Frequently Asked Questions

Take your gas card or electricity key to any PayPoint or PayZone outlet (gas & electricity) or Post Office (gas only). Pay for the amount you would like to top-up on each device and simply put them in to your meter when you get home.

1. Check the balance on your meter to make sure you have credit, it may be that you need to top-up.

2. Try wiping your key or card down with a clean dry cloth and insert this into the meter. Make sure you are using the right card/key, old keys/cards will not work.

3. If you have a blank screen, try pressing a button to wake the meter up. If your electricity meter does not respond and you have no supply, contact your local distributor by calling 105 to check if you have a power cut.

If you do not have a power cut or have any other problems with your meter, please contact us.

1. Check the balance on your meter to make sure you have credit, it may be that you need to top- up. You can check your balance on your IHD or press B on your meter.

2. If you have just topped up after running out of credit, it may be that you need to restore your supply. You can do this by pressing A on your meter and then following the instructions on the screen.

3. If you have a blank screen, try pressing a button to wake the meter up. If your electricity meter does not respond and you have no supply, contact your local distributor by calling 105 to check if you have a power cut.

If you do not have a power cut or have any other problems with your meter, please contact us.

My meter is displaying ‘Off’ but I have credit

1. Turn any gas appliances off.

2. Make sure you have credit on your gas meter or gas card.

3. Insert the card into your meter.

4. The meter will display the credit you have on the card (if the card has no credit, it will display ‘0.00 on card’).

5. The meter will prompt you to ‘Hold A for Gas’, A is the red button on your gas meter.

6. You will then be prompted to ‘Release A for Gas’ at which point you can let go of the red button.

7. The meter will beep and the display will change from ‘Off’ to ‘On’ and supply will be re-instated.

You may need to reconnect the supply. Press A on your meter and follow the instructions on the screen. You can also restore your electricity from your IHD, click here to find out how.

Please complete the following steps to restore your gas supply:

1. Make sure all appliances are turned off from the mains.

2. Turn the red lever (next to the smart gas meter) to the ‘off’ position.

3. Press ‘A’ on your gas meter and follow the prompts on the screen.

4. Press ‘B’ on the meter to check it is showing ‘On’ on the gas meter display

5. Turn the red lever back to the ‘on’ position to release the gas and restore your supply.

If you smell gas, think you have a gas leak, or are worried that fumes containing carbon monoxide are escaping from a gas appliance, please call the free Gas Emergency Services line immediately on 0800 111 999.

You should open windows and doors, turn gas appliances off and turn the gas off at the meter emergency control valve if possible (the handle next to the meter).

Do not smoke, light a match or use any naked flame, do not turn any electrical switches on or off and do not go back inside until you’re told it’s safe to do so.

When you switch to E, we will send you a key to top-up your electricity meter and a card to top-up your gas meter.

Simply put your key and card into the relevant meter for 60 seconds and once you see a message on the screen, your key/card will be ready to use.

To find your nearest PayPoint outlet, please click here.

We will send you your top-up cards for your electricity and gas meters, you do not need to do anything to register them.

The easiest way to top-up your smart meters is by using our app, MySmartE which you can download from the App Store or Google Play. If you have recently had a smart meter installation or switched to us, please allow 24 hours for us to update your app with your top-up card numbers.

You can also top-up over the phone via our automated top-up line 0121 621 4030 or via SMS.

To top-up by any of these methods, you will need to create an account on the MySmartE app or online first which you can do here.

Alternately, you can visit your local PayPoint outlet. To find your nearest outlet, please click here.

For more information on ways to pay, please click here.

Take your gas card or electricity key to any PayPoint, Payzone or Post Office outlet, pay for the amount you would like to top-up on each device and simply put them in to your meter when you get home.

We recommend you keep your receipt each time you top-up in case there is a problem, for example, if the money doesn’t appear on your meter and we need to investigate it for you.

