Moving home and taking tariff with me

RobUK_2

Hi everyone. I’ve had a search on here but can’t find the answer to my question, so I hope you can help. 

I’m going to be moving home hopefully in a month or two. I was wondering if it would be easier and possible to just take my current energy tariff with me to the new house, rather than ending this contract, getting a new one with the current suppliers to the new house and then potentially switching. 

I’m with npower at present and on their website it says they can supply energy to the new home if I tell them the dates etc. Does this mean I wouldn’t have to bother contacting the current supplier of energy to the new house when I move in? I would just then give npower a final meter reading at my current place and then a first meter reading at the new place? Or is this not how it works?

I hope that makes sense and thanks in advance for any replies. 

Gerry1

It will all end in tears.  You will be in an expensive deemed contract with the existing supplier the moment you switch on a light.

Robin9

You must give nPower readings from your present property when you leave and get a final bill.

You must then give the present supplier at your new house readings - then you are free to contact nPower (or whoever you want) to be the supplier.

matelodave

you generally cannot take an existing tariff from one house to another and as Gerry says will probably end in tears if you try - whatever your current supplier says. You automatically become a customer of the existing supplier in the new place, so you have to open an account with them first before you can swap.

You need to read your meters on the day you cease to be responsible for your old place and send the readings into your supplier (make sure you keep a copy of the reading and take a photo if possible). Don't forget the water meter as well if you've got one.

Likewise when you take over the new place you must read the meters and open an account with the existing supplier before you do anything else (unless you want to pay for the previous tenants or owners energy).

Again keep a copy and take a photo. Once you have done all that you are free to choose which ever supplier you want and initiate your swap. Don't forget to read the water meter as well and set up an account with the water company (again, you could end up paying for someone else's consumption if you don't do it promptly)

If you don't do it properly you can join the hundreds (or even thousands) who end up with grief and aggravation trying to sort it out several months (or even years in the future). Make sure that you keep copies of meter readings so that if summat does go wrong you've retained proof because it's nigh on impossible to get copies of old bills once you've left a supplier

DO NOT CHUCK AWAY YOUR FINAL BILL from your old supplier - retain it together with proof that it's been paid for at least two years (six is better) just in case they go to the wall and an administrator or debt collector crawls out of the woodwork in the future There are many tales of woe on this forum from those who haven't and cant prove what they paid and when.

Gerry1

Don't forget to get on the Electoral Roll PDQ, preferably the edited version unless you want lots of junk mail.

nPower

Hello RobUK_2, 
If you wish to transfer over your services to your new address you can do this, all you need to do is get in touch with us and we'll arrange this for you. You may or may not be aware, however, that we're now majority owned by EON and over the next 12 months all of our customers will migrate over to their systems. 
Thanks

brewerdave

nPower said:

Hello RobUK_2, 
If you wish to transfer over your services to your new address you can do this, all you need to do is get in touch with us and we'll arrange this for you. You may or may not be aware, however, that we're now majority owned by EON and over the next 12 months all of our customers will migrate over to their systems. 
Thanks

Bad advice - you MUST contact the existing utility suppliers to your new property yourself with opening readings, to ensure that you have an account with them BEFORE you move to anyone else! I would not depend on the above advice. As others have said , it will all end in tears if you don't.

rp1974

I,based on past experience with nPower,would treat them with the utmost caution.If you decide to take their advice expect unnecessary stress over the most basic things.Insist they put into writing what they,and you are agreeing to.

Neil49

This is the ideal opportunity to look at the full range of tariffs available from a vast number of suppliers and, more importantly, save money! 

Use the price comparison tools on sites such as www.moneysupermarket.com and select the option which lets you view all options, not just those that you can switch via their website.

You will need to have some idea of your usage (both gas and electricity I presume) , ideally in kwh rather than £. Use figures from your current property last years usage as a guide and adjust as you see fit depending on how your old and new houses vary in size.

Don't just go for the big suppliers, others such as OVO and Octopus to name just 2 have good reputations. 

Petriix

Presumably at some point switching will become easier. In theory at least you are allowed to waive the 14 day cooling off period so it's not inconceivable that it might become possible to arrange for your supply to begin with your chosen supplier on the day you move.

But I wouldn't trust that it could happen today so stick with the tried and tested method of accepting a brief period with the incumbent supplier at the new property to ensure that the correct meter readings are used and accounts are properly closed.

matelodave

You cannot be transferred to another supplier unless you are a customer of an existing one - so whatever nPower say, you become a customer of the existing supplier as soon as you turn a light on.

There is nothing stopping you from getting nPower to take over your supply but only after you have correctly opened an account with the existing supplier and given them your moving in reading