5 Tips for Managing Your Electricity When Moving House

5 Tips for Managing Your Electricity When Moving House

Moving house is exciting, but it’s also a big job. You have to organize your belongings, pack them, and clean them everywhere. You also need to keep track of all of your utilities at your current home and your new home. For most people, it’s easy to forget that to have access to an essential service like electricity. You need to contact your electricity provider to set up a service at your new home and disconnect from your current one. Here are five things to keep in mind to better manage your electricity when moving house. 5 tips for managing your electricity when moving house.

1. Contact Your Retailer

On your moving house checklist, there should be a box for “Contact Electricity Retailer.” While most companies only require a few days’ notice, it’s best to check in with your retailer ahead of time to make sure that there won’t be any hiccups. For example, if you have a contract with your retailer, you may need to pay a fee if you are terminating service at your current location early. Or you may find that you forgot to pay a bill once and have to settle up before you can transfer service.

2. Check the Account Owner

If you live in a house share, double-check who the owner of the account is. If it’s you, make sure that you transfer service into a roommate’s name so they aren’t suddenly left without power. 

3. Disconnect to Reconnect

Don’t just change your address with your retailer when moving house. Ensure that you schedule to turn the power off at your current address. People change their addresses for all sorts of reasons besides moving house, so that alone isn’t enough to tip off your retailer that you won’t live there anymore. If you don’t disconnect your service, you could end up paying for energy that you aren’t using. Similarly, don’t forget to schedule a connection at your new place. If possible, schedule it for early in the morning of moving day or even late the night before so that you’re sure to have power during the final walkthrough.

4. Consider an Upgrade

If you’re moving into a house that you didn’t build and it has an older meter, consider an upgrade. Upgraded electricity meters are digital and send your usage data directly to your retailer instead of relying on a technician to come and read your meter every month. Most people save money when they upgrade their electricity meter, and doing so right as you move into a new home is a great way to start a new chapter in your life. 

5. Plan to Save

Did you know that the way you organise your new home can have an impact on your electricity bill? Before you decide where to put furniture and lights in your new home, think about how to best leverage your resources. If possible, make a room that gets a lot of natural light in the living room. More natural light means that you don’t need to turn the heat up to keep things comfortable, and you also don’t need to turn on the lights during the day. Keep large furniture away from heating and cooling vents to make sure air can circulate freely. This will keep rooms comfortable and costs under control.

Moving house is an exciting endeavour. Don’t forget to keep track of your utilities when you move. Change your address with your electricity retailer and set dates and times to disconnect at your current location and reconnect at your new home. Use this time to get your meter up to date and plan carefully to save yourself money.