Business energy quotes

Why business energy quotes are individual

Unlike household tariffs, business energy prices are not one published figure for everyone. Each supplier works out a price for your business from your consumption, your meter types, where your premises are, your credit position, the start date and the contract length you ask for. Wholesale prices also move day to day, so a quote reflects the market on the day it was priced.

That is why the most useful thing you can do is give accurate information once, and have it priced on the same basis by several suppliers. Forever Communications works as an agent of Fidelity Energy, which requests and compares quotes from its panel of 24+ suppliers (Fidelity Energy's figure). We collect your details and go through the results with you.

What to have ready

Not sure what an MPAN, MPRN or half-hourly meter is? Our sister site Business Gas and Electric explains business meters, tariffs and bills. For quotes, you only need to send us the bills; we can pick out the details.

What happens after you ask

1. We collect your bills and requirements. Send them through the contact form and tell us what matters to you: budget certainty, contract length, green energy or lining up several sites.
2. Fidelity Energy prices your supplies across its panel. It requests prices from suppliers on the same basis so they can be compared like-for-like.
3. We go through the quotes with you. Unit rates, standing charges, contract length, terms, green options and the broker commission included in the rates.
4. You decide. If one suits, you accept it. If none does, you do not have to take any of them.
5. The supplier confirms the contract. The supplier runs its checks and can accept or decline. Once it accepts, Fidelity Energy organises the contract and the new supplier starts the switch.

Your energy still arrives through the same wires, pipes and meters when you change supplier. Ofgem notes that your existing supplier may object to a switch, for example if you owe it money, so it is worth clearing any balance or query early. Our guide to how to switch business energy supplier covers the rest of the process.

How long a business energy quote lasts

Because prices follow the wholesale market, business energy quotes are short-lived, and a quote that was available one week may not be available the next. Fidelity Energy's terms say that it and the supplier can revise, amend or withdraw a quotation at any time on informing you, and that how long a quotation stays valid varies by supplier.

This has two practical consequences:

• Have your information ready before you ask, so the quotes can be acted on while they are live
• Do not assume a quote will still be there after your current contract ends; compare during your switching window instead

Timing matters for renewals in particular. See business energy contract renewal for when the renewal window usually opens.

Accepting a quote is binding

Fidelity Energy's terms say that accepting a quotation is an offer to the supplier that you cannot withdraw; the contract is formed when the supplier accepts it. Ofgem says there is no cooling-off period after you agree a business energy contract, and Fidelity Energy's terms include a contract cancellation fee if you sign a supply contract through it and then do not go ahead. So before you accept, check:

• The contract type and length, and the start date
• The unit rates and standing charges for every supply in the quote
• Exit fees, termination clauses and what happens at the end of the term
• The broker costs shown in the principal terms (energy broker fees)
• That every site and meter you expected is included

Read more on the business energy cooling off period page.

What a quote includes and what it does not

A business energy quote shows the supplier's unit rates and standing charges for the term. VAT and the Climate Change Levy are usually added on the bill, so check how each is treated:

• VAT: business use is normally charged at the standard rate, while qualifying use (such as domestic use, charity non-business use, or low use under HMRC's de minimis limits) gets the reduced rate. HMRC's VAT Notice 701/19 also sets out a temporary zero rate on qualifying supplies of electricity in Great Britain from 1 October 2026 to 30 June 2027
• Climate Change Levy: GOV.UK says businesses in the industrial, commercial, agricultural and public services sectors pay the main rates, but not on certain supplies, for example to a business that uses small amounts of energy or a charity engaged in non-commercial activities
• Broker commission: if you use a broker paid by the supplier, the commission is usually included in the unit rate and/or standing charge

Our VAT and Climate Change Levy guide explains the rules and links to HMRC's own guidance.

Electricity and gas: together or separately

You can ask for quotes for your electricity, your gas or both. Some businesses like one supplier and one renewal date for both fuels; others take whichever supplier is most competitive for each and accept two contracts. Neither is automatically better. What matters is the total cost and terms of each supply, which is why we lay electricity and gas quotes out separately even when one supplier quotes for both.

If your electricity and gas contracts end on different dates, quotes can be timed so each starts when the current contract ends, and you can decide whether to line them up for the future. The fuel-specific guides cover the detail: business electricity comparison and business gas comparison.

Quotes for new premises and new businesses

If you have just moved in, or are about to, there may be no bill in your name yet. You can still get quotes:

• Give us the address and, if you have them, the supply numbers from the previous occupier's bills or the meters
• Estimate your annual use; suppliers can price on an estimate, and the bills will follow your actual meter readings
• Tell the property's current supplier you have moved in as soon as you can, with a meter reading if possible, and provide evidence such as your lease or purchase documents when it asks, as Ofgem's change of tenancy guidance sets out

Ofgem says you are responsible for any energy you use before your new contract starts, and that if you move in without arranging a contract you will be put on a deemed contract, with rates usually higher than negotiated contract rates. You can switch away from a deemed contract at any time. See change of tenancy and deemed rates.

Who can get a quote through Fidelity Energy

Fidelity Energy's terms say its services are for businesses resident in the UK (sole traders must be 18 or over) that meet any credit criteria Fidelity Energy or the supplier requires. A quotation sets out the terms and prices on which a supplier may be prepared to supply you; it is not an offer, and the contract only exists once the supplier accepts. If one supplier declines, others on the panel may still be able to quote, which is one advantage of comparing across a panel rather than going to a single supplier.

You do not normally pay Fidelity Energy a separate fee: the supplier pays it commission, which is included in your rates. You can opt at the start to pay it a fee by invoice instead. The principal terms of your contract show the broker costs; see energy broker fees for how this works.

Quotes for more than one site

If you have several premises, quotes can be requested for all of them together. That can make it easier to line up contract end dates so future renewals happen at once, and to compare one set of terms instead of several. Larger sites with half-hourly settled electricity are priced differently, because the supplier looks at when you use power as well as how much; see half-hourly business electricity.

Contact us with your bills and contract end dates, and we will arrange quotes through Fidelity Energy.