Pre-pay meters

mecca1963

I have recently moved into a rented property that has pre-pay gas & electric meters.
I have never used these before and was wondering if I should change to normal meters and if so how do I go about getting them changed?

HappyMJ

mecca1963 wrote: »

I have recently moved into a rented property that has pre-pay gas & electric meters.
I have never used these before and was wondering if I should change to normal meters and if so how do I go about getting them changed?

You could pay around £50 per meter to change them to credit meters. You'll need to check with the landlord first. You can change them without permission but you may have to pay again to change credit meters back to prepay meters at the end of your tenancy. So it may not be worth changing them unless you plan to be here for a few years.

You need to speak with the supplier to get them changed. You may need to pay a deposit as well.

Wail

I am in your exact same position at the moment.

There is nothing that the LL can do to stop you changing from PP to Credit but it is regarded as polite to ask and advise them of your intentions to do so. I have just done that to my LL and I am waiting for a response.

However, as stated above, the LL could legitimately withhold deposit to pay for an exchange back to PP at the end of the tenancy.

I would advise discussing this with your supplier and asking how much an exchange would cost. If someone is charging you, push them hard because some suppliers will do the exchange for free and no one wants to lose a customer who is willing to pay.

If you get the exchange to Credit free, it means that most you will pay is an exchange to PP at the end of the tenancy (if the LL wants them back in).

If you're lucky, SMART meters might rock up, which will possibly make it easier as running arrears on SMART meters is more difficult.