Choosing the best moment to switch: When is the best time to switch energy supplier?

Contract for an indefinite period or for a fixed period?

An important factor in knowing the best moment to switch energy supplier is the type of contract you have with the energy supplier. Do you have a contract for an indefinite period or for a fixed period? For people with a contract with a fixed end date, the best moment to switch is about 6 to 8 weeks before the contract expires. If you have a contract for an indefinite period, you can switch to a new supplier immediately, whenever you like. Your new supplier arranges the switch and of course takes into account the switching period applied by the old supplier. This is usually 1 month at most.

If you have a contract with a fixed end date and you switch or cancel too early, there is a good chance that the old supplier will impose a penalty. In this case it is therefore wiser to wait until 6 to 8 weeks before the contract expires. If you have never switched energy supplier before, there is a good chance that you have a contract for an indefinite period.

Avoid breach of contract

What is important when switching energy supplier is avoiding breach of contract. This can lead to a cancellation penalty, which is not reimbursed by the new energy supplier. This is your own responsibility. If you use a supplier's switching service, they will always take into account the notice period and the current contract. So if you let your new supplier arrange the switch, you will never have to deal with breach of contract. If you find switching hard to oversee, it is therefore wise to let the new supplier arrange it.

If the end date of your contract is still more than two months away, it is wise to wait before switching. If you switch too early, you may also miss out on a welcome discount or gift from your new supplier. So always try to keep a close eye on the end date of your contract and never switch to a new supplier too early.

Is it better to switch in summer or in winter?

In many cases it also makes a difference whether you switch in summer or in winter. Your instalment amount is based on your energy consumption throughout the whole year. That is why you pay the same amount every month, instead of paying less in summer and more in winter. If you receive the annual bill for your energy contract in autumn or at the start of winter, this means that you switch in the expensive winter months. Then there is a good chance that you will have to pay extra. If you received the bill before the summer, it means that you switch in the cheap summer months and that there is a good chance you will still get money back from the old supplier. If you always switch at the end of the year, you do not need to take this into account.

What should you take into account if you have solar panels?

If you have solar panels, there are other things you need to take into account if you want to switch energy supplier. In the summer months you probably generate more energy than you consume. If this is the case and the start date of your energy contract is just before the summer, it is not favourable to switch during or just after the summer. At that moment there is a good chance that you have generated more than you have consumed. For electricity fed back you only get a low fee, which is why it is smarter to wait until there is only a small difference between your consumption and your feed-in.

Besides keeping an eye on the moment of switching, it is important to check your annual bill carefully. A lot of energy suppliers do not sufficiently inform consumers with solar panels about net metering and feed-in rates. This is shown by research from the regulator ACM.

How does switching energy supplier work if you are moving house?

If you are moving house, in some cases it can also be favourable to switch energy supplier. Your current contract may no longer suit the new living situation. You can find out in advance which energy supplier is the cheapest for your new address. Your current contract may not be that favourable at all in the new house or flat. This is often because there is a different historical consumption, the consumption in the new home is different and because suppliers offer different contracts at different addresses. If you are moving house, you can do two things.

You can cancel your current contract and switch to another contract or another supplier, or you can take your current contract with you to the new address. If you do this, you can often still adjust the monthly instalment amount to the new situation. If, for example, you move from a house to a flat, you can be almost certain that you will use less energy, so the instalment amount can go down. If you want to be sure of this first, you can also wait a month or two to see what your actual consumption is in the new home. Note, however, that increasing or decreasing the instalment amount can often only be done for a month later.

Choosing the best moment to switch: this is how you do it!

Find out how to determine the best moment for you to switch energy supplier.