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Dealing with your business energy when moving premises

Moving between properties can be essential when businesses grow, change, or adapt to the rise of remote working.

There are many factors to consider when relocating, so our business energy experts have prepared this simple checklist to manage your electricity and gas supplies during the transition.

Moving business premises | Business energy guide

Our business relocation guide is chronological, outlining what to do at each stage of the moving process:

Before your move date
During the move
After your move

Before we start our checklist, it’s important to decide how you wish to manage your business energy during the relocation.

How to manage your business energy when moving properties

Once you’ve committed to moving and have a fixed move-out date, it’s important to consider how you wish to manage your energy during the transition. Here are the two options:

i. Relocating with your current business energy supplier or
ii. End your contract and secure another one for your new property.

We will explain each option below:

Relocating with your current business energy supplier

When you notify your business energy supplier that you are moving out, they will likely offer to supply energy to your new property.

Choosing to relocate with your existing supplier provides a significant administrative advantage, as a designated team will manage all arrangements related to your business energy needs during the move.

Your supplier will typically propose fixed rates for gas and electricity at your new location. These rates are influenced by the current energy market conditions and usually differ from your previous rates.

💡 Although relocating involves less administrative hassle, we recommend using a comparison service to ensure that the new rates offered by your supplier are competitive.

Arranging a new business energy contract

An alternative is to terminate your current business energy contract and arrange a new one at your new address.

Typically, small businesses use business energy contracts that are fixed-term agreements lasting one to three years. These contracts are tied to specific energy supply points (MPAN or MPRN) and cannot be transferred between commercial properties.

However, the business energy regulator, Ofgem, allows you to cancel your current tariffs without any exit fees in the event of a ‘change in tenancy’.

To terminate your contract due to a change in tenancy, your supplier will usually require proof of this change.

Proof of change in tenancy

Changes in tenancy rules allow companies to terminate their expensive fixed contracts early without incurring exit fees.

Due to this, most suppliers will require proof of a change in tenancy. Typically, suppliers may request one or more of the following documents:

Tenancy agreement
Lease agreement
Completion statement
License to trade agreement
Letter from estate agents or letting agents (on company-headed paper)
Letter from your landlord (on company-headed paper)

Moving business premises | Checklist

Here is our checklist of considerations for each stage of the moving process. This checklist is applicable whether you have chosen to continue with your current business energy supplier or to arrange a new contract.

When you have a fixed move date secured

Inform your business energy and gas suppliers that you are moving out. Most suppliers provide a form on their website for this purpose.
If you are currently under contract, your supplier will require proof of a change in tenancy. You will need to send your supplier proof of change in tenancy documentation.

💡 We recommend giving your business electricity and business gas supplier as much notice as possible about your move, ideally more than four weeks.

Move out date

Take a business electricity meter reading and photograph it. Even if you have a smart energy meter or a half-hourly meter that automatically transmits readings, we still recommend taking manual meter readings.
Take a business gas meter reading and photograph it.
Submit the readings to your business energy suppliers either through a form on their website or by contacting their customer services department.
Ensure that all electrical devices and gas boilers are turned off when you leave the property.

On your move-in date

Take meter readings of your new business energy meters and photograph them. If your new property has both gas and electricity connections, you will have separate meters for each. Locate these meters and take a manual meter reading for each. You don’t need to submit these readings, but keeping them as a record is advisable.
Unless you’ve been disconnected, the electricity and gas supplies at your new property should be operational.
Unless you’ve arranged to transfer your supply with your old supplier, you will start paying for gas and electricity at the new property based on the default rates of the energy supplier currently providing service to the property.

After your move date

If you did not choose to transfer your energy with your current supplier, we recommend comparing business energy prices immediately after moving into your new property. Default rates for business electricity prices and business gas rates are typically more expensive.
Once you’ve selected the ideal electricity and gas tariffs for your new property, complete a business energy switch as soon as possible to start benefiting from the cheaper fixed rates.
Settle your final business electricity and gas bills associated with your old property. Your previous suppliers will issue a final bill using your last meter readings, covering up to your move date.

Business premises relocation for business energy FAQs

Our team of business energy experts addresses commonly asked questions about relocating business premises.

What if the electricity and gas supply is disconnected when I move in?

If your new property has been vacant for some time or the previous occupant failed to pay their bills, the energy supplier may have disconnected the electricity or gas supply.

In such cases, follow these steps to get reconnected:

Identify the property’s current supplier. Visit the Energy Network Association website to find out who your electricity and gas network operators are.
Contact these network operators to obtain the details of your business energy supplier.
Request that your business energy supplier reconnect the property to the grid.

Please note that reconnection may incur a charge to restore your electricity and gas supplies.

What if my new property isn’t connected to the grid?

A distribution network operator (DNO) can usually establish an electricity supply if your new commercial property is near existing electrical infrastructure.

We recommend consulting with an energy connection specialist to manage the process of laying the necessary cables to connect your property to the mains electricity supply.

💡 Renewable business energy options allow companies to generate their own electricity, potentially enabling them to go off-grid.

Who’s responsible for energy bills in my new business premises?

It is crucial to clarify who is responsible for energy bills when signing a lease for a new commercial property.

Do not assume that your landlord will cover these costs. Instead, carefully review your tenancy agreement to understand the responsibilities for business utilities.

If this information is unclear, discuss it directly with your landlord to ensure there is a mutual understanding. If you are responsible for the business electricity bill, you can begin by using our business electricity comparison tool to compare the latest energy rates.

In some cases, if your landlord manages the energy, they may include the cost of energy in your rental bills.

Will I need new meters when moving business premises?

No, properties already connected to the grid will have energy meters in place that should still be functional.

If you discover that a meter is not functioning properly, we recommend contacting your supplier immediately. They will arrange for an engineer to replace the broken meter.