Did you get notified you were leaving your energy company but don’t remember signing up with another supplier? 

You’ll know this has happened if you get a ‘We’re sorry to see you go’ email, even though you didn’t apply to switch away from us.  

This happens sometimes – we call it an ‘Erroneous Transfer’ in the industry. They’re generally an accident and tend to happen if the wrong address is selected on sign up, so we end up taking over the wrong supply, or if there’s a data error in the shared industry database. 

The most important thing to know is that 

We’ll sort it all out with the other supplier so that you stay with the supplier you want like nothing happened. 

It can feel a little bit frustrating when an erroneous transfer happens, but don’t worry – we’ll put it right. If we think there’s been a mistake during your switch, here’s what we’ll do:

If you spot that you’ve been signed up to another supplier or you’re still getting billed from an old one

, let us know as soon as possible. Our team deals with this kind of stuff all the time so you’re in safe hands: we’ll get it sorted without any stress on your side.

What is an Erroneous Transfer (ET)?

It's common for your old supplier to offer a better deal to try and stop you from switching. Before accepting, ensure it's as good as they say by asking the following questions:

1. What are the unit rates and standing charge?

Check your old supplier's unit rates and standing charge are cheaper than ours, as some suppliers may reduce your monthly Direct Debit without reducing the actual price of your energy. This could result in you building up a substantial debit with them.

Your old supplier might also divert your attention from unit rates to the standing charge, especially if theirs is cheaper than ours. But please bear in mind that standing charges have a much smaller impact on your energy cost than the unit rates.

2. Can I have full tariff information, including the annual usage estimate?

Not only will this show unit rates and standing charge, but you'll be able to see what annual usage estimate they've calculated savings on.

We use the estimate you gave us, or Ofgem's Low, Medium, High values (as indicated by you). Your old supplier's usage estimate might be different, meaning your payments might not be enough for your usage.

3. What tariff will I default to once the cheap deal ends?

Many suppliers will move you to an expensive tariff once a cheap one ends, in the hope you'll forget to switch. We covered this in 

. This might be alright if you're a regular switcher, but if you're after long-term value you'd be better sticking with us.

My old supplier has offered me a better deal to stay with them – should I take it?

Find out more about Winter Fuel payments, who's eligible, and how to apply on our 

Octopus and other organisations can offer

Am I Eligible For Winter Fuel Allowance?

The Warm Home Discount has changed as of 2022/2023. 

There are two separate Warm Home Discount (WHD) schemes: one for England and Wales and a separate one for Scotland. You can find more information at our 

Do you offer the Warm Home Discount?

We can connect to any SMETS2 smart meter and some SMETS1 smart meters (such as those made by the brand Secure™). We will automatically try to connect after you've switched, but may still ask you to send your first set of meter readings manually.

If we are unable to connect to your SMETS1 meter, it will lose it's smart powers and work like a normal meter, so you'll need to give us manual meter readings. 

Across the industry, we're upgrading SMETS1 first-generation smart meters by enrolling them in the Data Communications Company (DCC) network so they keep their smart functionality. SMETS1 meters that can't be successfully enrolled will be replaced with SMETS2 meters at no additional cost.

SMETS2 are the new generation of smart meters; they will stay smart if you switch supplier and offer increased functionality and flexibility to be future-ready for developments in smart tariffs and smart home tech.

Do you have a SMETS1 meter that needs to be upgraded? No worries, we'll be in touch shortly to book you in for your meter upgrade as soon as we have engineers available in your area.

What happens if I have a smart meter?

If a friend switches to Octopus Energy using your unique referral link, you’ll both get £50 energy credit. Our 

 has all the answers you need, but here’s a few quick things to know.

Just send them your unique referral link. Every Octopus customer has one: it looks something like 

http://share.octopus.energy/adjective-noun-number.

