Electricty meter in rented flat

Happy_Bunny_6

HI

Does anyone know if you can change suppliers if you are using a token meter in a rented flat.
Each flat has it's own meter and it seems to be a "proper" meter
It cost £2 to run a storage heater over night and £1 to replace the hot water used for a bath, so not using those anymore but still putting at least £10 a week, even though out all day and quite a few evenings
This seems a lot for one person in a 2 bed flat,

Going to try and read the meter (it's a digital one) when it runs out and then let £10 run through and read it again, to check with current supplier

Careful_girl

I would get in touch with your landlord and discuss it. He or she will only be concerned if the bills aren't paid. However I think it was part of the contract in one property I rented that you did not change supplier. Find out who is the cheapest through uswitch or whatever Martin is suggesting currently (see main site) and then write a letter to the landlord. The more professional and reliable you sound the better. However the token system may be because it stops bills not being unpaid. I moved into a house once though where the token system had been misused somehow!!!
Good luck...sure there are loads more people with more knowledge than me though!
CG.:beer:

djohn2002uk

Ebico is worth a look. They do not charge more for prepayment.

kittiwoz

You don't have to contact the lanlord. It is you that pays the bill so you can have any supplier you choose provided it doesn't say any different in your contract. I agree EBICo is probably your best bet but do check what other companies are charging for prepay meters.

We switched to EBICo recently though we don't have a prepayment meter. In our area they are one of the cheapest suppliers of electricity even if you pay by invoice. I think I'd rather have a pre-pay meter but it is a rented house so we can't change the hardware.

emg

it sounds a bit expensive, i'm on prepayment and running 4 storage heaters and heating the hot water overnight costs about 80p. Reheating the water during the day (enough to fill the bath) is about 30p.

Leon_W

You probably have a meter owned by the landlord.

Landlords are allowed to resell electricity to tenants and set the tariff themselves but the maximum price is governed by law. The problem is, how do you know that he hasn't set a higher tariff ?