Switching your business electricity retailer
The complete guide to a shock-free switch
Start with your research
So, you decided to switch your business electricity retailer to save money. Sounds great, but where do you start? Switching is a generally simple process; however, it might not be as straightforward as it should be for businesses. Where should you start your research?
First and foremost, you can start with each retailer’s website. Some retailers — like us — publish their price plans online, so it’s easier for you to compare your options. Other retailers do not show their price plans and require you to contact them directly to get a quote.
You can also look into various price comparison sites where electricity retailers upload their plans for comparison. The Energy Market Authority has set up the Open Electricity Market website to compare price plans from different retailers. However, it is not mandatory for electricity retailers to upload all their plans, so you might not see the complete list.
Understand the rates
What are you paying for, exactly? Different price plans might have different arrangements, and it’s essential to check with the supplier what’s included in the price plans and what will be passed through to you.
The two most common plans are fixed plan and discount off tariff (DOT) plan.
A fixed plan means you pay a fixed electricity rate during your contract, and it’s generally cheaper than the regulated SP tariff. It makes planning your budget more straightforward, and you don’t have to worry about electricity prices going up. However, suppose the regulated tariff falls below your fixed price. In that case, you will not be saving any money (not to worry, this happens once in a blue moon).
A DOT plan means you enjoy a certain percentage of discount off the regulated SP tariff. So your electricity rate might go up or down, but you will get a constant discount during your contract period.
Business electricity rates offered are rarely pure energy rates, it includes a list of Third-Party charges that are payable to different stakeholders in the electricity market. Retailers may/may not pass on these charges to their customers depending on the commercial arrangements made with their respective customers. Third-party charges that are not included in the rates should be clearly indicated in the Fact Sheet / Contract.
Some retailers might be sneaky, though. They give you a low rate but passing through all of these third-party charges to you. It might seem like an attractive deal but harder to compare with other plans. Your first bill might also be higher than what you expect, so beware of these.
At Flo, we believe in simplicity and transparency. What you see is what you get: an all-inclusive rate that covers all of these charges.
If you are a large business, you can also request a personalised quote. You will receive a custom electricity rate tailored to you with different arrangements. Don’t worry, we always keep it as simple as possible.
Find out how much you can save with Flo Business →
Check the fine print
Before deciding to switch, check the fine print. Request for the Fact Sheet, the Terms & Conditions, and the Contract document. Some things to verify and look out for:
- Price Plan type, whether it’s a fixed, discounted plan, or non-standard plans.
- Contract Duration, whether the contract has a specific duration or no term.
- Security Deposit, how much do you need to pay and by when.
- Early Termination Charges, how much do you need to pay if you leave in the middle of your contract and the terms that come with it.
- The cooling-off period, if any. It allows you to change your decision and cancel the contract without paying the Early Termination Charges.
- Additional fees. This is important as lots of retailers bury this deep in the fine print. It might come in the form of admin charge, maintenance fee, various passed-through charges, etc. You need to pay this on top of your electricity rate monthly.
- Auto-renewal clauses. Another thing to double and triple check. Retailers might automatically renew your plan once it expires to a more expensive plan. By the moment you receive your first bill, you might be out of your cooling-off period, and you get stuck with a costly plan.
At Flo, we don’t pull these tricks because we are not trying to rip you off. If you decide to switch to Flo, we make sure that the rate is as simple as it gets. You only pay for your energy usage times your electricity rate, plus the GST. No hidden fees 😉
Once your contract expires, we will enrol you in the same plan that you have previously with our published rate at the time of renewal.
Apply for a switch
There are various ways to apply.
If the retailers list their plans on the website, chances are you can apply online right away. Otherwise, you could write an email or send a message to the retailer to request their business and plans and sign up if you find the plans suitable for you.
Price comparison websites also allow you to sign up online through their platform.
Bigger companies and large corporations prefer to go to an electricity auction. Different retailers submit their lowest rates to win the auction.
Last but not least, you can also look for electricity brokers. They do the hard work of comparing plans and recommending the best options available based on your business size and profile. They will receive a commission if they sign you up.
What happens behind the scene
So you decided to switch. Here is what’s going to happen.
- Contestability check. First, we need to check if you are a contestable account, which means you can receive electricity supply from electricity suppliers aside from SP Group. Non-contestable means you can only be supplied by SP Group.
- If you are contestable, we can move on to the next step. If you are not contestable, there’s an additional step that you need to do before switching. We will send you an email with a Contestability form application, which you need to fill and send back to us alongside your ACRA and latest electricity bill. We will send it to SP to convert your account status to contestable. This process will take anywhere between 30 days to 60 days.
- If you are contestable or once you have been converted, we will submit a transfer request to SP to notify them that you are switching your electricity retailer. SP will then inform your previous electricity retailer that you are leaving. However, it’s still a good practice to update your retailer 30 days in advance that you are leaving to make sure your plans are not renewed. This is generally a quick and easy process.
- Congratulations! You have switched your electricity retailer.
Ready to switch?
We hope our guide helps you to understand the switching process a little better. If you are looking for electricity plans for your business, check out our electricity plans. Not only will you save money, but you will also help save the earth because our electricity is 100% renewable. Definitely worth a try.