To find your nearest PayPoint outlet, please click here.

You can top-up your smart meters online using our app, MySmartE which you can download from the App Store or Google Play. Alternatively, you can top-up over the phone on our automated top-up line 0121 621 4030 or via SMS.

If you have recently had a smart meter installation or switched to us, please allow 24 hours for us to update your app with your top-up card numbers.

If you would like to top-up by any of these methods, you will need to create an account on the MySmartE app or online first which you can do here.

Alternately, you can visit your local PayPoint outlet. To find your nearest outlet, please click here.

For more information on ways to pay, please click here.

Give your key or card a wipe with a clean dry cloth and reinsert into the meter. Check your receipt to make sure the payment went through successfully and to the right supply. Also that you have topped-up enough to clear any emergency credit or debt that was on your meter.

If an error message appears on your meter, please contact us so we can put things right for you. You will need to be near the meter and have your receipt to hand for us to troubleshoot with you.

Your receipt or confirmation email will contain a 20 digit code. Locate this and go to the relevant meter. Press ‘A’ and enter the 20 digit code, followed by pressing ‘B’, the display will confirm the 20 digit code has been ‘ACCEPTED’ and this will add the credit to your meter or it will display ‘REJECTED INVALID’ and this means the code has been entered incorrectly or ‘REJECTED DUPLICATE’ which means the vend code has already been accepted on the meter.

If you have a SMETS 2 meter and your top-up didn’t work, please see our SMETS 2 User Guide, pages 13-14 for further support.

We can provide you with a replacement card or key if you contact us, however, please be aware that there may be a charge.

You can still top-up without your card. If you register online or via our app, you can make a top-up at the same time. You can also top-up via SMS or over the phone. You will need your smart card numbers which you can find on your IHD or we can email them to you if you email us your request.

Replacement cards may be sent out to you, however please be aware that there may be a charge.

Smart meters are free of charge and mean you can top up from the comfort of your home or on the go and you don’t need to worry about keeping track of your key or card. Our Smart customers do not pay a standing charge which means they do not pay anything on days when they consume no gas or electricity. They also have access to £15 emergency credit.

If you have both your gas and electricity supply with us and would like to have a smart meter installed, please call 0330 135 9970 to arrange an appointment.

To check your electricity balance, press the blue button on the meter (you do not need your key to do this). If you are using your emergency credit or are in debt, if you press the blue button again you will reach screen ‘B’ which will tell you what you need to top up to clear any emergency credit or debt and get you back in positive credit.

To check your balance, press the red button on the meter (you do not need your card to do this). If you press the red button again, you will reach the ‘owed’ screen which will tell you if you have any emergency credit or debt outstanding that will be taken from your next top up.

You can check your balance by pressing B on the meter. You can also find this on your IHD by selecting the fuel you would like to see the balance of.

If you run out of credit and cannot top up, you can access your emergency credit by inserting your card or key into the meter. You can use this credit to keep you on supply, however remember that when you next top up, you will need to pay back anything you have used.

There is no charge for using the emergency credit but remember that debt and standing charges are not taken whilst using emergency credit so when you top up, you may need to put a little extra on to cover this.

If you run out of credit and cannot top up you can access your emergency credit by accepting the prompt on your IHD or by pressing 7 on your meter. You can use this credit to keep you on supply, however remember that when you next top up, you will need to pay back anything you have used.

There is no charge for using the emergency credit but remember that debt and standing charges are not taken whilst using emergency credit so when you top up, you may need to put a little extra on to cover this.

‘Friendly Credit’ means you will not lose electricity during evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

If you run out of credit (standard or emergency) during the following hours, your electricity will not go off supply:

Monday to Saturday 8pm – 8am

Sunday all day until 8am on our next working day

Bank holidays all day until 8am on our next working day

The next time you top-up, any emergency and friendly credit used will be deducted from the payment you have made.

