Friendly credit: what it is and how it works

Friendly credit is a consumer protection mechanism designed to prevent prepayment meter users from losing their energy supply, particularly when topping up is difficult. It acts as a temporary safety net, ensuring continuity of power during evenings, weekends, and public holidays. Understanding how this system works is crucial for managing your energy and avoiding unexpected disconnections.

Managing your energy should be straightforward, even with a prepayment meter. Fuse Energy aims to simplify this by offering a modern approach to energy management. Click here to see how easy it is to manage your energy with Fuse.

Understanding friendly credit

Friendly credit is a provision by energy suppliers that ensures prepayment meter customers maintain their electricity or gas supply during specific periods when top-up points may be closed or inaccessible. This measure is typically activated during evenings, weekends, and public holidays, acting as a vital safeguard against immediate disconnection. It is a consumer protection mechanism, often regulated by Ofgem, to ensure continuity of energy supply for prepayment customers during vulnerable times.

What friendly credit means for prepayment users

For those with prepayment meters, friendly credit offers peace of mind. It means you will not suddenly lose power if your meter runs out of credit outside of normal working hours. Instead, the supply continues, allowing you to use energy until you can next top up. This temporary credit is not free; it is a loan that must be repaid when you next add money to your meter.

The purpose of friendly credit

The core purpose of friendly credit is to prevent vulnerable customers from being disconnected from their energy supply at times when they cannot easily top up. It ensures that essential services like heating and lighting remain available, protecting households from the risks associated with sudden power loss during unsocial hours.

How friendly credit works

Friendly credit typically activates automatically if your prepayment meter runs out of credit during designated "friendly hours". These hours usually cover evenings, weekends, and public holidays when top-up points might be closed or difficult to access. This ensures that your energy supply continues uninterrupted until the next opportunity to top up.

Typical friendly credit hours

While specific times can vary slightly between suppliers, friendly credit generally covers periods such as:

• Evenings: From late afternoon or early evening until the following morning.
• Weekends: From Friday evening through to Monday morning.
• Public holidays: Covering the entire holiday period.

These hours are designed to align with when most top-up locations, like shops or post offices, would be closed.

Repaying friendly credit

Any energy consumed during friendly credit hours is a temporary advance and must be repaid. The amount used is automatically deducted from your meter the next time you top up. It is important to repay this credit promptly to avoid accumulating debt and to ensure you remain eligible for future friendly credit provisions.

What happens if you do not top up

If you consistently fail to top up your meter and repay friendly credit, you risk losing access to this safety net. While suppliers aim to prevent immediate disconnection, continued non-payment can lead to further action, including potential disconnection during non-friendly hours once any emergency credit is also exhausted.

Friendly credit vs emergency credit

While both friendly credit and emergency credit provide a safety net for prepayment meter users, they serve slightly different purposes and activate under different conditions.

Key differences and similarities

Emergency credit is a small, fixed amount of credit that you can activate manually from your meter when your balance is low, typically before it reaches zero. It is designed to give you a short window to top up before your supply cuts off. Like friendly credit, it must be repaid when you next top up.

Friendly credit, on the other hand, activates automatically when your meter runs out during specific unsocial hours, such as evenings or weekends. You do not need to manually activate it; it simply keeps your supply on. Both are temporary measures to prevent immediate disconnection and must be repaid.

When each type of credit applies

Emergency credit is available at any time your meter balance is low, allowing you to choose when to activate it. Friendly credit, however, is time-dependent and only activates if your meter runs out during predefined friendly hours. This means you might use emergency credit during the day if your balance is low, but friendly credit would kick in automatically if you run out of credit on a Saturday evening.

Managing your prepayment meter

Effective management of your prepayment meter can help you avoid relying on friendly or emergency credit and ensure a continuous energy supply.

Tips for avoiding disconnection

Regularly monitor your meter balance and aim to top up before it gets too low. Consider setting reminders to check your balance, especially before weekends or public holidays. Understanding your typical energy usage can also help you budget for your top-ups. The average UK home uses around 2,700 kWh of electricity per year, according to Ofgem, which can serve as a general guide, though individual usage varies significantly.

Topping up your meter

Most energy suppliers offer multiple ways to top up your prepayment meter:

• Online: Through your supplier's website or app.
• Phone: Via an automated service or customer service line.
• In-person: At PayPoint or Payzone outlets, post offices, or local shops.
• Smart meters: Many smart meters can be topped up remotely via an app, offering greater flexibility.

Familiarise yourself with all available top-up methods for your specific supplier to ensure you always have an option.

When to contact your supplier

If you are struggling to afford your energy, or if you are having issues with your prepayment meter, contact your energy supplier immediately. They can offer advice, discuss payment plans, or direct you to support services. You may also be eligible for schemes like the Warm Home Discount or the Priority Services Register, which provide additional help to vulnerable customers.

Fuse Energy's approach to prepayment meters

Friendly credit is a necessary safety net in the energy industry. Fuse Energy's approach, however, aims to eliminate the need for it entirely for its customers.

Eliminating the need for friendly credit

Fuse Energy operates differently. If you have a smart prepayment meter, Fuse converts it to credit mode upon switching. This means you manage your energy like a traditional credit meter customer, receiving a monthly bill for your usage. This removes the complexities and anxieties associated with traditional prepayment meters and the need to constantly monitor your balance or worry about friendly credit hours. Fuse Energy does not support traditional (legacy) prepayment meters. Our focus is on providing a modern, app-based system for transparent energy management.

Switching to credit mode with Fuse

If you have a smart prepayment meter, switching to Fuse Energy allows you to convert it to a credit meter. This transition simplifies energy management, offering greater control and peace of mind.

Benefits of a smart meter with Fuse

With Fuse Energy, a smart meter in credit mode means:

• No more topping up: Receive a monthly bill based on your actual usage.
• Clear, app-based management: Monitor your energy consumption in real-time through the Fuse app.
• Greater control: Manage your energy without the constant worry of running out of credit.
• Simplified experience: Move away from the complexities of traditional prepayment and friendly credit.

This approach aligns with Fuse Energy's vision of providing "power to play with," making energy management straightforward and stress-free.

Ready to take control of your energy bills and simplify your home energy management? Fuse Energy offers clear pricing, real-time usage data, and 24/7 human customer support. Switching is quick and easy, allowing you to manage your energy with confidence. Click here to switch to Fuse Energy today and experience a smarter way to power your home. You can also learn more about our mission to make energy abundant by clicking here.