Meters & Usage

All BES electricity contracts offer a free of charge smart meter to be installed at site where possible. A smart meter is designed to provide us with accurate, regular information about your energy usage, allowing BES to provide more accurate invoices and reduce the impacts of estimated invoices for long periods.

By entering into a contract with BES, you agree that you will allow us to install such a device (if one is not already installed). If we are unable to install a smart meter for technical reasons this will not alter the contractual agreement between us, however it will mean that if you wish to receive accurate monthly invoices, you will be required to provide the monthly reads to us via phone, email or through the MY ACCOUNT section of this website. 

Additionally, if a smart meter is not installed at the premises, we will instruct a pedestrian meter reader to attend your premises every six months throughout our agreement

There are a variety of meters, ranging from the complicated dial meter, to the smart meter detailed above. If you do have a dial meter, please follow the below instructions:

• Read ALL black dials from left to right

• Dials next to each other move in the opposite direction

• If the pointer falls in between numbers, always note the lower number

• If your pointer is between 9 and 0, 9 is classed as the lower number

• Ignore any Red Dials

It is in your interest, if you do have a dial meter, to contact our customer services team as soon as possible to get an upgrade arranged for you. They can arrange this as well as help you read the meter itself if you are having any problems.

The smart meter will provide us with reads the majority of the time, however, if there are any issues connecting to it, you will find it is much easier to read. There should be a button on the meter which reads ‘select’ or ‘display’ which when pressed will take you through all the relevant information such as date, time and most importantly meter reading.

If the information is not clear, please contact our customer services department who can provide further guidance, if required.

There are a variety of meters, ranging from the complicated dial meter, to the smart meter detailed above. If you do have a dial meter, please follow the below instructions:

• Read ALL black dials from left to right

• Dials next to each other move in the opposite direction

• If the pointer falls in between numbers, always note the lower number

• If your pointer is between 9 and 0, 9 is classed as the lower number

• Ignore any Red Dials

It is in your interest, if you do have a dial meter, to contact our customer services team as soon as possible to get an upgrade arranged for you. They can arrange this as well as help you read the meter itself if you are having any problems.

The smart meter will provide us with reads the majority of the time, however, if there are any issues connecting to it, you will find it is much easier to read. There should be a button on the meter which reads ‘select’ or ‘display’ which when pressed will take you through all the relevant information such as date, time and most importantly meter reading.

If the information is not clear, please contact our customer services department who can provide further guidance, if required.

We advise, that in these cases, the customer contacts a qualified electrician to have all appliances at site tested as this is often found to be the root of the problem. If the electrician finds no issues please contact our customer services team who will be able to investigate this for you.

BES (under the agreement of the customer and at a cost of £120 + VAT) can arrange for the Meter Operator to visit the property and test the meter. If the results of this show the meter to be faulty we will refund the cost of the visit and replace or repair.

Please contact us for costs for de-energising or removing your meter as we will need to discuss the reasons for this. If the meter is de-energised the customer will still be liable for standing charges. These standing charges will not apply if the meter is removed completely.

BES make every effort to obtain an accurate meter reading to open or close your account. If we have been unable to do so, and you believe the reading on your invoice to be incorrect, please contact us, and we can look to have this amended for you.

In order to get the supply split completely, you would need to contact your local area electrical distributor who will be able to provide you with information and costs in regards to this.

No, unfortunately at present BES do not offer this service,  you would need to contact a qualified electrician if this is something you would be interested in having fitted

If you think that your meter is faulty it may be worth considering the following points, before reporting any issues:

• If the meter readings we’ve used were read by you or a meter reader, and are not estimated

• If your previous invoices have been billed to estimated readings and we have recently received an actual meter reading, your invoice may be higher due to the underestimation of your previous invoices

• The time of year, as you may use more during the winter months

• If there’s been a price change since your last bill

• If you’ve changed anything in your business, for example new appliances

• If there’s been an increase in the number of people in your business

• If there’s been recent building work/improvements completed at your business, the appliances used may have increased your usage

• If your meter displays more than one reading, please ensure the correct readings are provided

If you have checked the above and you still believe that your meter may be faulty, please contact us on 0344 567 8427 and we’ll be happy to assist you.

The great news is that we’ll update your account automatically. Please note that this may take up to six weeks, however, your account will be backdated to reflect the date of the meter exchange.

If your meter is Metric there will be a M3 (the symbol for cubic meters) on the front of the meter, if the meter is imperial this will have Cf (the symbol for cubic feet).

You open outside meter boxes with a specially designed key. In order to take your own meter readings you may need a key.

If you’ve just moved into your premises the landlord or previous occupier may have left one for you.

If your landlord or previous occupier has not left you a meter key these are available from any hardware store.