 You’ll find yours a little way down the home screen of your 

Once the new customer has fully switched over and their first month’s Direct Debit has been successfully taken, we’ll be able to add £50 to both accounts. This will happen automatically within a few weeks. You’ll be able to check whether you’ve received your referral credit via by logging onto your account and viewing your 

 - there will be an option to check your balance history, which will show any credit as +£50 from Octopus Energy.
It typically takes around four weeks from when your friend joins (although it can take longer if anything delays their switch)

If you’ve still got questions, you can find out everything there is to know about referrals here, in our 

I have a question about Octopus £50 referrals

Yes! We currently support both smart and traditional prepayment meters for electricity and gas.

Do you support prepayment meters?

We pass savings to customers however we can, and different methods of payment are more expensive for us to manage. 

Not having a Direct Debit (and instead Paying on Receipt of your Bill) costs us more in admin and managing your account. We don't think it's fair to make everyone cover that extra cost, so we sometimes have cheaper rates for those who choose to pay by Direct Debit. 

Because we operate a lean and efficient business you’ll still get a great price if you choose to pay a different way.

Why are tariffs sometimes cheaper if I pay by Direct Debit?

We take this first payment to make sure your account opens in credit. It acts as a bit of a buffer so that if you're using more energy than we expect, your account won't fall into debt early on. You'll be able to adjust your payment in your account once we have more information about your usage.

We've got more information about how we bill you for your energy usage at 

Why do you take an initial payment when my supply starts?

Switching to Octopus Energy is super easy.

First you’ll need to get a quote so we can give you our best prices, and let you know roughly how much you’d need to pay per month based on how much energy you tell us you typically use.

There are lots of different places you can sign up, but we reckon joining through our site directly is best — you can even share £100 with another Octopus customer if you join through their 

Getting a quote involves answering four quick questions, three of which are multiple choice.

Once you’ve got a quote, you’ll be able to continue through our site to sign up for Octopus. We’ll just need a few important details to finish setting up your account. 

This shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes.

Once you've signed up, we will usually switch you over within 3 working days. But your job’s done — we’ll handle everything from there on in, including telling your old supplier, and we'll keep you updated along the way.

After that, we’ll officially be your energy supplier.

Check out our blog for a full breakdown of 

 How do I switch to Octopus Energy?

We've worked hard to make the switching process as quick and painless as it can be. We will usually switch you over within 3 days of you signing up and we're covered by the 

How long will my switch take?

When you switch to us, we ask for an opening meter reading to send to your old supplier so they can close your account and issue a final bill. On the way over, your reading goes through a series of third–party checks to ensure your old supplier agrees with it.

Sometimes, your old supplier might tell you we haven't sent them the reading. This is normally because the readings are still being checked, or your old supplier has yet to agree them.

Since your old supplier is responsible for issuing your final bill, we can't say for certain when you'll get it, but from our experience it usually happens in four to six weeks.

When will I receive a final bill from my old supplier?

When will I receive a final bill from my old supplier

The government's Feed-in tariff programme ended for new solar PV installations on April 1st 2019. We have a successor to the Feed-in tariff: 

, the UK's first smart export tariff. For existing installations you can still switch your Feed-In-Tariff to us, as we are a mandatory FiT provider.

On Outgoing Octopus, we pay you for the energy you feed back to the grid, either at a flat unit price, or dynamically priced in half-hour blocks depending on the wholesale price of energy at that time.

Do you offer Feed-in Tariffs?

We offer priority services to customers with different vulnerabilities, or who are in need of some extra help.

To join our Priority Services Register, just 

update your preferences via your online account

You’ll be able to let us know why you might need a bit of extra support, whether you or someone in your home has a disability or chronic illness, you use essential equipment that relies on electricity, or anything else we should know.

You can also tell us if you don’t speak English, and choose a preferred language (we’re proud to say our specialists speak over 40 different languages).

Or, you can even set a private security password to help you identify that our team or partners are who they say they are when we get in contact.

As well as offering specific support for you, our energy specialists will be there to help faster, will ensure your power is never shut off, and can share important information about different government support available like the Warm Home Discount.

