How do I find information on Emergency Credit and Friendly Credit for my prepayment meter
On this page you’ll find lots of information about Emergency Credit and Friendly Credit:
What is Emergency Credit?
How to activate Emergency Credit
How to check how much Emergency Credit you have left
Friendly Credit: for when Emergency Credit runs out
Important information
Useful links
What is Emergency Credit?
If you’re unable to add credit to your energy meter, Emergency Credit is there as a safety net. When your energy credit gets low and is about to run out, you can activate the Emergency Credit to make sure you can still heat and power your home.
You’ll see a low credit alert on your meter or, for smart meters, on your in-home smart meter display.
Smart meters and many traditional (non-smart) meters also have additional Friendly Credit, in case your credit runs out during a time when you can’t get to a shop.
Important: Remember, if you use up your Emergency Credit or Friendly Credit, you’ll need to repay them both the next time you top up.
How to activate Emergency Credit
Using an in-home smart meter display
You can activate your Emergency Credit using your smart meter display. Just follow the relevant link for your in-home display here:
Directly at the meter: Smart meters
We’ve put together this list to help you understand your smart meter. You’ll find helpful videos and step-by-step instructions for specific actions. You should see a manufacturer's name on the front of your meter. Choose the meter that applies below:
Directly at the meter: Traditional (non-smart) meters
Choose the link depending on the meter type you want to add Emergency Credit to.
How to check how much Emergency Credit you have left
If your credit was running low and you’ve activated your Emergency Credit, you can check your remaining balance through your meter or in-home smart meter display.
In-home smart meter displays
To find out how you can check the remaining Emergency Credit balance through your smart meter display, click
.Directly on the meter: smart meters
We’ve put together a list of links to help you get what you need from your smart meter. You’ll find helpful videos and step-by-step instructions. You should see a manufacturer's name on the front of your meter. Choose the meter that applies below:
Directly at the meter: traditional (non-smart) meters
Click
to read our user guide and find how to check your remaining Emergency credit balance on the meter.Friendly Credit: for when you can’t get to the shops
We understand it can be difficult to get a top-up sometimes, especially at night. So smart meters and many traditional (non-smart) meters have Friendly Credit. Friendly Credit is automatically applied if your credit or Emergency Credit has been used up during the below times, so you don’t get disconnected before the shops are open:
Weekdays from 4pm to 10am
Weekends start at 4pm on a Friday and last until 10am on Monday
Important information
Remember to top up
If you don’t top up your meters or apply Emergency Credit or Friendly Credit, your supply will go off when your normal credit runs out. When you top up, you’ll need to repay the Emergency Credit or Friendly Credit, as well as any standing charges before you can use energy again.
You need to repay Emergency Credit and Friendly Credit
Don’t forget, you need to repay both Emergency and Friendly Credit the next time you top up. If you think you are going to struggle to pay this back in one go, please call our UK-based customer services team on 0333 777 3215.
If you’re away from home...
Make sure you leave enough credit on your meter to cover the energy your fridge, freezer and other appliances will use while you’re away, as well as any standing charges.
Useful links
For help on how to top up your smart meter, click
.Or for Emergency Credit information on a non-smart meter, click
.