Compare micro business energy rates and switch to a better deal

If you’re not sure whether or not you’re running a microbusiness, there are two definitions you’ll need to consider, one of which directly relates to your energy usage and whether you’ll be eligible for micro business energy contracts for your gas and electricity.

For financial purposes, a micro business is defined by the European Commission (EC) as one that has fewer than ten employees and a turnover or balance sheet total of less than €2 million.

But to qualify for a microbusiness energy contract, you must either meet the above criteria, or make sure your business uses no more than 293,000 kWh of gas a year, or no more than 100,000 kWh of electricity a year.

As for the cost of your energy bills, Ofgem estimates that if your business uses 293,000 kWh of gas or 100,000 kWh of electricity, it should pay between £10,000 and £12,000 a year for each fuel, excluding VAT and the Climate Change Levy.

Are you eligible for a business energy contract in your home?

If you run your business from home, you might be happy that your current domestic energy deal is meeting the needs of both your household and business energy use. But it’s worth considering a business energy deal as you could find that micro business energy prices are cheaper than your domestic rates.

To qualify for a commercial energy tariff, you’ll need to prove you are running a business from home and using a significant portion – usually around 50% – of the gas and electricity you use each day to run your business.

This might sound like a lot, but just using enough lighting, heating and electricity to keep your business running every day will most likely to be enough to make you eligible.

When calculating how much energy you use for business purposes, remember to deduct any appliances that would be on regardless of your business being there, such as fridges, freezers, ovens and washing machines.

If you need further advice on finding the best deal on your business’s energy contract, speak to one of our business savings experts today on #CAMPAIGNBUSINESSSERVICENUMBER#. Or leave your details here, and we’ll give you a call back.

Most SMEs can’t consider switching to a new energy deal until their current one enters its switching window, which can be anything up to six months before the contract’s end date, but micro business owners can give termination notice at any time during their contract. This is because Ofgem, the energy regulator, changed the rules on micro business energy to make contracts more comparable to domestic energy deals.

If your business is on a fixed term deal, your gas and electricity suppliers must be completely transparent about contract end dates and notice periods on bills and statements, so you know exactly when you need to switch to avoid being rolled onto a less competitively-priced deal.

If you are on a standard business energy deal, your supplier has to contact you when your switching window opens, at which point it will usually offer you a renewal deal. It’s unlikely the renewal rates offered by your current supplier will be among the most competitive on the market, which is why it makes sense to compare rates before you commit to renewing.

If your supplier has been billing you incorrectly, you could be hit with unexpectedly high energy bills. If you’ve been billed too little each month, you could be hit with a big bill to make up the shortfall, while being billed too much means you’re unnecessarily throwing money away each month. To help protect from unexpectedly large, and potentially crippling energy bills, Ofgem has recommended that suppliers can only backdate your bills for the last 12 months. Even so, to help mitigate the risk of over or underpaying for your gas and electricity, you should still provide your energy supplier with frequent readings, to make sure your business is billed accurately.

In order to get the cheapest electricity for micro business usage, or the best deal on gas for your microbusiness, it’s worth enlisting the help of the energy experts here at Uswitch for Business, who can help you switch in just a few simple steps:

You can do this in just a few simple steps:

• Give the energy experts at Uswitch for Business a call on #CAMPAIGNBUSINESSSERVICENUMBER#, or leave your details here and we’ll give you a call back.
• After a quick chat, we’ll compare energy deals to find the ones that best suit the needs and budget of your business.
• You choose the deal you prefer, then we take care of the rest. We’ll let your old supplier know you’re making the switch and you can start enjoying cheaper electricity when your new deal starts.

Switching energy supplier is one of the most effective ways to help cut your overheads without compromising on the quality of your goods or service, and we can help take the time and hassle out of finding the best deals on business gas and electricity.

Get in touch now to see how much you could save.