Accessibility and Inclusion at Octopus Energy

What extra support is available to customers in vulnerable circumstances?

If you’re in credit, your old supplier will transfer the credit directly to your bank account once you’ve received your final bill.

If you’re in debit, you need to clear it as soon as possible, otherwise they might object to your transfer (which can cause severe delays to your move). If you’re having trouble paying, you can ask for a payment plan, which will still allow you to switch.

What happens if I'm in credit or debit my old supplier?

We'll liaise directly with your old supplier to let them know about your switch.

Most of the time we can do everything, but in rare cases your old supplier might object to your switch. This is usually because they don't know you're responsible for the account, i.e. you've just moved in, or there is an outstanding debt to clear.

If your old supplier does object, we'll let you know. In that case you'll probably need to contact the supplier yourself to resolve the issue. Once that's done, get back in touch with us and we'll restart the switch.

 we'll ask you for meter readings. We'll use these to agree the exact point which we'll start billing you for your energy, and your old supplier will stop (so you don't end up paying for the same energy twice).

Your old supplier will then send out your final bill to close your account (or let you have any credit back) — sometimes this process can take up to 6 weeks.

The one thing we can't do is cancel your old Direct Debit — that's between your bank and your old supplier — but we do recommend you organise this as soon as you've settled up your final bill with them to make sure no further payments are taken.

Do I need to contact my current energy supplier?

You could be eligible for a Cold Weather Payment from the Government if you’re getting certain government benefits or Support for Mortgage Interest.

If you’re eligible, you’ll be able to get £25 for every 7 day period of very cold weather between 1 November and 31 March. (It’s considered ‘very cold’ if the average temperature in your area is recorded as, or forecast to be, zero degrees celsius or below over 7 consecutive days.)

To find out more about the criteria, and how to claim, visit the 

What is the Cold Weather Payment, and how do I know if I’m eligible for it?

Some suppliers will charge you an exit fee for leaving your contract early but an important note on this — if you apply to leave your old supplier within 49 days of the end of your contract, they are not allowed to charge you any exit fees. You can see a more detailed explanation on the energy regulator 

. The bit you need to know is highlighted below:

"Suppliers will be required to notify customers that their current fixed-term is coming to an end between 42 and 49 days before the contract ends.

Between this notification period and the end of the fixed term contract, suppliers will be banned from charging a termination fee should the customer decide to switch."

If you do think you're still liable for an exit fee, then let us know — you can defer your switch to us by up to a month — just drop us a line to 

Will I be charged cancellation fees?

Although you'll never have to pay twice for the energy you use (any overpayments are always refunded), you could find yourself with two active Direct Debits until your old supplier closes your account.

To avoid this you could cancel your old supplier's Direct Debit. This does mean that any closing credits or debits have to be made another way – by cheque, for example – so it's worth thinking about the impact of the cancellation before deciding to do it.

Should I cancel my old supplier's Direct Debit?

Don't worry — we can accept an opening meter reading from you from 5 days before your supply start date, up until 5 days after this date. If we don't receive readings within this timeframe, we'll estimate them. This estimate will be based on historical meter readings from your meter so should be fairly accurate.

We'll send you meter reading reminders every month — once you send the readings to us, we'll generate a bill within the next 48 hours for you. But don't worry, if you can't send us readings one month, then we'll just ask you again the next.

What happens if I'm away when you need a meter reading?

Confused by your bill? We’ve worked hard to make ours as clear and simple as possible. But if anything doesn’t look right or you're unsure about something, we're here to help.

Here’s a quick breakdown of key terms in your bill:

We’ve also included a downloadable sample bill with handy annotations in our guide: 

 If you have any questions we haven't covered – drop us a line at 

I don't understand my energy statement

I need help with my energy bill

Octopus Energy will take your first Direct Debit on the date we start supplying your energy, and every month on the day you've asked us to. We estimate your annual usage when you join us, so having some credit when your account opens can help while we learn more about your energy consumption. 

Switching To Us

What can we help you with?