The student’s guide to managing your energy account

There’s a lot to think about when you move out on your own for the first time. This guide covers some frequently asked questions about setting up and managing your energy account for the first time.

Setting up your account

In most cases, you’ll be responsible for paying for the energy you use, but sometimes a landlord may pay the energy supplier directly if your utility bills are included in your rent agreement. That means the energy account will stay under their name.

If you’re responsible for paying the energy bills, you’ll need an account under your name, even if you pay by topping up your meters.

The property you’re moving in to will have an energy supplier already, and you’ll need to let them know you’ve moved in, even if you’re planning to switch. Most energy suppliers will offer an easy way for you to let them know you’re moving in, like our move in form.

When you move in into a new property, you’re on a ‘deemed contract’ with the energy supplier. At ScottishPower, that means you’ll be on our Standard Variable tariff. When you complete our move in form and set up your account, you’ll be able to choose another tariff if you’d prefer.

If you’ll be sharing with flatmates, only one of you will need to set up the energy account, and the named account holder will be responsible for the account and any bills. If you’d like to add a flatmate as a secondary name on the account, get in touch with us over chat.

Your meters and your meter readings

One of the most important things to remember is to take meter readings. Ideally you should take readings on the day you become responsible for the property - that way, your first bill will be as accurate as possible, and you’ll only pay for the energy you’ve used since you’ve been the tenant or owner of the property.

We have more information and video guides on how to read your meter in our Support Centre, with specific details for all different types of meters.

You may have smart meters, which means your supplier should be receiving your readings automatically. Don’t forget those initial readings though.

Your landlord or property manager should be able to tell you where your meters are located. Your gas and electricity meters are separate, so they might be in different places – for example, gas meters can sometimes be located outside.

If you live in a building with other flats, each flat’s energy meters are usually kept in the same space and should be clearly labelled with your flat number.

Estimated readings

For those with traditional meters, if you don’t submit actual readings, we’ll estimate your energy use based on your property’s estimated annual usage. If we’ve used an estimated reading, then there will be the word ‘estimate’ next to the meter reading on your bill.

If you submit meter readings that show you're using more or less energy than we estimated, or the price of energy changes, we'll contact you to make sure you're paying the right amount. We’ll always get in touch with you before making any changes to your monthly payment.

We recommend submitting readings on the same day each month, or you can upgrade to a smart meter for free for automatic readings and access to Energy Insights in the ScottishPower App.

If the bill is in your name, you can choose to get a smart meter installed, but it is recommended to let your landlord know first. Smart Energy GB has more information for renters, including email and letter templates you can use when you get in touch.

Your payments and bills

A lot of customers pay by Direct Debit every month, but you can also pay by:

·      Monthly or Quarterly bill, where you pay your bills quarterly in full when you receive them

·      Monthly cash, where you receive a payment request letter each month

·      Fuel Direct, where payment is taken via the Department for Work and Pensions from your state benefits

·      Online or one-off payments, through your online account, the ScottishPower App, bank transfer, Bank Giro, or via the 24-hour card payment line, 0800 001 5115

·      Pay As You Go, where you top up your meters by buying credit at PayPoint, Payzone or the Post Office

·      Smart Pay As You go, where you can top up your meters from the ScottishPower App

We’ll use your meter readings to make sure you’re paying the right amount for your energy, and we’ll get in touch if we think you need to increase or decrease your payment amount.

Your energy bill contains your account details, your tariff information, and your electricity and gas use in detail, including any meter readings (actual or estimated). You can find ways to contact us for help and support in your bill

You’ll also see how much you owe, including VAT and your standing charge, which is a fixed daily amount energy suppliers charge to cover the cost of supplying your property with electricity and/or gas – think of it like a subscription fee.

We have more information in the Support Centre about your energy bill, including an annotated example bill.

Getting help

If there’s any information we haven’t covered here, you can always get in touch.

·      Start a new chat with our chatbot, anytime

·      Chat to one of our agents via webchat from Monday to Sunday, 7am to 11pm

·      Call us on 0345 270 0700, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

·      Email us at contactus@scottishpower.com and we’ll aim to respond within 48 hours.