Do I need to submit a meter reading or do anything ahead of the Price Cap changes?

Taking a meter reading before the price cap changes

If your smart meter is in communication with us and you’re set to daily or half hourly readings, you will not need to submit a meter reading as these will be sent in automctially. If your smart meter reading schedule is monthly we’d recommend you submit a manual reading.

For SMETS1 ‘Secure’ smart meters:

There’s a slight difference between the the S1 meters we installed. To take a dual (day/night) reading for Secure Liberty 110 S1 smart meters (which are designed to work best with storage heaters), press 9 on the meter’s keypad. If you’ve got a Secure Liberty 100 S1 smart meter, press 6 to confirm the Day and Night meter readings (pressing 9 will show the reading if you’re a single rate member with this meter).
 

For SMETS2 Aclara, Flonidan, Honeywell or Elster smart meters:

Once you’ve taken the reading you can submit it on the ‘Meter Readings’ page of your online account or on the OVO app (Download for Android or iOS)

Worried that your smart meter has lost communication? You can help diagnose this by following the smart meter health check for your meter type below, then reaching out to the Support team:

SMETS1 Secure Smart Meter Health Check guide

The SMETS2 Smart Meter Health Check

If you have a traditional meter please check out this handy tutorial:

Ofgem’s energy price cap limits what you pay for gas or electricity on a variable rate plan. You can see the latest information regarding the price cap levels and date changes on the Ofgem site here.

The way energy suppliers set prices is impacted by:

The price cap – set by Ofgem, the energy regulator. This limits the amount customers on variable rate plans will pay for each unit of gas and electricity and sets a maximum standing charge.

The Energy Price Guarantee – provided by the government to help households with energy costs during the energy crisis. It’s a discount on gas and electricity prices and is in addition to the price cap. It applies to both variable and fixed rate plans. If the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG) is above the level of the price cap, it won’t impact prices for anyone who pays monthly. 

What this means if you pay monthly for your energy

If you're on a variable rate plan, your unit rate and standing charge will change on 1st January, April, July and October, in line with the new price cap. We’ll write to you to let you know if this impacts you personally. Your actual bills will still depend on how much energy your home uses.

If you're on a fixed rate plan, the price cap doesn't affect prices for fixed-rate plans. We're keeping your prices as they are for the length of your contract to protect you from any price increases.

What this means if you Pay As You Go for your energy

All Pay As You Go prices are variable – these will change with the new price cap on 1st January, April, July and October.

Priority Services Register

Need extra support? We can offer free help if you’re ill, have a disability or have a medical condition via our Priority Services Register.

Support available for customers who may be struggling with their bills

Here’s how you can apply for our Customer support package. 

Here’s our guide on debt and energy assistance.

Citizens Advice: Visit your local branch, or their websites: for England and Wales and for Scotland. You can speak to an adviser online, in person, or over the phone: 0800 144 8848 (England), 0800 702 2020 (Wales), and 0800 028 1456 (Scotland). 

National Debtline: Call 0808 808 4000 or visit their website.

Step Change Debt Charity: Call 0800 138 1111 or visit their website.

Have any questions about the price cap? See our Price Cap FAQs here.