Compare business electricity prices and switch to a better deal

Business electricity tariffs are designed to fit the needs and budget of each individual business, meaning suppliers only offer bespoke business electricity quotes based on an assessment of your business and its energy consumption.

This is because no two businesses – regardless of how similar they are – will have identical needs, and so no two business electricity contracts are exactly the same.

And this means that the only way to ensure you’re on the best deal is to run quotes with each and every supplier, which can be both time consuming and confusing, particularly if you’ve little or no guidance on what a good deal looks like.

But, the good news is, the team at Uswitch for Business are experts in business electricity price comparison, and a quick call is all it takes for us to run quotes on your behalf and offer advice on the best rates for your business.

It never harms to do a little background research though, so to help you understand how your tariff stacks up against the rest of the market, here are the most common contracts offered to small and medium sized businesses:

• Fixed rate tariff - A fixed rate business electricity tariff allows you to pre-agree unit rates with your supplier and pay these rates throughout the duration of their contract. These rates are usually competitive, but you should always run a business electricity comparison before agreeing to any deal, to make sure you can’t get better rates elsewhere.
• Deemed rate tariff - Deemed rate tariffs work on 28-day rolling terms that come into effect if you fail to formally agree a new contract with your supplier before your current deal ends. Deemed rate contracts charge inflated rates, but you can switch from these more costly tariffs by giving just 28-days’ notice.
• Rolling Contract - A rolling contract ties you into a new, year-long contract on inflated rates. You can sometimes negotiate a new contract on blend and extend terms, which allows you to agree to lower rates by signing up to a new long term contract, but these new rates will still not be as competitive as others you could find elsewhere on the market. Rolling contracts aren’t as common as they used to be, as most suppliers now offer deemed rates instead, which is a much fairer price plan.

No matter what type of tariff that you’re on though, there’s always a chance you can save money by switching supplier. But instead of burdening yourself with the hassle of ringing around suppliers, let us find a cheaper business electricity quote and switch you to a better deal - call us today on #CAMPAIGNBUSINESSSERVICENUMBER# to speak with one of our team.

There are all sorts of costs that go into making up your monthly energy bill, but when shopping around for a new business electricity tariff, there are two costs you should pay particular attention to:

• Unit cost - The price you pay for each unit of electricity (measured in kWh) your business uses.
• Standing charge - A daily charge that covers the maintenance of the national grid, and the cost of transporting electricity directly to your business premises.

These are the two main charges that will make up your business’s electricity bill, and so make the biggest difference to the price you’ll pay for the electricity your business uses.

But how are you supposed to know how much you should be paying in standing charges and unit costs, when each business is offered bespoke pricing when comparing quotes?

Although there’s no definitive answer to how much your business should be paying, the figures below are based upon industry averages and should give you a rough idea of how much you can expect to pay:

Average business electricity rates

Please note: The figures given above are only based on industry averages and are only intended as a guide. It’s worth remembering that many contributing factors can impact the amount that you pay for your business electricity including consumption habits and the location of your business premises.

If your business uses a lot of electricity, you might need to have a half hourly electricity meter installed. If your business has a maximum demand of 100kW or greater in any half hour period during the day, then the law states that you must use half hour metering. If your business has a maximum demand of 70kW or more, you can opt to have a half hourly electric meter installed.

For more information, check out our guide to half hourly electricity meters.

The terms of commercial electricity contracts mean businesses are only allowed to switch once these contracts are within their ‘renewal window’, which is usually six months before the deal is due to expire.

Once your energy deal enters this renewal window, your current supplier should send you a renewal offer, but these terms are rarely competitive, so it makes sense to run a comparison to see if there are better rates on offer.

You can compare business electricity tariffs and switch to a new deal in just five simple steps:

• Step 1 – Pop your postcode in the box at the top of the page.
• Step 2 – Our experts compare deals from a range of suppliers.
• Step 3 – You choose the deal that best suits your needs and budget.
• Step 4 – We’ll let old and new suppliers know you’re switching.
• Step 5 – Wait for your new business electricity supply to take effect.

If your switch gets rejected, it could be for any number of reasons, but the most common explanation is that you owe money to your current supplier. If you get turned down, contact your supplier as soon as possible to resolve the issue.

All being well though, once all parties have been informed of the switch, the rest is handled by the suppliers themselves, so you shouldn’t experience any break in your supply.

So far, so good. But the only way to make absolutely sure you’re on the best deal is to repeat this process with every supplier – that simple five-step process doesn’t seem quite so simple when you have to repeat it ten or more times over!

And that’s why busy business owners are better off employing the services of a business electricity broker - one simple phone call to the Uswitch business electricity experts is all it takes to give our team all the information they need to run a range of quotes on your behalf.

Our expert knowledge of the commercial energy market means they can advise you on which tariff best suits the needs of your business, and even assist in the switching process by providing all of the information and documents you need.

To find out more about how we can help make the switching process even easier for your business, call us today on #CAMPAIGNBUSINESSSERVICENUMBER#.

It’s easy to assume that the cheapest electricity tariff is the best deal for your business, and while getting a cheaper deal will no doubt be your top priority – it’s all about the bottom line in business, after all - the truth is that suppliers can have much more to offer.

Opting for the cheapest tariff should mean you’ll be paying less for your electricity, but if the supplier you choose isn’t the best fit for your business, you could run into problems further down the line, which could lead to a disruption in your supply, or even see you paying more than you budgeted for.

To make sure you’re on the best deal with the best supplier for you, check out our business energy suppliers’ page to see the benefits that you can expect from each supplier to help you make a more informed switching decision.

Then get the ball rolling on your business electricity switch and start saving, by calling us today on #CAMPAIGNBUSINESSSERVICENUMBER#.