‘Friendly Credit’ means you will not lose electricity or gas during evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

If you run out of credit (standard or emergency) during the following hours, your electricity and gas will not go off supply:

Monday to Friday 3pm – 10am

Saturday and Sunday all day until 10am on our next working day

Bank holidays all day until 10am on our next working day

The next time you top-up, any emergency and friendly credit used will be deducted from the payment you have made.

In order for us to close your account we will need a reading from the meter and the name of the person or organisation taking responsibility for the property.

Once you have this information, email us at tenancy@e.org or call us on 0333 103 9575.

If you would like us to supply you at your new property, please let us know and we can arrange this.

We will need to open an account in your name, however before we do that we may require a copy of your tenancy agreement or proof of purchase/property ownership. You can email a copy of this over to us at tenancy@e.org.

Once we have this information, we will also need some information from your meter, so please call us on 0333 103 9575 when you are near your meter.

We are pleased to be part of the Warm Home Discount Scheme.

For further information on the scheme, please visit https: //e.org/support/warm-home-discount.

For England, Wales and Scotland, Core Group 1 is the same as the previous Core Group. If we were supplying your electricity on the qualifying date, 13th August 2023, you are of pensionable age and are receiving the Guaranteed Element of Pension Credit on the qualifying date then you are eligible for the Core Group 1 rebate.

You should have received a letter from HM Government detailing what to do.

For further information, please visit support/warm-home-discount.

HM Government use data matching to identify households who are eligible for Core Group 2 rebate.

Data matching uses a combination of property characteristics data, such as property age, type and floor area alongside means tested benefits data to identify households that are likely to have the highest energy costs and lowest household income.

For further information, please visit support/warm-home-discount.

If you live in Scotland, we have a limited number of rebates available for our Broader Group which is awarded on a first come, first served basis to those who apply and are eligible. The Broader Group rebate is £150.

For more information on our Broader Group, please visit support/warm-home-discount.

The Core Group 1 and Core Group 2 rebate rebates were paid to eligible customers by 31st March 2024.

If you have a traditional prepayment meter, the rebate will be sent to you in Paypoint vouchers which you can redeem for electricity or gas credit at any PayPoint outlet.

If you have a smart prepayment meter and are a dual fuel customer, £75 will be credited to your gas meter and £75 will be credited to your electricity meter. For electricity only customers, £150 will be credited to your electricity meter.

If you have a credit meter, the rebate will be automatically credited to your energy account.

You can use your PayPoint energy voucher rebate against either your electricity or gas meter.

Once you have received your rebate, you can request for this to be transferred to your gas meter by using the contact form below.

A standing charge is a daily charge for each day you are connected to the network. It pays for maintaining your supply and isn’t related to the amount of gas or electricity you use.

A standing charge may vary depending on tariff, meter type and whether the supply relates to gas or electricity.

You can find energy saving advice on our website by clicking here or you can view our energy saving guide here.

The Energy Saving Trust has independent tips and advice for energy efficiency. You can dins more information by visiting their websitewww.energysavingtrust.org.uk

There is also information about grants for energy efficiency improvements on the government’s website www.gov.uk/energy-grants-calculator

If you are struggling to pay and believe your supply may be affected, we may be able to help. Please contact us to discuss your individual circumstances.

Below you will also find further information about organisations that can help if you’re struggling to pay:

Energy Saving Trust
Simple Energy Advice or 0800 444 202
StepChange Debt Charity or 0800 138 111
IncomeMax To request a referral or to find out more, contact us on 0333 103 9575.

We recommend that you keep enough credit on your meters for any appliances you may leave switched on and to cover any standing charges (if applicable) or debt you may be repaying.

Prepayment meters apply the standing charge (if applicable) to your meter on a daily basis, therefore if you run out of credit, the standing charge will build up as a debt which you will need to repay the next time you top-up.

You will need to call a Gas Safe Registered engineer. Please visit www.gassaferegister.co.uk.