Coronavirus Latest Updates and FAQs
COVID-19 Help & Support
Last update – 29 April 2021:
We realise these are challenging times for businesses across the UK, and we’re committed to supporting our customers through the current Coronavirus situation. We’re here to help in the usual way, so if you have any questions or concerns, please contact us, but please only phone us for urgent issues. The live-chat function on our website is the best way to reach us right now.
Help us minimise your invoices by providing meter readings
Following the most recent Government announcement, we realise your business or organisation may be closed at the moment. To make sure we don’t continue charging you based on your normal energy usage during this period, it’s important that you please continue to provide us with up-to-date meter readings. The easiest way to do this is via your Online Account, or alternatively, you can contact us as referenced above.
You can provide your own meter readings at any time; however, please note that, due to our billing cycle, only those readings provided during the following periods can be used to calculate your invoice:
- Electricity – Between 8th and 15th of each month
- Gas – Last week of each month
Paying your invoices
We understand how difficult things are right now, but remember energy is essential to keep businesses running, so please do not cancel your Direct Debit, as this could result in you paying higher charges. The best thing to do is to keep us informed of your situation and, if your business is using very little or no energy at the moment, please provide regular meter readings. This will reduce your invoices to a minimal level.
Please contact us if you are struggling, as we can’t help if we don’t understand your circumstances.
Financial support and advice are available
We urge customers to consider accessing the financial support measures introduced by the Government, including newly announced grants of up to £9,000 for businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors, as well as existing business interruption loans and the job retention scheme. You can find more information on the Government website here.
The national charity, Business Debtline, has also published specific Coronavirus advice on its website here. You can contact Business Debtline for free and confidential advice on dealing with debt and cash flow problems.
Keeping you safe during visits to your property
We continue to monitor and follow all relevant Government health advice to protect our customers, employees, and third-party agents during the Covid-19 pandemic. We (including one of our representatives) may need to visit your property for a variety of reasons, such as to carry out metering work (including installation of a smart meter), or to work with you to resolve an overdue debt.
Please rest assured that all field-based employees and third-party agents and engineers will take the appropriate steps, in line with current Government guidelines, to keep you safe while attending your premises. For example:
- Prior to completing any pre-arranged metering work, you will be contacted in advance to ensure you are happy for the appointment to take place and to enquire about any potentially ‘at risk’ individuals who may be present at the property.
- Job-specific risk assessments will be carried out to identify and mitigate against any potential health and safety risks.
- Wherever possible, only one individual will attend your premises, and social distancing will be maintained at all times.
- Individuals will carry out increased handwashing/sanitising (including always upon arriving at and leaving a site).
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) will be worn during visits, and any waste will be safely disposed of by the engineer after leaving the site.
If you have any questions or concerns about these health and safety measures, please contact us.
We recognise that, due to the current Covid-19 (Coronavirus) outbreak, these are uncertain times for our customers. Please rest assured we are doing all we can to maintain our usual high standard of service, while also keeping our customers and employees safe.
Below we have answered some frequently asked questions from customers, which we hope will help you.
We are working hard to deal with your queries in the normal way, while keeping our employees safe.
Please only contact us by phone if your query is urgent, otherwise we would recommend using live chat via our website or alternatively logging into your Online Account and raising a query.
Throughout this period, you may experience increased call waiting times –please bear with us, we’ll be doing everything we can to help and we thank you for your patience.
We are working hard to deal with your queries in the normal way, while keeping our employees safe.
Please only contact us by phone if your query is urgent, otherwise we would recommend using live chat via our website or alternatively logging into your Online Account and raising a query.
Throughout this period, you may experience increased call waiting times –please bear with us, we’ll be doing everything we can to help and we thank you for your patience.
We are working hard to deal with your queries in the normal way, while keeping our employees safe.
Please only contact us by phone if your query is urgent, otherwise we would recommend using live chat via our website or alternatively logging into your Online Account and raising a query.
Throughout this period, you may experience increased call waiting times –please bear with us, we’ll be doing everything we can to help and we thank you for your patience.
The UK Government has announced a range of measures to support businesses of all sizes during the economic downturn, including a scheme to keep employees in work during this difficult period. You can find more information on the Government website here.
BES is proud to partner with Business Debtline, a national charity providing free and confidential debt and cashflow advice and support to businesses and organisations throughout the UK. More information is available on the Business Debtline website here, or by calling them on 0800 197 6026.
We urge you to leave you Direct Debit in place, to prevent you from incurring increased charges. Please contact us as early as possible if you are struggling to pay. We may be able to help, but it’s important that we hear from you and understand your circumstances.
The UK Government has announced a range of measures to support businesses of all sizes during the economic downturn, including a scheme to keep employees in work during this difficult period. You can find more information on the Government website here.
BES is proud to partner with Business Debtline, a national charity providing free and confidential debt and cashflow advice and support to businesses and organisations throughout the UK. More information is available on the Business Debtline website here, or by calling them on 0800 197 6026.
We urge you to leave you Direct Debit in place, to prevent you from incurring increased charges. Please contact us as early as possible if you are struggling to pay. We may be able to help, but it’s important that we hear from you and understand your circumstances.
The UK Government has announced a range of measures to support businesses of all sizes during the economic downturn, including a scheme to keep employees in work during this difficult period. You can find more information on the Government website here.
BES is proud to partner with Business Debtline, a national charity providing free and confidential debt and cashflow advice and support to businesses and organisations throughout the UK. More information is available on the Business Debtline website here, or by calling them on 0800 197 6026.
We urge you to leave you Direct Debit in place, to prevent you from incurring increased charges. Please contact us as early as possible if you are struggling to pay. We may be able to help, but it’s important that we hear from you and understand your circumstances.
We would recommend keeping up to date with all official guidance from the Government during this time. You can find more guidance for businesses and employers on their website here.
If you have not already done so, we would urge you to register for a BES Online Account, which will enable to you view and download invoices, make payments, enter meter readings and raise queries, as well as a number of other options.
If you experience a loss of power or a gas leak, or other unsafe situation, please contact:
Electricity –
- Call Powercut 105 by dialling 105 from any landline or mobile
Gas –
- Turn off the gas meter by turning the valve at right angles to the gas pipe.
- Open all windows and doors and keep them open until the leak is repaired.
- Don’t smoke or use electrical switches, matches or naked flames.
- Call the National Grid Emergency Line 0800 111 999.
- Make sure someone’s at home when the emergency engineer arrives.
- Call the Fire Service on 999 if fire breaks out.
