Which bills do I set up when I buy a house, and from which day?
Short answer
Use your completion date, not your moving day. Completion is when your conveyancer transfers the money, you get the keys and the home becomes yours, so council tax and the energy bills run from then, even if you move in later. Once contracts are exchanged and the date is fixed, give it to the council, the water company and the home's energy supplier, and order broadband.
On completion day, read the gas, electricity and water meters as soon as you get the keys, and keep dated photos. Until you choose a tariff, you are on the current supplier's default tariff, and you can switch from the day you become responsible. If the home has solar panels, tell the Feed-in Tariff licensee that you are the new owner.
Updated
48 hours
Minimum notice Citizens Advice tells a seller to give their energy supplier
5 working days
For a new energy supplier to switch you once you are responsible
£6.46
A day from scheme providers when a promised broadband start date is missed
When you buy, the home's bills become yours on one day, and it is completion, not the day the van arrives. This guide follows a purchase from exchange to completion: what to arrange once the date is fixed, the readings to take when you get the keys, what happens if the keys come late or you move in later, the energy tariff you start on, how far ahead to order broadband, and solar panel payments.
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What to set up when you buy, and from which day
| Bill | When | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Council tax | Tell the council after exchange. It is due from completion | Give the council your completion date. If the home will stand empty for a while, ask whether it gives a discount. |
| Gas and electricity | After exchange, then read the meters on completion day | Find the current supplier and give it your completion date. You start on its default tariff and can switch from the day you become responsible. |
| Water | After exchange, then read any meter on completion day | Tell the water company the date you take over. In Scotland, water and sewerage come with council tax. |
| Broadband | As soon as you know the completion date | Order a new service or take over the existing line. The provider confirms when it will be ready. |
| TV Licence | When you move in | Update your address, or buy one if you will watch live TV or use BBC iPlayer. |
| Solar panels | After completion | Ask Ofgem which Feed-in Tariff licensee the panels are registered with, then tell it you are the new owner. |
| The home you are selling | At least 48 hours before you leave | Give each energy supplier your leaving date, and read the meters on the day you go. |
| Your new address | Once you have moved | Tell DVLA, the electoral register and HMRC, then your bank and GP. |
Why do the bills start on completion day, not moving day?
Completion is when the home becomes yours. Exchange is when that date is fixed.
- In England and Wales, GOV.UK says the contract sets out when the sale will complete, and the agreement becomes legally binding once you and the seller exchange contracts. Usually neither of you can then pull out without paying compensation.
- On completion, your solicitor or conveyancer transfers your money to the seller, the seller moves out, you get the keys from the seller or estate agent, and you own the property.
- So completion is the date to give the council, the water company and the energy supplier, even if you move in days or weeks later.
- nidirect suggests telling nobody your new address until contracts are exchanged, because a sale that falls through means contacting everyone again.
- Citizens Advice says you do not have to pay for energy used before you moved in. If a supplier asks for proof of your date, it suggests sending your mortgage contract.
- GOV.UK's guide covers England and Wales: buying a home in Scotland or Northern Ireland follows different rules, so check the date your own contract gives for taking ownership.
Sources: GOV.UK: buying a home, transferring ownership (England and Wales) (read 22 October 2026); nidirect: moving to your new home (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: check if you're responsible for paying an energy bill (read 22 October 2026)
What should I set up between exchange and completion?
Once the completion date is fixed, give it to everyone who bills the home, and order broadband.
- Ask the seller, through the estate agent or your conveyancer, who supplies the gas and electricity. nidirect asks sellers to pass their supplier details on to the people moving in.
- If nobody knows, look it up: Xoserve's Find My Supplier service names the gas supplier, and Citizens Advice explains how to find the electricity supplier and meter number through your area's network operator.
- GOV.UK says the contract also covers services to the property, such as drainage and gas, so it shows what the home has before you arrange anything.
- Tell the council your completion date for council tax, and tell the water company you are taking over. In Scotland, water and sewerage charges come with council tax.
- Openreach says to think about broadband as soon as you know your completion date: you will either order a new service or take over an existing line.
