UK Power Ltd is an independent and impartial gas and electricity price comparison and switching site that was set up in 2001. Our aim is to make it easy
for people at home and in business to compare gas, electricity and dual fuel prices between
energy suppliers and switch to a better deal.
We gather data from all suppliers and other third party sources and
we have developed price comparison calculators to make it easy for you to compare all suppliers and tariffs, ordered by cost or service rating.
We earn our income from a small referral
fee if you switch to a new energy supplier using this website.
This referral fee does not affect the price
you pay, and this comparison service is provided to you for free.
We go to great lengths to abide by all regulations and requirements,
especially those of Ofgem and Consumer Focus who have audited this
site and granted accreditation to their Confidence Code since 2001.
We welcome feedback and suggestions on how to improve our service
and will consider all suggestions. We strive for high standards
of customer service and will respond to any complaints or enquiries
within 2 working days. Complaints will be handled quickly, effectively,
fairly, and confidentially. In case of disputes, we will keep
you informed about progress. In the event of a complaint or difficulty,
please use our complaints
form to contact UK Power via e-mail. Alternatively,
please use our contact details below.
Our service to you is free of charge. We do
not collect any payments through our website, nor do
we enter into any direct contracts for the supply of electricity
or gas. When you switch your gas and/or supplier with us, we handle the switching process for you and are paid through commissions that are paid to us by the supplier. The price the supplier will charge you is the price shown on our website.
Some, but not all, suppliers pay a referral fee to UK Power for
new customers. This does not affect the presentation of results
in any way as we show results with complete impartiality as required
by the Consumer Focus Confidence Code. All suppliers and tariffs are listed on this website regardless of commercial arrangements.
We appreciate your custom and encourage you to switch to your new
supplier through the links on our web site. We depend on your support
by using our links to apply to new suppliers, and this helps to
finance the operation of this free service.
All areas on the site where we collect sensitive information are protected through SSL and so all data is fully encrypted before being sent to us.. Please look for the padlock symbol in the address bar or status bar of your browser.
As part of our ongoing relationship with the energy suppliers, we are audited by external security consultants to ensure that all data is collected and stored in a secure way.
We do not pass on any of your details to any third party other than the energy supplier that you are switching to.
All gas and electricity tariffs shown in the results tables are currently available energy tariffs. We assume that you are
on a current tariff and not a historic tariff no longer available
from the supplier. Please bear in mind that this may impact upon
the calculations given.
In order to compare prices, it is best to enter the number of kilowatt hours that you use as opposed to the amount of money you spend. If you do not have the kWh's, then you can enter the amounts you pay monthly, quarterly or annually. When you do this, the calculator works out how many kWh's you use, but it uses the latest available tariffs to do this and does not take into account any changes to the rates for that tariff. It will then use the calculated number of kWh's to work out what each supplier will charge for the next 12 months based on existing tariffs. The results page shows how the suppliers compare to each other for the same amount of energy used.
The detailed tariff information for each supplier tariff is found by clicking on the
tariff name in the results table. This page will show all unit rates, details of any primary or secondary units and their thresholds and details of any discounts available.
Some suppliers will charge extra penalty charges for late
payments. These extra penalty charges are not included in these
price comparisons.
Some suppliers will charge for cheque payments. Where this applies,
an extra charge is included in the prices and this is noted in
the suppliers information box.
The calculations on this website assume that customers are taking
advantage of the best options available, and that no extra charges
are included for late payments or payments by means which cause
surcharges.
One factor to consider when switching your energy supplier is the levels of service and customer
satisfaction. UK Power, Ofgem and Consumer Focus are all keen to
promote the needs for high standards of customer service.
The ratings given on this website are the results of customer surveys carried out by the independent company J.D. Power. Neither UK Power or any of the energy suppliers have any influence over the outcome of these surveys.
Utility Warehouse (Telecom Plus) is a membership organisation which rewards customers who take multiple services from them (gas, electricity, home phone, broadband, mobile).
