energy bills, there are many things you can do. One of them is to switch an energy tariff or supplier once you become responsible for your new home. In some cases, switching can happen when you pay at least one energy bill with your current energy supplier. Your new energy supplier can sometimes switch your tariff within fifteen working days. When you connect with your energy supplier, you can request them to put you on their priority services register. This may work if you are a pensioner, disabled, or have a terminal illness.
If your new house has a prepayment meter, then you should call your energy supplier right away. You should not attempt to use a card or key or even put some money on the prepayment meter until you have contacted your energy supplier. Otherwise, you can pay extra money for the debts of the previous homeowners.
But if you have to place money on the prepayment meter before you call the current energy supplier, you should notify them about this. The supplier can refund you for any additional charges that you pay as long as you have proof that you moved in.
You can also ask the energy supplier to remove any debt associated with the meter so that you should not pay extra money. Also, ask the energy supplier to give you a new prepayment card or key so that you may put money on the prepayment meter. You also need to ask the energy supplier to explain how the meter functions and what you can do if you experience some problems. Once you begin using the meter, tell the energy supplier any problems you are facing with the prepayment meter. For instance, if you are failing to top up, the energy supplier can make it easier for you to use the meter.
You should also consider replacing your prepayment meter with a standard meter that allows you to pay for your energy after usage instead of paying in advance. The reason for doing this is that you pay more with a prepayment meter. Remember that even the cheapest meter can cost you more than the cost of the cheapest direct debit deal.
Also, you need to put more effort by visiting the shops just to top up your prepayment meter. Worse still, you can run out of electricity or gas if you forget to top up. Because of these reasons, it makes sense to switch to a normal meter.