Direct Debit is an easy way to pay for your energy. Your payments are automatically taken so you don’t need to remember to pay for your invoice each month/ quarter which prevents you incurring a late payment fee. Some tariffs we have offer a discount for paying by Direct Debit. 

Fixed Direct Debit

When you first join us, we calculate your Direct Debit amount based on the information you provide to us in your quote. If you're an existing customer switching to Direct Debit, we'll calculate your payments using the most up-to-date information we have on your energy consumption.  We take your expected energy usage for the next 12 months, work out the cost, and divide it by 12 so you’re spreading your energy costs over the whole year.   

After your Direct Debit has been in place for a few months, we would review your Direct Debit amount for up to 4 times a year. During your review, we’ll consider any changes to your monthly consumption and balance on your account (whether you owe us money or have a credit)
 

Variable Direct Debit

Paying your energy bill through Variable Direct Debit each month means you're only paying for the energy you use that month. This approach helps you stay on top of your consumption, so you can easily track how much energy you're using each month. It’s a straightforward way to ensure your payments are in line with your usage, giving you a clearer picture of your energy costs.  The payment amount and payment date will be clearly outlined on each bill you receive.  

Your Direct Debits are subject to change if your annual consumption is different to what we have estimated. Your Direct Debit amount may also change when you agree a new tariff depending on the pricing.

You will receive an invoice either monthly or quarterly depending on how your billing frequency is set up.

We set your monthly Direct Debit amount by estimating how much energy we think you’ll use over the next 12 months. We divide the total by 12 so you pay the same Direct Debit amount each month.

If your Direct Debit is set at the right amount, you'll build up enough credit over the summer to cover the cost of your higher winter energy use. At the end of your billing year, you'll have paid the right amount for the energy you’ve used.

We may review your Direct Debit payments when we get a meter reading. If we see you're not building up enough credit in the summer to cover your winter energy costs, we may put up your Direct Debit.

Direct Debit is designed to spread your energy cost evenly over 12 months. But occasionally, we may need to take more than one payment in a month.

There are two possible reasons for this:

  1. The timing of your Direct Debit set-up
  2. You had an outstanding balance on your account when you set up your Direct Debit

Don't worry, you'll only ever pay for the energy you use.

1. The timing of your Direct Debit set-up

Generally, we’ll take your Direct Debit on, or shortly after, your chosen monthly payment date. However, your first payment may be different.

Direct Debit rules state that we have to give 14 days’ notice when requesting payments from your bank. So, if your chosen payment date is less than 14 days away from setting up your Direct Debit, we can’t take the first payment on your chosen day.

In this case, we'll take the payment as close to your chosen date as possible after the 14 days. Your next payment is then taken on your chosen date. Depending on the timing, this might mean your first payment falls within the same month as your second.

If we didn't do this, you would only make 11 payments in the year, instead of 12, and your monthly payments would be higher as a result.

2. An outstanding balance on your account

If you have an outstanding balance on your account, we’ll debit this from your bank account when we first set up your Direct Debit (unless you’ve agreed a payment plan to pay off the balance).

The payment of your outstanding balance is in addition to your 12 monthly Direct Debit payment amounts for the coming year. This means that two payments will come out of your bank account during the first month of your Direct Debit arrangement with us.

If your payment method changes from Direct Debit, your prices may increase by 10p per day on your standing change and 1p per kwh on your unit rates. 

How it works

  • You or your smart meter gives us a meter reading each month
  • We then send you a bill for the energy you've used
  • You pay your monthly bill automatically by Direct Debit

If we don't get your reading on time, we'll send you an estimated bill – and you pay this automatically by Direct Debit.

What to do if you didn't want an estimated bill

Just send us a meter reading within 10 days of getting your estimated bill (that's before we ask your bank for payment). We can then cancel your estimated bill, and send you a new one based on your meter readings.

When to give your meter readings

We'll ask you to give us a reading once a month when you pay your bill in full by Direct Debit – so you can pay for the exact amount of energy you use each month.

It's also a good idea to give us a meter reading if you change your tariff or we've let you know that your tariff prices are changing. This way, we know exactly how much energy you used at your old prices – and charge it at the right amount.

Of course, you don't need to give any readings at all if you have a smart meter that does it for you.

Refunds when you're in credit

Any credit on your account will be used to reduce your next monthly bill. So you don't need to ask for a refund.

If you're still keen to get a refund, please get in touch (we'll ask you for a meter reading to keep your account balance up to date).

Refunds when you move home

We can automatically refund any credit on your account within three working days of your final bill – as long as you don't cancel your Direct Debit.

As soon as the refund has gone through, we'll cancel your Direct Debit for you. We'll also delete your bank details from our system.

Refunds when you switch supplier

You should get a final bill within six weeks of completing your switch. If you're in credit, we refund your bank account within three working days of the date on your bill – as long as you don't cancel your Direct Debit.

As soon as the refund has gone through, we'll cancel your Direct Debit for you. We'll also delete your bank details from our system.