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Move-in checklist

Moving house utility bills checklist: which bills to change, cancel and set up

Short answer

Moving house changes six utility bills: energy, water, council tax, broadband, mobile and the TV Licence. Some you cancel at the home you leave, some you change to the new address, and energy and water start again from the day you become responsible. Before moving, check which bills your rent includes and book your broadband transfer or installation. For energy, you can choose a new supplier and arrange a move-in-day start where available. Your new supplier handles the switch and confirms the date. Alternatively, find and contact the property's existing supplier to open an account. If your new supplier starts later, you pay the existing supplier for the period in between.

Take opening and closing gas, electricity and water readings where there are meters, or confirm your energy suppliers can obtain smart-meter readings for the relevant dates. Tell the council and, where billed separately, the water company about your move. Update your TV Licence if you have one and your mobile billing address. For accounts in your name at the home you're leaving, arrange closure or transfer separately: switching energy at your new address does not close an account at another property. Check the dates and readings on your first and final bills.

Updated

  • 48h

    Notice to give your energy supplier before you move out

  • 5 working days

    Notice to give on a water meter at the home you leave

  • Day 1

    Request a move-in-day energy start where available

Start with the first-time renter guide

This is the running order for taking over a home where the supply is already running. If you have never set up bills before, the first-time renter guide explains what each one is. This page is the order to do them in, bill by bill.

Moving house utility bills: what to change, cancel or set up, and when

BillWhen to actWhat to do
Energy supplier at the new homeBefore you moveChoose a new supplier with an available start date, or find and contact the existing supplier to stay. Confirm the tariff and who supplies you from your responsibility date.
Gas and electricity48 hours before you leave, then on move dayTell the supplier at the home you are leaving when your responsibility ends so it can close your account. Take closing and opening readings at the two homes, or confirm the energy suppliers can obtain smart-meter readings for those dates.
WaterFive working days before you leave a metered home, then when you move inFind the company for the new postcode and tell it the date you moved in, with a reading if there is a meter.
Council taxWhen you moveTell the councils for both addresses your moving and tenancy or purchase dates. Check the bills and apply for any discount: 25% usually applies if only one adult counts for council tax.
Council tax discounts and student exemptionWhen you registerHouseholds where everyone is a full-time student do not pay. You still need to apply for a discount or an exemption.
BroadbandAs soon as you have a moving dateCheck what the new address can get. Ask your provider to move your service, or order a new one with a start date in time for the move.
TV LicenceWhen you moveUpdate your licence address. If another licence will cover you personally, or you will no longer need one, check whether you can cancel and claim a refund.
MobileWhen you moveUpdate your billing address and check signal at the new address on Ofcom's checker.
Splitting bills with housematesOnce the accounts are openAgree whose name each account is in and how each bill is split.

Setting up energy at a new address?

The cap limits unit rates and standing charges, not your total bill, so what you pay still depends on what you use. For a typical dual-fuel home paying by direct debit it is £1,862 a year from 1 July to 30 September 2026 and £1,935 from 1 October to 31 December, or £1,663 and £1,723 on Ofgem's own consumption basis. If you move in close to a change date, take a meter reading on the day so your first bill splits correctly.

Check the energy price cap guide

Turn the checklist into your next step

Start with the bills your new home needs. Taupia helps you set up household bills when moving home. Supported categories and supplier availability vary by address.

Start with your postcode

Which bills do I need to change when moving house?

Four bills move with you once you give them the new address. Energy and water do not: those accounts belong to the property, so you close them at one home and open them at the other.

  • Broadband: check what the new address can get on Ofcom's checker, then ask your provider to move the service or order a new one with a start date in time for the move. Ofcom's advice is to arrange that start date before you go.
  • Mobile: change the billing address and check coverage at the new home. The contract itself carries on.
  • TV Licence: update the address on the TV Licensing website, which is the route GOV.UK gives for a move. One licence covers a household, so check whether the new home is already covered before you pay twice.
  • Council tax: register with the council for the new address when you move, even if it is the same council. Council tax is charged by the day, so give the exact dates.
  • Energy: your account does not transfer. Choose a new supplier for the new home or find and contact its existing supplier, and settle the account at the home you leave separately.
  • Water: register with the company for the new postcode from the date you move in, with a meter reading if there is one.
Sources (5)
Who to tell when you move: the full list

Which bills do I cancel when moving house?

The accounts at the home you leave. Each has a notice period or a reading that settles the final bill, and none of them closes because you opened an account somewhere else.

