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Prepayment meter vs normal supply

qbazdz
qbazdz Posts: 140 Forumite
Hi All,

I'm moving into a new place soon and obviously wanted to switch to the cheapest possible tariff.
At the moment I only know that this property is on a prepayment meter and as I've never used these I wonder if they are more expensive then the normal supply?
Why are these installed anyway?

Is it possible to take it of a prepayment meter and would it be beneficial to me?

Regards!

Comments

  • pooch
    pooch Posts: 828 Forumite
    qbazdz wrote: »
    Hi All,

    I'm moving into a new place soon and obviously wanted to switch to the cheapest possible tariff.
    At the moment I only know that this property is on a prepayment meter and as I've never used these I wonder if they are more expensive then the normal supply?
    Why are these installed anyway?

    Is it possible to take it of a prepayment meter and would it be beneficial to me?

    Regards!
    Usually the same price as the suppliers standard tariff.

    Not everyone can get credit. You'll need to speak with the supplier to see if they will give you credit.
  • macman
    macman Posts: 53,128 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper
    As above, same price as standard tariff. But they mean that you can't access the discounted online tariffs, which typically you save 4-6%.
    A meter change will cost around £50 if the supplier won't do it for free.
    Your LL may well object to the meter change though, check your STA.
    No free lunch, and no free laptop ;)
  • qbazdz
    qbazdz Posts: 140 Forumite
    I'll find this out today! :) We'll see how it goes, but thanks for all the info everyone!
  • sunflower_2
    sunflower_2 Posts: 1,471 Forumite
    with some suppliers the prepayment tariff is exactly the same as their standard.

    you do need to take into account however, the discounts associated with paying by monthly Direct Debit, or for paying your bill promptly.

    also - some fixed/capped tariffs are not available to prepayment customers.
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