Switching your business energy contract begins with understanding. If you’re on a contract you didn’t choose such as a deemed energy contract (if you have new premises or a previous fixed term contract ended and you didn’t sign up to a new deal) or your business energy contract has expired, you can usually switch. You will need information about your annual usage to compare the market and see which supplier provides most value, then arrange and confirm your switch with the new supplier once you’ve found a suitable business energy provider.  

The quickest way to calculate your business energy consumption is by looking at your historic energy bills. A manual way of measuring business energy usage over a set period of time means taking a meter reading at the start and end of the specified period, then subtracting the first meter reading from the last.

Just like residential energy tariffs, the contracts that exist for businesses are similar with fixed rate and variable deals available. There are also deemed contracts (similar to out-of-contract tariffs) and flex contracts where, if your business is very large, you can purchase energy in bulk ahead of time. This requires continuous monitoring of your energy use but can be very cost effective. 

Depending on the terms of your business energy contract there may or may not be termination fees. There are usually early exit fees on fixed term contracts, so check your contract for full details. 

Checking your bill can be a quick way of understanding your business energy consumption, but for a more comprehensive, regular monitoring solution an energy management software is recommended for the efficient and cost effective running of your business’ energy needs.