Switching from prepayment to paying by credit

If you have a smart meter in prepayment mode you can ask your energy supplier to change it so you can pay by credit. This means you pay for your energy after you use it.

If you have a non-smart prepayment meter, you can ask your energy supplier to replace it with a smart meter. This type of meter has prepayment and credit settings your supplier can turn on or off without needing to visit your property.

Your supplier usually won’t switch you to paying by credit if you’re in debt to them.

You can find out who your gas or electricity supplier is if you don’t already know.

You won't have to pay to have a smart meter installed. If your supplier wants to charge you, contact the Citizens Advice consumer helpline.

If you don’t want to have a smart meter installed you should speak to your supplier. Ask if they have any other options for you.

If you rent your home

If you pay your supplier directly for your energy you don’t need your landlord's permission to change how you pay for it. Your supplier will ask you to pass a credit check or pay a deposit if you’re switching from prepayment to credit.

You could consider letting your landlord know if you’re going to change your meter. You should think about your relationship with them and if they’d be annoyed by you changing the meter. They might use it as a reason to evict you.

You might need to get your meter or smart meter mode changed back at the end of your tenancy.

If you’ll be in the middle of a fixed tariff contract when your tenancy ends, you might need to pay an exit fee.

Check your tenancy agreement - it should say if you need to change it back.

Find out more about switching suppliers and tariffs when you’re renting.

If you were wrongly forced onto prepayment

In February 2023 Ofgem, the energy regulator, asked all energy suppliers to review any recent decisions they made to:

• force customers onto a prepayment meter

• remotely switch smart meter customers to prepayment

Ofgem asked energy suppliers to check they followed the rules when switching customers to prepayment. You can check the rules your supplier should have followed.

If your supplier didn’t follow the rules, you might be able to get your:

• non-smart prepayment meter switched to a smart meter in credit mode

• smart meter switched to credit mode 

If you have a non-smart prepayment meter and you don’t want to have a smart meter installed you should speak to your supplier. Ask if they have any other options for you.

In some cases you might be offered compensation. 

Complain to your supplier if you think you were wrongly switched to prepayment.

If it isn’t safe or practical for you to be on prepayment

Tell your supplier if it isn’t safe or practical for you to be on prepayment, even if you’re in debt - switch your account so you pay by credit. 

If you’ve finished paying off debt

If you don’t want to be on prepayment anymore, your supplier must: 

• remove your old-style prepayment meter and give you a smart meter in credit mode

• switch your smart meter to credit mode 

If you’d prefer to stay on prepayment, your supplier must reset your meter so you're not paying too much.

You might need a credit check or deposit

Before your supplier installs your new meter or turns off your smart meter's prepayment setting, you might have to have a credit check or pay a deposit. If you’d rather not have a credit check you can ask to pay a deposit instead. Your supplier might not agree to this but it’s worth checking.

If your supplier asks for a deposit, it should be for a reasonable amount. They should work out what’s reasonable by looking at how much energy households like yours use over 3 months. This is usually between £150 and £300, though it could be more.

If it's much more, complain to your supplier, asking to know how they decided the amount. 

Check your final credit before you move off prepayment

Before your supplier installs your new meter or turns off your smart meter's prepayment setting, make a note of how much credit you have left. Your supplier will transfer your credit to your new account, so it will go towards your first bill.

If you owe money to your supplier because you've used some emergency credit, write this down instead. They’ll add what you owe to your first bill.

You should also take a final meter reading.

It’s a good idea to take a photo of the meter, so you have proof of what it says.

Book an appointment with your supplier to install your meter

Your supplier should offer you an appointment as soon as they can. This depends on how urgent your appointment is and how busy they are.

Appointments are usually within normal working hours. Working hours usually means between 9am and 5pm. You usually have to choose a time slot between 2 and 4 hours.

If they offer an appointment that doesn't work for you, ask for a different date and time. Your supplier should say yes if they can.

Your supplier must pay you compensation if they:

• miss the appointment

• change the appointment without your agreement and with less than 1 working day’s notice

• send someone without the right qualifications or tools to do the work

They’ll pay you £30 compensation within 10 working days. If they haven’t paid within 10 working days, they’ll pay you another £30.