Sources: nidirect: moving to your new home (read 22 October 2026); Xoserve: information for gas consumers (Find My Supplier) (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: check if you're responsible for paying an energy bill (read 22 October 2026); GOV.UK: buying a home, transferring ownership (England and Wales) (read 22 October 2026); GOV.UK: start paying Council Tax (England and Wales) (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: moving home and water bills (read 22 October 2026); mygov.scot: public water and sewerage services (read 22 October 2026); Openreach: moving home broadband help (read 22 October 2026)
Which meter readings do the seller and I take on completion day?
The same meters, on the same day, so the seller's final bill ends where your first one starts.
- Citizens Advice tells sellers to give their energy supplier at least 48 hours' notice, read the meters on the day they move out, and keep a note of each reading and the date.
- A seller with a smart meter should check it is working in smart mode before they move. If it is not, they take a final reading themselves.
- As the buyer, read the gas and electricity meters on the day you move in and give the readings to the current supplier. Citizens Advice says this helps it send an accurate first bill.
- Read the water meter too, if there is one. Citizens Advice says to take a reading as soon as you move in, and that you cannot ask for the meter to be removed.
- Photograph every meter with the date showing, and ask the seller for their final readings so you can compare them with yours.
- If the home has a prepayment meter, contact the supplier before you top it up. Citizens Advice says otherwise you risk paying towards debts owed by the people who lived there before.
Sources: Citizens Advice: moving home, dealing with your energy supply (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: moving home and water bills (read 22 October 2026)
What if the keys are released late on completion day?
The home is still yours from completion. Read the meters when you get in, and give suppliers the new date if completion moves.
- Keys come last: GOV.UK lists your money reaching the seller and the seller moving out before you get the keys. So they can arrive hours after your removal van.
- Read the meters as soon as you get in, whatever the time, and send each supplier the readings with your completion date.
- If completion moves to another day, give the council, the water company and the energy supplier the new date. Citizens Advice says you do not have to pay for energy used before you moved in.
- Book any broadband engineer visit for after you have the keys rather than completion morning. An engineer who cannot get in cannot start the service, and Ofcom's automatic compensation does not apply when you prevent a problem being resolved.
Sources: GOV.UK: buying a home, transferring ownership (England and Wales) (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: check if you're responsible for paying an energy bill (read 22 October 2026); Ofcom: automatic compensation, what you need to know (updated 20 July 2026) (read 22 October 2026)
Do I pay bills on a house I have bought but not moved into?
Usually, yes. Council tax and the energy standing charges run from completion, even with nobody living there.
- GOV.UK says you will usually have to pay council tax on an empty home, though your council can decide to give a discount. Ask it before completion.
- Councils can charge more on a home that has been empty for at least a year, called the empty home premium. A furnished home that is nobody's main home counts as a second home, which the council can charge up to 2 times the normal council tax.
- Renovating first? If you are making major improvements and cannot live in the home, GOV.UK says you can ask for it to be taken off the council tax list. Tell the council when the work is finished, or your bill may be backdated.
- Energy: Ofgem says the standing charge is paid every day even when you use no energy, so an empty home still runs up a bill. Read the meters on completion day either way.
- Northern Ireland: nidirect says rates are payable on empty homes with a capital value of £20,000 or more, at the same amount as if occupied, though some homes qualify for 100% relief.
- Scotland: GOV.UK says the rules on empty and second homes are different there, so check with the council.
Sources: GOV.UK: Council Tax on second homes and empty properties (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: energy price cap and standing charges explained (read 22 October 2026); nidirect: occupying and leaving a property (rates) (read 22 October 2026)
Which energy tariff am I on when I move into a house I have bought?
The current supplier's default tariff, until you choose one.
- Citizens Advice says to contact the current supplier when you move in. You are put on a deemed contract on its default or standard variable tariff automatically.
- Ofgem says deemed contracts and default tariffs are usually among a supplier's most expensive, and that the most common default is a standard variable tariff. The price cap limits the unit rates and standing charges on standard variable tariffs, not your total bill.
