How to become a Trusted Contact
What to do if the account holder isn’t currently able to manage their account?
We want to make it as easy as possible, if you need to act on behalf of the account holder. You can become a Trusted Contact, which will allow you to manage a loved one’s account with us because they:
have a mental or physical illness or disability, whether on a temporary or ongoing basis, including terminal illness;
have become a care home resident;
have become a resident of a UK prison or state facility;
are unable to make decisions for themselves, due to loss of mental capacity or otherwise.
What information we need from you to become a Trusted Contact
To take responsibility for the account please follow these three steps:
- Complete our Trusted Contact notification form – TrustedContact notification form
- Send us one of the following documents as forms of evidence:
- Power of Attorney – This gives you legal permission to act on someone’s behalf. Find more information about becoming a Power of Attorney on the Government’s website here.
Court Order – a legal document from a court which gives you permission to act on the account holder’s behalf.
Proof of Medical Condition– a letter from a medical professional certifying the account holder’s illness, disability, or lack of mental capacity to make decisions for themselves.
Proof of Care Home Residency – Documentation from the care home showing the account holder lives there.
- Trusted Contact notification form – Send the Trusted Contact notification form and form of evidence to us, by emailing contactus@scottishpower.com with “Trusted Contact notification” in the subject line.
If you don’t have any of the documents listed above, you can fill out the Trusted Contact Notification Form explaining why you need to become a Trusted Contact and why you’re unable to send us a form of evidence. We will then review your form and contact you by email to confirm our decision.
What happens next?
The information you gave in the Trusted Contact notification form, will decide what happens to the account, this will lead to one of the following actions:
- Account kept open You’ll be added as Trusted Contact to manage the account on behalf of the account holder. The tariff and payment method won’t change. We’ll send all future communications using the contact details you gave in the form.
- Current account closed and a new account opened in your name We’ll set up a new account in your name on our quarterly billing plan. You’ll be responsible for future energy use. We’ll send your new account details and instructions for registering online to the address you provided.
- Current account closed and new account opened in the name of the landlord, council, or housing association We’ll create a new account under the organisation’s details on our quarterly billing plan. They’ll be responsible for future energy use. We’ll send their new account details and instructions for registering online to the address you provided.We’ll add you as the Trusted Contact within two working days, a confirmation email will be received to the email address provided in the Trusted Contact Notification form. If we haven’t added you by then you should contact us on 0345 270 0700, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm.
In some situations, we may reject your application to be a Trusted Contact due to a lack of evidence to which you will be notified by email.
If the original account holder is later able to and wants to take back control, please get in touch with us on 0345 270 0700, Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm and we’ll update the account details for you.
Last updated: 3 December 2025