Business utilities · South East London
Everything your
business pays
monthly, checked.
Electricity, gas, water, card machine, broadband, even the house. Most businesses roll onto whatever rate they are put on and never look again. I check the market for you, free, and tell you what I find.
- One form, not ten. Tell me once instead of ringing round suppliers yourself.
- No obligation at all. If your current deal is already good, I will say so and you carry on.
- I explain how I get paid. In writing, before you sign anything.
- Moving premises? Say so below. That is the moment this matters most.
Get your free comparison
About a minute. I come back within one working day.
Got it, thank you
I will look at the market and come back to you within one working day. If it is urgent, ring me on 07577 326283.
01
What I can look at
Everything on the
monthly pile
You do not have to take all of it. Pick the ones that are bothering you and leave the rest.
Business electricity
The big one for most places, and the one people leave longest. Rates are quoted per meter, so a corner shop and a restaurant on the same street can be on very different deals.
If you are out of contract, this is usually where the quickest saving sits.
Any business with its own meterBusiness gas
Usually quoted alongside electricity but priced separately, and the two contracts often end at different times. Worth lining them up so you are not renewing twice a year.
Kitchens, laundries and anywhere with heavy heating feel this most.
Restaurants, takeaways, salons, workshopsBusiness water
Most business owners do not know this is even possible. In England the business water market opened in 2017, so you can choose who bills and services you.
The water and the pipes do not change. The retailer, the billing and the service do.
England and Scotland. Wales is restrictedCard machines and merchant services
The one that quietly eats the most. You are usually paying a percentage of every sale, plus a fee per transaction, plus terminal rental, plus a monthly service charge — often on a long contract nobody remembers signing.
Worth a look on its own, even if your energy is fine.
Anywhere taking card paymentsBroadband and phone
Business lines, card machine connectivity, Wi-Fi for customers. Often bundled badly with something you no longer use.
If your card machine drops out at the busy time, this is usually why.
Any premises with a lineDomestic energy
Your own home, not just the business. Different market, different rules, and the price cap changes what is worth doing — but it costs nothing to have it checked at the same time.
Plenty of owners run the shop carefully and never look at the house.
Homeowners and tenants02
Who is in the market
The names you will
come across
These are the main suppliers and providers operating in the UK business market. Which of them I can quote for you depends on my arrangements at the time — I will tell you straight who I have gone to and who I have not.
Business electricity and gas
Business water
Card machines
Broadband and phone
A short list on purpose — these are the ones you are most likely to already be with. Domestic energy is largely the same big names. Named because you will meet them, not to suggest endorsement or partnership. If a particular supplier matters to you, ask and I will tell you exactly where I stand with them.
03
Change of tenancy
Moving in, or moving out
This is the moment utilities go wrong most often, and the moment they are easiest to get right. If you are taking over premises or handing them back, do these things.
Take a meter reading on the day
Photograph it. That single reading is what separates your bill from the last occupier's, and it is the thing people wish they had when a dispute starts months later.
Tell the supplier straight away
You have to tell them you have taken over. Until you do, the account is not in your name and the bill may still be chasing somebody else.
Do not sit on deemed rates
Before you agree a contract you are on deemed rates, set by the supplier and usually their most expensive. Every week you leave it is money.
Moving out is the same job
Final reading, tell the supplier, give them a forwarding address. Otherwise the bill keeps running against your name after you have gone.
New site with no supply history
A brand new unit or one that has been empty needs setting up rather than switching. It takes longer, so start earlier than you think you need to.
Buying a business as a going concern
The contracts do not automatically become yours. Check what is in place, what the end dates are, and whose name it is all in before completion.
04
The expensive mistake
Deemed and out-of-contract rates
Doing nothing is a decision, and it is the costly one
There are two ways businesses end up paying a supplier's most expensive rate without ever choosing it. Deemed rates apply when you move into premises and start using energy before agreeing a contract. Out-of-contract rates apply when a fixed deal ends and nothing replaces it.