  • Energy: tell the supplier at least 48 hours before you move, read the meters on the day you leave and give a forwarding address. Citizens Advice says the final bill should arrive within six weeks and you have 28 days to pay it.
  • Water: give the water company at least 5 working days' notice if the home has a meter, so it can arrange a final reading, and tell it the date you leave either way.
  • Council tax: tell the council you are moving out and the date. You stop paying for that home from the day you leave, unless a tenancy keeps running after you go.
  • Broadband: if the provider cannot serve the new address, cancel it. An early exit fee can apply on a fixed term; Citizens Advice says to explain your situation to the provider, which might reduce or remove it.
  • TV Licence: cancel it and apply for a refund only if a household licence already covers the new home or nobody there will watch live TV or use BBC iPlayer. Otherwise it moves with you.
Sources (5)
Moving out bills checklist: every account to close

If a move-in bill or connection is wrong

Resolve responsibility and activation problems with dated evidence.

  • Keep opening meter photos, responsibility dates and provider confirmations. Never invent a reading for a day you missed.
  • If broadband misses its promised start, retain the order date and complaint reference.
  • Ask whether the flat uses a heat network before treating communal heating like a gas account.
Check broadband delay compensation

Moving into a flat with communal heating

Get the heat supplier and charging terms separately from electricity.

  • A communal heating account can have different charges and complaint routes from an ordinary energy account.
Read the communal-heating checklist

What happens to my energy supplier when I move house?

Settle the account at the home you leave and choose how energy will be supplied at the new address. Check the dates for both.

  • Before you go, tell your gas and electricity supplier at least 48 hours before you move, read the meters on the day you move out, and give it a forwarding address. The final bill comes within six weeks, and you have 28 days to pay it.
  • On a fixed tariff you might be charged an exit fee for leaving early. Ask first: Citizens Advice says your supplier might let you keep the same contract and tariff at your new home without charging a fee.
  • At the new home, you can arrange a new supplier for an available move-in date. Your chosen supplier handles the switch with the company already supplying that address. If you prefer to stay, find and contact the existing supplier to open your account. Either way, take opening readings or confirm the supplier can obtain smart-meter readings for your responsibility date.
  • If the new supplier starts after you take responsibility, contact the existing supplier about that interim period and pay its charges, including standing charges. Check the confirmed start date; applying on moving day does not guarantee supply starts that day.
  • Renting? If you pay the supplier directly you can switch, including on a prepayment meter. If your landlord pays it, you cannot switch yourself: ask your landlord, who can agree but does not have to.
  • If the new home has a prepayment meter, contact the supplier before you top up. Otherwise you risk paying extra for debts owed by the people who lived there before you.

Where Taupia fits

Use Taupia to compare available energy deals for your new address and apply for an eligible move-in tariff. Available dates depend on the supplier and tariff; check the supplier’s confirmation before relying on a move-in-day start.

Nothing changes without your approval.

Sources (3)
Who is my energy supplier at a new address?

Does my rent already include any bills?

Check before you open any accounts, so nothing gets paid twice.

  • Read your tenancy agreement for who pays each bill. If you pay your landlord for water rather than the water company, Citizens Advice says you should not be charged more than the company would charge, plus a reasonable administration fee.
  • If broadband is included where you are moving and you already have a contract, you might pay a fee to leave yours early. Explain your situation to your provider, which might reduce or remove the fee.
  • Your tenancy agreement might say you cannot switch internet, landline or TV provider, so check it before you order.
  • Keep the landlord's or letting agent's answers in writing.
Sources (3)

In what order should I set up bills when I move in?

Start with services that need advance booking. Choose your energy arrangement before the move where possible, confirm readings on the responsibility date, and complete each account with the relevant provider.

  1. 1

    Sort broadband first

    Check what the new address can get on Ofcom's checker, then ask your provider to move your service or order a new one with a start date in time for the move.

  2. 2

    Arrange energy for the new home and close the account you are leaving

    Choose a new supplier for the new home and confirm its start date; it handles the switch. To stay instead, find and contact the property's existing supplier. Separately, give the supplier at the home you are leaving at least 48 hours' notice so it can close your account.

  3. 3

    Read every meter on move day

    Record gas and electricity readings at both homes on the dates responsibility changes, or confirm each supplier can obtain smart-meter readings for those dates. Read any water meter too. Keep dated photos as a backup.

  4. 4

    Register the move for water and council tax

    Tell the councils for both addresses your moving and tenancy or purchase dates, even if it is the same council. Where water is billed separately, tell the water company when you leave and register at the new address. Check whether you qualify for council tax discounts or an exemption.

  5. 5

    Join the Priority Services Register if you qualify

    If anyone at home qualifies, for example by having reached State Pension age, being pregnant, having young children or living with a disability or long-term medical condition, ask the new home's energy supplier and network operator to add you. If you switch, ask the new supplier too.

