Choosing Utility companies

[chubberoo]

hi all,

Unsure of where to post this but here goes.

Currently in the process of buying my first house. What's the procedure with sorting out the water, electric/gas and wifi? By this i mean obviously we need to chose a provider, but where's best to find out who's best and how do I sort this when I don't know when I'll be moving in?

 

[securespark]

Broadband choices?

uswitch?

You can enter your current usage (if your new house is a similar size) and compare contracts.

Some charge for moving but if you save more, it is still worth moving.

So you could move in and 6 months later if you find a cheaper deal, move and pay the penalty.

Your existing providers ought to be keen to move with you. Tell them you are moving and what can they do to retain your custom?

 

[chubberoo]

As its my first house I have no providers, that's why I'm asking how to set them up/when to

 

[JohnD]

If somebody already lives there, you could ask them which companies they use, then look up their prices.

It will be slightly easier to take over the account with the same supplier.

Otherwise, browse for the best prices for your anticipated usage, give them the full address, say you are interested. They will want to see some kind of identification and creditworthiness if you have never been a utilities customer before.

this one seems reliable. Look at the rating for quality of customer service. Some are terrible.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/ch...aign=nt-bestbuys-quicklinks-one&utm_content=5

 

[PBC_1966]

For water you have no choice of supplier, so you'll be with whichever company serves the area. Drainage is included in the water bill, assuming you have mains drainage and aren't on a sepric tank. If you're in Scotland, I believe that in most cases the water bill is incorporated into your council-tax bill by the local authority.

With the multitude of options in the U.K. now for electricity, the sort of comparison sites already mentioned might be handy, but consider carefully whether you need a single rate, Economy 7 tariff etc. and don't just go with what's already there. If, for example, the house has electric storage heating but one of the first things you're planning on doing is ripping it all out and installing gas or oil central heating, it will most likely be better to use a standard tariff instead of Economy 7 or similar. Assuming that the house has a natural gas supply, you might also get a better deal by getting a combined electric/gas package from the same company.

For telephone and Internet, if you're in certain towns you might have the option of broadband cable service (Virgin et al) or ADSL might be the only practical option. Bear in mind that from the point of view of attainable line speeds ADSL is limited by the physical plant which is all owned by BT/OpenReach, no matter who you sign up with, although there are other factors which can affect overall performance which can vary from one provider to another in any given area.