FAQs

If you experience a gas leak, report it immediately to National Grid on 0800 111 999. Or in the event of a power cut, please call 105 to get information, advice and any updates on power outages in your area.

If you are unfortunate enough to experience a gas leak or power cut, ESSO will make every effort to ensure that your services are restored as quickly as possible, with minimal inconvenience and disruption to you and your business. Although we don’t offer compensation, we would advise you to seek appropriate business insurance.

No. You’ll be billed monthly, which allows you to check your bills more regularly and spreads the cost out more evenly over the year.

If you have a meter, we use meter reads to calculate your usage. If we do not have an accurate read, we’ll estimate your usage based on your estimated annual consumption (EAC). To ensure your bills are as accurate as possible we recommend you provide us with monthly reads.

If your usage for the period is below the de minimis threshold (33kWh/day for electricity, 145 kWh/day for gas) then you will automatically pay the reduced rate of 5% VAT. Where your usage for the period is above this, the standard VAT rate of 20% would apply.

If you run your business from a residential property and your usage is above the threshold, we can apply both the 5% VAT for your domestic usage and 20% for your business usage. If you run a charity you’ll also only be charged the lower rate, 5% VAT.

We’d encourage you to provide your current supplier with a final meter read before switching to us. This will become your start reading for us. We’ll read your meter every six months after that, but if it is safe for you to do so we’d recommend submitting readings to us on a monthly basis to ensure you’re billed accurately. You can do this in a matter of click through your online portal, by emailing sales@essogroup.co.uk or calling 0113 447 0322.

Climate Change Levy is an environmental tax that was introduced by the Government and is imposed on all businesses. The levy has been established to respond to global warming and all suppliers charge the same rate.

All businesses must pay Climate Change Levy irrespective of who supplies you, unless you can produce a Climate Change Levy exemption certificate. Only charities and some horticultural societies will qualify for exemption. Your local tax office can provide further details if appropriate.

CCL rates applicable from 1 April 2023 are:

Electricity – 0.775ppkWh

Gas – 0.672ppkWh

The levy is subject to VAT.

The Feed-in Tariff (FiT) scheme was introduced by the Government to encourage the adoption of renewable energy sources in homes and businesses. To fund the scheme, electricity suppliers pass through a FiT charge onto the unit rates billed. All our unit rates quoted are inclusive of Feed-in Tariff charges.

Should this be the case, we would ask all customers to call customer services on 0113 447 0322 at least 30 days’ prior to your moving date.

Energy suppliers are required to take all reasonable steps to rollout smart meters to all of their domestic and small business customers by the end of December 2021.

From January 2022 all gas and electricity suppliers will have binding annual installation targets to roll out smart and advanced meters to their remaining non-smart customers by the end of 2025.

In contract
Providing we’ve received all the necessary information required to complete the transfer and there are no contractual issues, we’ll transfer your service over to us at the end of your current contract end date.

Out of contract / deemed
We’ll transfer your service over to us in 5 working days providing we’ve received all the necessary information required to complete the transfer and there are no contractual issues.

Once you’ve signed your contract it’ll be passed to our dedicated team for processing and you’ll receive a call to make sure your supply details are correct. We’ll then place the order to transfer your services which will take around 14-28 days to complete.

If you’re charged an Early Termination Charge (ETC) we’ll pay up to a maximum of £300 into your bank account. Send us your final invoice from your previous supplier and we’ll make payment to your bank account within 28 days.*

We’ll read your meter twice a year. If it is safe for you to read your own meter, we also recommend providing meter reads monthly so that we can bill you as accurately as possible. Meter reads should be provided by the last working day of the month to be included in your next bill.

The easiest and quickest way to submit your meter reads is via your online portal. Alternatively, you can email them to sales@essoltd.co.uk or contact our Customer Service Team on 0113 447 0322.

Give us a call and we’ll help you locate it. We receive market data that should contain details of where your meter is and how to read it. If this doesn’t sound right to you, please let us know and we’ll contact your wholesaler to find the meter, and move or replace it if needed. If we can’t read your meter because this isn’t up to date, we’ll work to get it read as soon as possible.

If you don’t have a meter your charges will be calculated using the Rateable Value or size of your property, rather than your actual usage. If you’d prefer to have a meter, we can request that one is installed at your property once you’ve switched to us. Installing a meter means that you’ll only pay for the water that you use, alongside your fixed water charges.

Rateable Value (RV) is the value assigned to your property based on its size, location and other factors. It may be used to calculate your drainage charges or calculate your water usage if you don’t have a meter installed and don’t apply for assessed charges.

RVs are periodically revalued to make sure they’re up to date and reflect any change in circumstances at the premises. Revaluations can mean RVs go up, go down or stay the same and any changes will impact your RV based water charges. Revaluations are carried out by the local valuation boards in Scotland, which is usually part of the local council, and the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) in England. You should contact them directly with any queries about how the RV for your premises was calculated.

In Scotland, RVs are revalued every 3 years and are recorded by the Scottish Assessors Association (SAA). You can view your RV and see who your local valuation board is at www.saa.gov.uk.

In England, the RV of all non-household premises are revalued every 5 years and are recorded by the VOA. You can view your RV and see how it was calculated at https://www.gov.uk/find-business-rates.

Yes, most people are able to get a meter and being aware of how much water we use is of huge benefit to the environment. We can submit an application to your Wholesaler on your behalf to get a meter installed.

We’ll send a meter reader twice a year. Where we have been unable to read your meter we may contact you for a read or estimate your usage based on previous reads.

We’ll take over from your previous supplier and give them a read to prepare your final bill as part of the transfer process. We’ll usually read your meter every six months after that, but if it is safe for you to do so we’d recommend submitting readings to us on a monthly basis to ensure you are billed accurately. You can do this in a matter of clicks through your online portal, email sales@essoltd.co.uk or call us on 0113 447 0322.

In the event of an emergency you should contact the wholesaler in your local area directly. The wholesaler in your area can be found on any invoice, or your welcome pack. Alternatively log in to your online portal for your supply information. If you have an emergency call us on 0113 447 0322 and we’ll give you the number for the wholesaler in your area.

Call a plumber in the first instance, most leaks are internal and remain your responsibility to fix. If you suspect you have a leak you should try and get it fixed as soon as possible, as you will have to pay for any water that goes into your property.  

All services you take from ESSO will be invoiced on our unique one bill solution on a monthly basis. We issue bills from 5th of the month and Direct Debits are collected shortly after your invoice date.

Yes, you can view the last 36 months of bills anytime online via your online portal.

VAT is charged based on your business activity, which is determined by HM Revenue and Customs. If you do not pay VAT on your water services you will need to declare this so that we can confirm your position with HM Revenue and Customs.