Gas and Electricity Guide Do you want to know more about your electricity meter?  Fair enough.  Energy is one of the biggest household expenses.  You will have noticed gas and electricity prices rising rapidly over the past few years.  Knowing more about energy will enable you to reduce your household bills. energyhelpline.com can help you compare energy prices and switch to the cheapest supplier, which could save you hundreds of pounds.  If you’ve got any questions, you can phone our call centre which is UK-based and free to call.

Your Electricity Meter

An electricity meter is used to measure the electricity supplied to your home. There are four different types of electricity meter: standard meters, variable rate meters, and prepayment meters.

Your electricity meter shows exactly how much electricity your home has consumed.  However, in most cases, electricity companies estimate their customer’s usage and then bill them accordingly.  If you want your bill to be accurate, it is important to get an electricity meter reading and submit it to your electricity company.

•    Why should I read my Electricity Meter?
•    How do I read my Electricity Meter?
•    How do I switch to a cheaper Electricity supplier?

Why should I read my Electricity Meter?

It’s important to read your electricity meter so that you don’t pay too much or too little. Unless you have a prepayment electricity meter, your energy company will make an estimate of your gas consumption.  This estimate is usually based on past usage.  If you have reduced your energy consumption, then you could be overcharged.  Alternatively, if you are using more electricity than your supplier has estimated, you may receive a surprise when the company next takes an electricity meter reading.

The only way to avoid paying too much or too little is to phone your electricity supplier and give a correct electricity meter reading every time you receive an estimated bill.

How do I read my Electricity Meter?

Most households have a standard electricity meter which is a basic electromechanical induction meter, and usually measures your electricity consumption in terms of kilowatt-hours - the amount of energy used by a load of one kilowatt over the period of one hour.

You simply need to read off the first five figures on your electricity meter displayed from left to right.

Alternatively, you may have a dial electricity meter, which looks like rows of small clocks.  Record the numbers left to right as indicated by the dial pointers on the four dials.  If the dial pointer is between two numbers, read the lowest of the two numbers - except when the dial pointer is between 0 and 9, in which case you would record the number 9.  When reading your dial electricity meter, you should always remember that dials next to each other go round in opposite directions.

How do I switch to a cheaper Electricity supplier?

You may be able to save hundreds of pounds by switching to the cheapest electricity deal.  Finding the best energy supplier can be can be confusing and time-consuming.  There are a number of different energy suppliers, offering a wide variety of plans and packages.  Fortunately, with energyhelpline.com, you can compare ALL gas companies and switch in minutes.