There are currently no government help schemes after the energy bill relief scheme, and later Energy Bills Discount Scheme, ended in March 2024.
But there are ways to make energy bills more affordable.
Top Tips for Saving on Business Energy Bills
Check If You’re Being Billed Correctly
If you ever think that your bill amount is wrong you should challenge it with your supplier, this can be done easily via email or phone.
If your supplier is estimating your bills, you may be paying for more energy than your business uses.
You can counter this by regularly providing regular meter reads to your supplier during their metering window. (At Dyce Energy our metering window runs from the 25th to the end of the month)
Try and Get a Smart Meter
If you don’t already have a smart meter, you can ask your supplier to install one, please note if you are in rented premises you need to check with your landlord before doing this.
A smart meter will automatically send your meter readings to your supplier, saving you time and costs by ensuring you are only paying for the energy used.
Once a smart meter has been installed in most cases you will receive an in-house display – sometimes referred to as a smart energy monitor.
This handy device will allow you to track the energy you are using and the estimated cost.
Make Your Business More Energy Efficient
There are many ways to reduce how much energy your business is using, some of the quickest cost-effective methods are:
- Ensuring all equipment is turned off overnight if not in use
- Use of LED lighting
- Ensure the property is properly insulated to avoid drafts and losing heat
- Be efficient with what you use e.g no running taps, only use/boil as much hot water as you need, only turn heating/air-con on during
- Conducting an Energy Efficiency audit
Switch Your Business Energy Provider for Better Rates
Shopping around for a better deal is always a great place to start when looking to lower your energy bills.
However please keep in mind that this is only possible if you have entered your renewal window (Usually 12 months before your contract ends) and that you won’t be on your new rates until the existing contract has ended.
You also need to have no outstanding debt on your account, or your current supplier will object to your move.
It’s usually best to looking a switching if:
- The fixed term of your contract has ended, and you are now on an out of contract tariff – the rates on this tariff are amongst the highest to encourage you to either renew or switch suppliers
- You are on a tariff you didn’t choose e.g you inherited the tariff when moving premises, you’ll be on ‘deemed rates’, these are basically the same as out of contract rates and are inflated to encourage businesses to sign a new contract.
If you are looking to switch, you can get a quote from us here.
Try to Agree on a Business Energy Payment Plan With Your Provider
If you receive an energy bill that you know you will struggle to pay, you need to check your bill or contract to determine when this will be classed as a ‘debt’ on the account.
In most instances your account will not go into ‘debt’ until 28 days after you receive an invoice or bill.
If you feel you will not be able to pay this amount in the given time frame you need to contact your energy supplier as soon as possible and inform them of your issues.
It’s in the supplier’s best interest to help come to a solution that suits both parties.
Here at Dyce Energy, we understand the difficulties of running a business and everyone will need support at some point.
You can contact our team via our contact page, via our website live chat or by using the query function in our customer portal – Your Energy Online.
What Was the Energy Bill Relief Scheme?
The Energy Bill Relief Scheme (EBRS) was started in March 2023 and ran until April 2023 – This was ended and replaced by the Energy Bill Discount Scheme (EBDS) in April 2023. This scheme ended in March 2024 with no replacement on the horizon.
The aims of these schemes were the same – to lower energy costs for businesses across the UK.
However, this was done in a different way than the domestic price cap.
Instead of capping prices, the EBRS & EBDS limited the wholesale price that suppliers would pay to generators for energy.
The savings made by suppliers were therefore passed down the chain to the end consumer who received a reduced rate.
As of July 2024, there are currently no government schemes currently running or in the works for business energy support.
