Millions of households across the UK are being urged to perform a simple but crucial energy check this week as the regulator's price cap is set for a change.
Why a Meter Reading is Essential Now
The Ofgem price cap is increasing from £1,755 to £1,758 per year for a typical dual-fuel household paying by direct debit. This new rate comes into effect on January 1 and will remain for three months until the next adjustment on April 1.
If you are on a standard variable tariff, submitting a meter reading around the time of this change ensures you are billed correctly. It prevents your supplier from estimating your usage and potentially charging you at the higher rate for energy you consumed before the cap rose.
How to Submit Your Reading Correctly
Households with traditional meters need to manually submit their readings. The process varies slightly depending on your meter type, but following guidance from Citizens Advice is key.
For a standard digital electricity meter, write down the first five numbers shown from left to right, ignoring any red digits or numbers after a decimal point. If you have an economy 7 or similar tariff with two rates, you will see two rows of numbers and should submit both.
Dial meters require more care. Read the first five dials from left to right, noting that each turns in the opposite direction to the previous one. If a pointer is between two numbers, record the lower one. However, if it is between nine and zero, write down nine.
For a dial gas meter, the steps are similar but you do not need to underline numbers where the pointer is directly on them.
Smart Meters and Next Steps
If you have a smart meter, it should automatically send regular readings to your supplier, so a manual check is not usually necessary.
Failing to provide an accurate reading could lead to estimated bills that don't reflect the price cap change. Taking a few minutes to complete this task ensures you only pay for what you use at the correct rate, offering a small but important defence against rising energy costs.