- You can choose another tariff with the current supplier or switch to a new one, but Citizens Advice says you need to wait until the day you become responsible for the property.
- A new supplier should switch you within 5 working days, so expect at least one bill from the current supplier.
- The seller's tariff does not pass to you with the house. Citizens Advice says a seller can ask their supplier whether they can keep their tariff at their next home.
Sources: Citizens Advice: moving home, dealing with your energy supply (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: energy terms explained (deemed contracts and default tariffs) (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: energy price cap and standing charges explained (read 22 October 2026)
How far ahead should I order broadband when buying a house?
As soon as you know your completion date. How long it takes depends on what the home already has.
- Openreach says timescales vary with the type of broadband and whether any work is needed at the address, and that your provider confirms when it should be ready once you order.
- If the home is already connected, you may not need an engineer. If there is no line, installation work may be needed first, which your provider arranges.
- Check what the address can get on Ofcom's checker. If you are changing provider, Ofcom says to cancel your current contract and arrange a start date for the new service in time for the move.
- If a provider in Ofcom's automatic compensation scheme misses a promised start date, it pays £6.46 for each calendar day of delay, and £32.31 when an engineer misses an appointment. BT, EE, Sky, TalkTalk, Virgin Media and Vodafone are among the providers signed up.
- Openreach is moving UK phone lines to digital by January 2027, so a home phone will run through the broadband connection.
Sources: Openreach: moving home broadband help (read 22 October 2026); Ofcom: moving home? Top tips for keeping connected (read 22 October 2026); Ofcom: automatic compensation, what you need to know (updated 20 July 2026) (read 22 October 2026)
Who gets the Feed-in Tariff when I buy a house with solar panels?
Whoever owns the panels. If that is now you, the payments move only once you tell the FIT licensee.
- Ofgem can tell a new occupier whether the panels are registered for the Feed-in Tariff (FIT), and which FIT licensee they are registered with. Its dispute resolution page explains how to ask.
- For an MCS-FIT installation, contact the FIT licensee as the new owner, and it updates the Central FIT Register.
- For a ROO-FIT installation, first update its entry on the Renewable Electricity Register: email Ofgem's register team, which sends a transfer form, and tell your FIT licensee once the change is made.
- Some panels belong to a company rather than the home, under a rent-a-roof lease. The company receives the FIT payments and the household typically gets the electricity. Ofgem can help you find out who owns them.
- FIT closed to new applicants on 1 April 2019, and installations are paid for between 10 and 25 years. If the licensee will not process the change, use its complaints process; after eight weeks, you can go to the Energy Ombudsman.
- Panels not paid FIT export payments may be able to earn from the Smart Export Guarantee instead, where a supplier pays for the electricity you export, measured by an export or smart meter. You cannot be paid by both for the same electricity.
- Note the generation meter reading on completion day, alongside the gas and electricity readings.
Sources: Ofgem: Feed-in Tariffs, information for generators (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: Feed-in Tariffs (FIT) (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) (read 22 October 2026)
In what order should I set up the bills when I buy?
Eight steps, from exchange to the week after you move in.
- 1
Wait for exchange, then note the completion date
Exchange makes the sale legally binding and the contract says when it will complete. Before that, a sale can still fall through.
- 2
Find out who supplies the home
Ask the seller for the energy suppliers and the water company, or look up the gas and electricity suppliers from the address.
- 3
Order broadband for the new address
Order as soon as you know the completion date, and book any engineer visit for after you have the keys.
- 4
Give the council and water company your completion date
Council tax is due from completion, even if you move in later. Tell the water company the date you take over.
- 5
Read every meter when you get the keys
Read the gas, electricity and water meters, photograph them with the date showing, and send the readings to each supplier.
- 6
Choose your energy tariff
You start on the current supplier's default tariff. From the day you become responsible, choose another tariff with it or switch supplier.
- 7
Transfer any Feed-in Tariff payments
If the home has solar panels, ask Ofgem which FIT licensee they are registered with and tell it you are the new owner.
- 8
Tell everyone your new address
Once you have moved, update DVLA, the electoral register, HMRC, your bank and your GP.