Both are set by the supplier. Neither requires your agreement. Both can run for months before anybody notices, because the direct debit just keeps going out.
If either of those describes you, that is the first thing worth fixing, and it is usually the fastest.
05
Straight answers
What actually drives
the price you are quoted
There is no published price list in this trade, and anybody showing you one is guessing. Here is what a real quote is actually built from, so you can judge one when you see it.
Unit rate
Pence per kilowatt hour. The headline number, and the one people compare — but it is only half the bill.
Standing charge
A daily fee you pay whether you use anything or not. A low unit rate with a high standing charge can easily be the worse deal for a small user.
How long you fix for
One year, two, three or five. Longer gives certainty; shorter keeps you flexible. Which is right depends on your plans, not on what suits the supplier.
Your consumption
How much you actually use, and when. A business drawing heavily in the evening is priced differently from a nine-to-five office.
Credit position
Suppliers price for risk. A new business with no trading history will be quoted differently from one with five years of accounts. Not personal, just how it works.
Your meter
Meter type and profile class change what is available. Some tariffs simply are not offered to certain meters, which is why postcode-only quotes are guesses.
When you sign
Wholesale prices move daily. A quote has a shelf life, usually days, and that is a real constraint rather than a sales tactic.
Where you are
Distribution costs vary by region. London is not priced the same as the north east, for the same usage.
06
How it works
Four steps, and you can
stop at any of them
You send the form
Business name, postcode and what you want looking at. That is enough to start the conversation.
I find out where you stand
Usually a recent bill, or a letter of authority so I can ask your supplier directly. I will tell you exactly what I need and why I need it.
I come back with what I find
What you are on now, what else is available, and the difference in plain numbers. If you are already on a good rate, I will tell you that.
You decide
Switch, stay, or go direct to the supplier yourself with what you have learned. All three are fine and none of them offend me.
07
Being straight with you
How I get paid
There is no fee to you
Brokers are normally paid a commission by the supplier when a business signs a contract. That is how this trade works, and it is worth understanding before you deal with anybody in it.
What I will do is tell you, in writing and before you sign anything, what I am being paid on the deal I am recommending. If a broker will not put that in writing, that tells you something.
It also means you should always be free to walk away or go direct. You are. Nothing here is exclusive and there is nothing to sign to get a comparison.
08
Questions people ask
The usual questions
Does it cost me anything?
No. There is no fee to you for a comparison. Brokers are paid a commission by the supplier when a business signs, and I will tell you in writing what I am being paid before you sign anything.
What is a deemed rate?
If you move into premises and start using energy without agreeing a contract, the supplier puts you on deemed rates. They are set by the supplier and are typically their most expensive. Out-of-contract rates work the same way when a fixed contract ends and nothing replaces it.
Can I really switch business water?
In England the business water retail market opened in April 2017, so business customers can choose their retailer. Scotland has been open since 2008. Wales is more restricted and depends on how much water the site uses.
What changes is the retailer who bills and services you. The water itself and the pipes stay exactly as they are.
I am moving into new premises. What first?
Tell the supplier you have taken over, on the day you take over, and give them a meter reading. Photograph the meter. That establishes when your liability starts and stops you being billed for the previous occupier.
Then get a contract agreed, because until you do you are on deemed rates.
How long does a comparison take?
Usually one working day once I have your details. A recent bill or a letter of authority speeds it up, because it lets me ask your supplier directly rather than working from guesses.
Do I have to switch?
No. There is nothing to sign to get a comparison and nothing exclusive about it. If your current deal is already competitive I will say so, and you carry on as you were.
Can you look at my home as well?
Yes. Domestic energy is a different market with different rules, and the price cap changes what is worth doing, but it costs nothing to have it looked at while I am doing the business.
What do you need from me?
To start, just the form. To go further, usually a recent bill and sometimes a letter of authority, which is a short document letting me ask your supplier for your details. You can withdraw it whenever you like.
Worth ten minutes
of your time
Send the form and find out where you actually stand. If the answer is that you are already on a good deal, that is a useful thing to know too.