  6. 6

    Update your TV Licence and mobile address

    Update your address on the TV Licensing website, or check whether you can cancel because another licence covers you or you no longer need one. Change your mobile billing address and check coverage at the new home.

  7. 7

    Check the confirmations and first bills

    Check account dates, readings and agreed tariffs. If your new energy supplier starts later, check the existing supplier bills only for the interim period.

Sources (6)

What goes on a moving day checklist for bills?

The meter readings and handover jobs that settle the last bill at the home you leave and the first bill at the home you move into.

  • At the home you leave, read the gas and electricity meters on the day you move out, give the readings to your supplier, and keep a note of each reading and the date you took it.
  • Smart meter? Check it is working in smart mode before you go. If it is not, take a final reading yourself, and leave the in-home display for the next people who live there.
  • Give your old supplier a forwarding address. It should send your final bill within 6 weeks, and you have 28 days to pay it.
  • If the home you leave has a water meter, give the water company at least 5 working days' notice so it can arrange a final reading.
  • At the new home, take opening energy readings or confirm the supplier serving you can obtain them from your smart meter for your responsibility date. Check the readings on the first bill.
  • If the new home has a water meter, take a reading as soon as you move in.
  • If it has a prepayment meter, contact the supplier before you put any money on it, or you risk paying extra for debts left by the people who lived there before you.
Sources (2)
How to set up gas and electric in a new home

What should I check on my first bills?

Three things to check: the start date, the readings, and any balance from before you moved in.

  • Check each first bill covers the correct responsibility or confirmed service dates and uses the agreed readings.
  • Your old energy supplier should send the final bill within six weeks, and refund any credit within 10 working days of sending it.
  • A water bill for dates before your tenancy began goes to your landlord, Citizens Advice says, not to you.
  • Keep confirmation emails, account numbers and contract end dates together, so nothing rolls onto an out-of-contract price unnoticed.
Sources (2)
Why was my energy switch declined?

Moving house utility bills: common questions

Which bills do I need to change when I move house?

Broadband, mobile and the TV Licence move with you once you give them the new address, and you register with the council for the new home. Energy and water accounts belong to the property: you close them at the home you leave and open new ones at the new address, with readings on the day responsibility changes.

Which bills do I cancel when moving house?

The accounts at the home you leave: energy, with at least 48 hours' notice and final readings; water, with 5 working days' notice on a meter; and council tax, by telling the council your leaving date. Cancel broadband only if it cannot move with you, and a TV Licence only if the new home is already covered or nobody there needs one.

How do I take over utilities when moving house?

Check which bills are included in your rent and book broadband ahead. Choose a new energy supplier and confirm its start date, or contact the property's existing supplier to stay. Take opening readings or confirm dated smart-meter readings. Register for water where billed separately and council tax, check your TV Licence, and arrange closure or transfer of accounts at the home you leave.

What utilities do I need to set up when moving house?

Gas and electricity, water, council tax and broadband, plus a TV Licence if anyone will watch live TV or use BBC iPlayer, and the billing address on your mobile. Check your tenancy first, because some rents include water or broadband.

Do I need to contact an energy supplier when moving?

If you choose a new supplier for your new home, it handles the switch with the supplier already serving that address. If you choose to stay, contact the existing supplier to open your account. If it supplies you before your new supplier starts, contact it to settle that period. Separately, tell the supplier at the home you're leaving when your responsibility ends so it can close your account.

Can I keep my energy supplier when I move house?

Ask your supplier whether it can serve the new address and transfer your tariff, including any fees and start date. You can also choose another supplier. If no agreed tariff starts when you take responsibility, the property's existing supplier normally supplies you on its default tariff until the new arrangement starts.

Do I need to set up every bill on moving day?

No. Book broadband as soon as your moving date is firm. You can also arrange an energy switch ahead where the supplier supports your date, or contact the existing supplier to stay. Tell the council and water company your moving dates. Take opening readings when your responsibility starts, or confirm the energy supplier can obtain smart-meter readings for that date.

Can renters switch energy supplier?

Yes, if you pay the supplier directly, including on a prepayment meter. Check your tenancy agreement, which might say the account must go back to the original supplier when you leave. If your landlord pays the supplier, ask them to switch: they can agree, but they do not have to.

Official checks and next steps

The renter guide explains each bill in a first rented home. The rest cover the bills on this checklist in more depth.

Start here

Your first bills after moving

Recommended

What the first bills are based on, which are estimates, and what to check before you pay.

Official references

Every move-in guide in one place

Each bill on this checklist has its own guide, from finding the energy supplier at your new address to council tax discounts.

Open the move-home hubManage bills after move-in

Cite this page

Taupia. "Moving house utility bills checklist: which bills to change, cancel and set up". Last updated 24 October 2026. https://taupia.com/move-home/move-in-bills-checklist