News
04 Sep 2023
Now that the new term is in full swing, do you have growing ‘to do’ list?
Our handy tips aim to help you get on top of the energy basics. Otherwise, if you’d prefer to leave your energy in the hands of an expert, simply contact one of the friendly team today who can help with all of the below and more!
You should be informed at least three to six months before a contract is due for renewal, but this is not always the case. Out-of-contract rates can be as much as three times more than your standard rate, so avoid these inflated costs by maintaining a log of contracts and renewal dates to allow timely action.
If you are procuring your energy within a framework you may need to give as much as 12 months’ notice to switch supplier.
You can keep up to date with all the latest movements in the energy market by visiting our Market Watch page where our expert consultants use their experience to share daily energy prices and analysis. By understanding changes in fundamentals which may impact UK energy prices, business energy users can make more informed and confident decisions.
The type of contract you choose can affect what you’ll pay in the long term. But it can be difficult to compare prices when there is an endless product and supplier choice. Comparing different products means weighing up the costs and potential changes to costs throughout the contract period. Gathering the information and assessing your options and forecasts takes time and expertise. By working with an energy consultant, all the options, comparisons and risk assessment will be prepared for you with an analysis of what is right for your organisation and your energy needs.
Do you need to budget for potential changes during your contract? We help our customers set a budget for their energy to avoid any surprises mid-contract. Schools will also increasingly need to budget for decarbonisation and net zero.
You may be surprised at just how common it is for energy bills to be wrong. Many of the bills we check for customers fail validation. Zenergi can provide total management of your contracts, dealing with all queries and delivering our bill validation service to ensure that readings reflect your actual consumption and that your rates are correct, as well as many other technical aspects of bill checking that ensure you’re only paying for what you use.
Schools can now search the market for a better retail price for their water, just as they do with gas and electricity. But if you haven’t exercised your right to switch, you will have been automatically placed in a ‘deemed contract’ which means you will be paying more for your water than you should be and may not be receiving the best customer service. Zenergi’s water management service offers savings of as much as 5% from carefully selected suppliers, including bill validation with any queries managed through to resolution on your behalf.
For more information on the water market, take a look at our webinar, and read our article, Water wholesalers publish their rates for 2023/2024: How will you be impacted?
Increasing legislation aimed at reducing carbon emissions is bringing energy compliance into focus for more schools than ever before. If DEC, SECR, and TM44 are a confusing set of acronyms, talk to us and we can help evaluate your need to comply and take care of all the processes for you.
The cheapest kWh is the one you don’t use – and yet many schools are wasting energy unnecessarily. Simple housekeeping, such as turning off appliances instead of using standby functions, maximising the use of natural light before switching on the lights, and setting the correct temperature can offer useful energy savings. Going a step further and updating old and inefficient appliances; and updating lighting to energy saving LEDs offer impressive annual savings for a small investment. A simple energy audit can help to identify how and where your building is using the most energy with recommendations to reduce your consumption, which can be a good first step before any large-scale investment in energy-saving technology and infrastructure.
Take a look at our webinar, The cheapest kWh is the one you don’t use, for a 30-minute journey to a more sustainable future, with a reduced carbon footprint and, ultimately, lower energy bills.
Which? investigated the average customer service response times for energy suppliers… Customers were kept waiting on the phone for more than 10 minutes on average by more than a fifth of energy companies. We spend time on the phone to suppliers, so our customers don’t have to!
If you have any questions, or would like to see what energy options would work for you, contact us today and let us take care of your energy needs.