For further information about joining Utility Warehouse (Telecom Plus), and all
the rates and benefits available on telephones, Mobile Phones,
Freephones as well as Gas and Electricity, please click here.
MPAN stands for Metering Point Administration Number. This
number is located on your electricity bill (and not on the meter).
It provides a unique identity reference number for the meter and
also provides other information about the type of supply.
Profile
Meter
time
switch code
Line Loss Factor
S
01
123
456
16
6789
0123
222
Distributor
Identifier
Unique Reference number
Check Digit
Domestic meters have a profile of either 01 (standard) or 02 (Economy7). Business meters have a profile of 03 to 08 and half hourly electricity meters have a profile of 00.
If you look at the grid above, you can see the first box on
the second line is called "Distributor Identifier".
The numbers in this box identify the Region you are in as follows:
Eastern
East Midlands
London
Manweb
Midlands
Northern
Norweb
Scottish Hydro
Scottish Power
Seeboard
Southern
Swalec
Sweb
Yorkshire
Note that when your postcode is close to the border of a region, it
is important to check that you are using the correct region for
the comparison calculations as the prices vary from region to
region and some postcode areas straddle regions.
For most addresses, we will be able to automatically detect your meter numbers when you select your property during the comparison process. For those properties where we do not have your meter number, you should be able to locate them on your gas and electricity bills.
If you do not have previous bills:
Electricity:
Where to get your MPAN or Supply Number
if you do not have a bill.
If you do not have a previous bill, you can get this by contacting
your regional electricity company (who may well be different from
your current supplier, but they are still responsible for transporting
your electricity). If you call them and ask for the Metering Point
Administration department, they will tell you what your Supply
Number is. See FAQ above for telephone numbers.
Gas:
Where to get your MPR meter Number if you do not have a previous
bill?
If you do not have a bill and you require your M Number you can
call the M Number Enquiries telephone number (provided by xoserve Ltd) which is
0870 608 1524. They are very helpful and will provide your MPR
number when you give your address and postcode. The M Number is
also called the MPR number
Some energy suppliers also provide separate contracts for equipment
maintenance. The cost of these contracts is excluded from these
calculations. Usually, these maintenance contracts are separate
from the supply contract, so if the supply contract is changed,
this does not affect the maintenance contract which continues. This
must be checked to make sure it applies in each case.
Private gas pipelines are operated by Independent Gas Transporters
(IGT's) and you can find details about these on the Ofgem website
at www.ofgem.gov.uk under the Licensed Company Details tab.
It should be noted that daily or annual standing charges for
gas supplied via IGT's will be charged at higher prices than the
standard tariffs.
IMPORTANT NOTE. It should be noted that any additional charges levied by IGT's are not included in the comparison results and should be excluded from the input data.
Electricity consumption is usually already stated
in kilowatt-hours on your meter and previous bills, so the electricity kWh's
figure is ready to use.
Gas units as shown on your meter need to be converted to kilowatt hours. Below is a step by step process for calculating kWh:
Task
Sample
1
Number of units
100
2
Convert from imperial to metric (x 2.83) *
283
3
x volume
conversion factor (x 1.022640)
289.407
4
x calorific value (x 39.3)
11373.699
5
/ kWh conversion factor (/3.6)
3159.361
* Only if your meter measures cubic feet rather than cubic metres. If you have a metric meter, you do not need
to use the imperial to metric conversion factor (2.83). In this
case, the rough estimate is to multiply the metric units by 11
instead of 31.3.
This is the approximately the same as: gas units used x 31.6 = kilowatt hours used, or, roughly, gas units x 100 divided by 3
In May 1998 the Government brought in new regulations to fully
open the Gas market to competition. In May 1999, the same happened
for Electricity. Since then people can change suppliers if they
want to, and over 7 million people have switched in gas and over
7 million in electricity supply according to Ofgem.
Since then, energy companies have been jostling for market share, and
new companies have joined in to offer services are lower costs.
In general, the market competition has created opportunities for
people to save money on gas and electricity bills.