Sources: GOV.UK: buying a home, transferring ownership (England and Wales) (read 22 October 2026); Citizens Advice: moving home, dealing with your energy supply (read 22 October 2026); Openreach: moving home broadband help (read 22 October 2026); GOV.UK: Council Tax on second homes and empty properties (read 22 October 2026); Ofgem: Feed-in Tariffs, information for generators (read 22 October 2026)
Where does Taupia fit when I buy a house?
- The address block above lists your new home's council tax band and charge, its water company, who supplies the energy and broadband deals. It covers England, Scotland and Wales; in Scotland it shows the council rather than the band.
- For eligible energy deals you can apply through Taupia and request an available start date, such as your completion date. You choose whether to proceed, and the supplier confirms the contract and the date.
- Taupia does not set up council tax or switch water: register with the council and the water company yourself. Feed-in Tariff transfers stay between you, Ofgem and the FIT licensee.
- Taupia is free to use.
Questions about the bills when you buy a house
When do I become responsible for the bills when I buy a house?
On completion day, when your conveyancer transfers the money and you get the keys and own the home. Council tax and the energy bills run from then, even if you move in later. Exchanging contracts fixes that date, so give it to the council, the water company and the energy supplier once you have exchanged.
Should I contact utility companies before completion?
Yes, once contracts are exchanged and the completion date is fixed. Before exchange, nidirect suggests telling nobody, because a sale that falls through means contacting everyone again. Order broadband as soon as you know the date, because how long it takes depends on the connection the home already has.
Do I pay council tax on a house I have bought but not moved into?
Usually, yes. GOV.UK says you will usually have to pay council tax on an empty home, though the council can decide to give a discount. If you are making major improvements and cannot live there, you can ask for the home to be taken off the council tax list until the work is finished.
What if the keys are released late on completion day?
The home is still yours from completion. Read the gas, electricity and water meters as soon as you get in, and send each supplier the readings with your completion date. If completion moves to another day, give everyone the new date: you do not pay for energy used before you moved in.
Do I take over the seller's energy tariff?
No. You are put on a deemed contract on the current supplier's default or standard variable tariff. From the day you become responsible for the property, you can choose another tariff with that supplier or switch to a new one, which should take no more than 5 working days.
How long does broadband take to set up when you buy a house?
It depends on what is already there. Openreach says timescales vary with the type of broadband and any work needed, and your provider confirms the date when you order, so order as soon as you know your completion date. Providers in Ofcom's scheme pay £6.46 a day if they miss a promised start date.
Do Feed-in Tariff payments transfer when you buy a house with solar panels?
They can, but you have to tell the FIT licensee that you are the new owner. Ofgem can tell you whether the panels are registered and with which licensee. If a company owns the panels under a rent-a-roof lease, the payments go to that company, not to the household.
Do I need to read the water meter when I buy a house?
Yes, if the home has one. Citizens Advice says to take a reading as soon as you move in and give it to the water company, and that you cannot ask for the meter to be removed. In Scotland, water and sewerage are charged with council tax instead.
Set up each bill at the home you are buying
The setup guide for every bill on the list, and the admin that follows the move.
Start here
Set up gas and electricity in a new home
RecommendedChoosing a new supplier or staying with the current one, with opening readings and start dates.
Who to tell when you move, and by when
DVLA, the electoral register, HMRC and everyone else, with a printable checklist.
Register for council tax when you move
How to register, the discounts to claim and how bands work.
Set up your water bill
Find your water company, register and read the meter.
Set up broadband in a new home
Check what the address can get, then order or move your service in time.
Moving out bills checklist
Selling as well? Every account to close at the home you leave.
Moving into a new-build home
The developer's supplier, missing meter numbers and council tax banding delays.
Cite this page
Taupia. "Which bills do I set up when I buy a house, and from which day?". Last updated 22 October 2026. https://taupia.com/move-home/buying-a-house-bills
Buying a house?
Pick your new address above to see its council tax band and charge, its water company, who supplies the energy and broadband deals, then use your completion date as the move date. You register with the council and the water company yourself. Taupia is free, and nothing changes without your approval.