How to switch business energy supplier

Switching business energy supplier is mostly paperwork. You agree a contract with the new supplier, and it does the work of moving your supply across. The gas and electricity keep flowing throughout, because only the company billing you changes.

The parts that trip businesses up are timing, exit fees and objections from the old supplier. This guide takes you through the process step by step, then covers each of those.

How do you switch business energy supplier?

You switch by agreeing a contract with a new supplier. It then applies to take over your supply and deals with your current supplier for you. British Gas, for example, says it will “process your switch and contact your existing supplier for you”.

1. Find your contract end date. It is on your contract, and on every bill if you are a microbusiness. If you are still in a fixed term, leaving early may cost an exit fee.
2. Check your notice terms. Microbusinesses do not need to give notice to leave at the end of a fixed term. Larger businesses should check their contract, as some require written notice by a set date.
3. Gather your details. Your meter numbers, annual usage and current rates (see the checklist below).
4. Get quotes. Compare the unit rate, standing charge, contract length and total annual cost. Our quote comparison calculator does the sums for you.
5. Read the principal terms before you agree. There is no cooling-off period for business energy, even if you agree over the phone.
6. Agree the contract and choose a start date. If you are in a fixed contract, set the start for the day after it ends.
7. Take a meter reading on switch day. Your new supplier will ask for an opening reading, and your old supplier uses it for your final bill.
8. Check your first and final bills against your readings.

You usually need a separate contract for each fuel. Ofgem says “you will usually have a contract for each type of energy you use”, so electricity and gas can switch on different dates.

What information do you need to switch?

Suppliers ask for slightly different things. EDF lists your business address, contact details, energy usage (in kWh or pounds), business type, company registration number if you have one, and meter type. British Gas asks for your address, current supplier and a recent bill.

What you need	Where to find it
Electricity meter number (MPAN)	Your electricity bill, usually in a box of numbers
Gas meter number (MPRN)	Your gas bill
Annual usage in kWh	Your bills, or the annual consumption figure in a microbusiness renewal letter
Current unit rates and standing charges	Your latest bill or contract
Contract end date and notice terms	Your contract, renewal letter or bill
Business type and company number	Companies House record, if you are a limited company
A recent bill	Speeds up quotes, as it has most of the above

Expect a credit check too. British Gas says it checks both you and your business. Our guide to credit checks and security deposits explains what happens if the result is poor.

Can you switch right now?

It depends on what you are supplied under. Citizens Advice says you can usually switch if you are on a deemed contract, if your fixed term has ended, or if your contract is not locked in.

Your situation	Can you switch?	Exit fee?
Within a fixed term	Only if your contract allows	Usually, check your terms
At the end of a fixed term	Yes	No
On a deemed contract	Yes, at any time	No
Microbusiness on out-of-contract rates	Yes, at any time	No
Microbusiness in a rollover period	Yes, at any time	No

Our guide on when to switch business energy covers timing in more detail, including how early you can agree your next deal.

How long does a business energy switch take?

Up to 5 working days, unless you ask for a later date. Condition 14A of the gas and electricity supply licences says suppliers must take all reasonable steps to complete a switch within five working days of the “relevant date”. That is the day you have agreed the contract, given the supplier enough information to make the switch, and would reasonably expect it to go ahead without you doing anything more.

The same condition sets the direction of travel. Suppliers must maintain their systems to support fast switches, including by the end of the second working day after a business customer’s request.

In practice:

• Octopus Energy says a typical business switch takes 3 days from sign-up.
• British Gas says a switch usually takes 5 days if you are at the end of your contract and not in debt.
• EDF says about 5 working days if you are not in a fixed contract. If you are, the new contract starts the day after your current one ends.

The five-day clock can pause. It does not run while a valid objection is in place, and restarts once the objection is resolved.

The switch itself is free. The licences say a supplier must not charge you for the costs of carrying out a switch. That does not cancel any exit fee in your old contract.

Do you need to tell your current supplier?

Usually the new supplier tells your current supplier for you, but you may need to give notice yourself.

• Microbusinesses do not have to give any form of notice to end a fixed-term contract or to switch from the end of the fixed term. Ofgem banned these notices from 1 October 2022, except on open-ended (evergreen) contracts, where notice cannot be more than 30 days.
• Other businesses should check their contract. TruEnergy’s terms (version 2.7, June 2026), for example, ask for at least 30 days’ notice. Without it, you may be charged its deemed tariff or rolled onto a 12-month contract.

If you do need to give notice, do it in writing and keep a copy. Our guide to cancelling a business energy contract covers notice and exit fees in more depth.

Can your current supplier block the switch?

Only in limited cases. Under condition 14 of the supply licences, your current supplier can object to a business customer’s switch where:

• your contract contains a term that allows it to object, and that term applies at the time
• you tell it you have not agreed a contract with the new supplier and ask it to stop the switch
• Green Deal charges are owed on the premises

Contract terms that allow objections are common. Two examples from suppliers’ published terms:

• Octopus Energy for Business (version 2.0) may object if you have “outstanding, overdue, undisputed invoices”.
• TruEnergy (version 2.7) may object if you try to switch before your end date in breach of the agreement, have overdue undisputed invoices, or if another supplier tries to register the meter in error.

If your supplier objects, it must tell you it has done so, why, and how you can dispute or resolve it. Octopus notes that once an objection is cleared, the switch restarts.

To avoid an objection: pay any undisputed balance, raise a formal dispute over any bill you disagree with, and check that your switch date falls after your fixed term ends.

What happens on switch day?

Nothing changes on site. Your meters stay where they are and your supply is not interrupted.

• Give an opening meter reading. British Gas asks for one before it switches your supply. EDF recommends giving one on the switch date. A dated photo is good evidence.
• Expect a final bill from your old supplier. EDF’s terms say that once you have switched, it prepares a final bill setting out everything you owe.
• Check the dates and readings. Your final bill and your first new bill should join up at the same reading.

If you had a credit balance with your old supplier, ask for it back once the final bill is settled.

Switching through a broker

Many businesses switch through a broker or comparison service. The process is the same, but the broker gathers quotes and may act for you with a letter of authority.

For contracts agreed from 1 October 2024, suppliers must show any broker fee clearly in the contract’s principal terms, for every business customer. For microbusiness and small business contracts, suppliers may only work with brokers signed up to a qualifying dispute resolution scheme. Our guide to energy brokers explains what to ask, and our how we make money page explains how we are paid.

What protections do you have when you switch?

• Principal terms before you agree. For a microbusiness, the supplier (or the broker selling for it) must explain in plain language that it is seeking a legally binding contract and set out the principal terms before you agree.
• Written terms afterwards. A microbusiness must be sent all the terms, and a statement of renewal terms for a fixed contract, within 10 days of agreeing or as soon as reasonably practicable after.
• Fair treatment. Since 1 July 2024 Ofgem’s Standards of Conduct cover all business customers. Suppliers must give information that is complete, accurate and not misleading, and make customer transfers fair.
• No switch without a contract. A supplier must take all reasonable steps to make sure it has a valid contract before applying to switch a site, which protects you from switches you did not agree to.

What if the switch goes wrong?

1. Contact the new supplier first, as it is managing the switch. If the problem is an objection, talk to the old supplier.
2. Use the supplier’s complaints process if it is not fixed quickly. Citizens Advice suggests starting with your supplier or broker’s complaints procedure.
3. Go to the Energy Ombudsman if you are a micro or small business and the complaint is not resolved. Our business energy complaints guide explains when you can.

When you are ready to start, you can compare business energy quotes with us.

Frequently asked questions