One difficulty that people face is the complications of collecting
each suppliers tariff data and making precise comparisons between
the different pricing structures. This is where the UK Power Price
Comparison Service helps. We do all the work to collect the data,
and we have developed the website calculator to make it easy for
customers to make straightforward comparisons between suppliers
prices.
We are funded by referral fees when you switch suppliers, so
please use the links available on this site.
Ofgem is the OFfice of Gas and Electricity Markets, which was formed in June 1999. It promotes competition
in the gas and electricity markets to ensure the consumers get
genuine value and choice.
Consumer Focus is the independent consumer organisation created through the merger of Energywatch with Postwatch and the Welsh, Scottish and National Consumer Councils protect the interests of gas and electricity consumers.
Consumer Focus is a good place to go for detailed energy supplier information, or
if you need help dealing with your current energy supplier.
Customers are urged to consider ways of saving energy. This not only helps to save you money but also helps the environment. There
are various ways of doing this and many details can be found on
the Energy Savings Trust website.
As with anything else you buy, there are choices on prices and service available.
By looking around you may be able to save money buying you Electricity
and/or Gas from another Supplier or simply just changing the tariff you are on.
Changing energy suppliers is easy to do. There are over many different
suppliers to select from. In choosing a new supplier you need
to check the price comparisons and this is where the UK Power
price comparison service can help.
First, carry out a price comparison to see how your existing
tariff compares. Use the UK Power Price Comparison Service by
entering your postcode, existing suppliers, and amounts paid,
to obtain a complete list of prices available in your region.
Review the list and see how your existing suppliers compare
with the others.
If you are still with your original incumbent suppliers you
may find that you can save by switching to dual fuel with either
one of them. You may be able to save more by switching to a another
supplier.
When you are ready to switch, use the application process on this site and we will help you through the switching process.
When you arrive at the application form, complete all information
requested and submit the form.
Contact your existing suppliers by telephone or letter to let
them know you have activated a transfer.
At some
stage you will be asked to provide meter readings which will be
used by both suppliers to prepare final and opening bills.
What
information do I need to have in order to change supplier?
Apart from your name, address and contact details, you need to know
the names of your existing suppliers (See "How
do I find out who supplies"). If you choose to pay by direct Debit, you will also need to have your bank details to hand.
The official answer to this is Yes. However, in practice, the
new transfer applications go through a process which includes
checking with the existing supplier if there are any objections
to the change. This is usually sufficient to act as notice that
a change is being requested and arranged. It is best to telephone
or write to the existing supplier and let them know.
Once you have told the new supplier, you should find they are
completely understanding but they may ask why you would like to
move, so they have a reason on file. Domestic prices are usually
fixed so there is very rarely any room for changes to advertised
tariffs.
You should receive correspondence from the existing supplier
asking that you consider them again in the future, and you will
also receive a welcome letter from the new supplier, once the
transfer has been activated.
Generally speaking, the entire transfer process has been designed
to operate as smoothly as possible and both Ofgem and Consumer Focus
keep an eye on the marketplace to ensure this happens.
Delivery of new services will be advised directly by your new
supplier. Your new supplier will provide full details as well
as their own Terms and Conditions which you should read carefully.
Transfers from one supplier to another can take between 4 to 6 weeks.
The precise details will be advised by your new supplier.
To use the calculators, you need an estimated cost of current
usage and the name of the current suppliers. This can be difficult
if you have not lived there before. After you have entered your postcode, the website will ask you for the current suppliers and the amount used. We put default figures in here for you which is for an average sized house. If you do not know how much you use, these default figures are a good starting point and help you to identify which suppliers are cheapest in your area.
When you move in to a new property, you need to contact the existing
suppliers and get the account changed in to your own name. If
you need to find out who the existing suppliers are see "Who
Supplies?" above.
After this, you can start looking for a cheaper supplier by running
your details through the UK Power Price Comparison Service. Enter
your postcode, then you can use the default suppliers and estimated
usage amounts to see a list of all suppliers ranked in order of
price savings. At this stage you can start a transfer and this
process takes between 4 to 6 weeks to complete.
