Business electricity renewal: what to do before you sign
Your supplier will contact you about renewal months before your contract ends. EDF starts around 200 days out (EDF, retrieved August 2026). Sign nothing and the loyalty tax lands: out-of-contract rates of 48.307p/kWh at EDF from 1 June 2026, against a 24.14p/kWh average for businesses on negotiated contracts (DESNZ, Q1 2026).
The renewal letter, decoded
The letter gives you a unit rate in pence per kWh, a daily standing charge, a contract length and a date to reply by. For a micro business, Ofgem also requires it to show your annual consumption and compare your current price with the new one (Ofgem, retrieved August 2026).
Read that comparison carefully. It compares your supplier's old price with your supplier's new price. It does not tell you what anyone else would charge, and no rule says it has to.
Timings differ by supplier and by channel. Ofgem's minimum notification for micro businesses is around 60 days (Ofgem, retrieved August 2026). E.ON Next opens online renewal only within 67 days of your end date, though it will price you by phone or email up to six months ahead (E.ON Next, retrieved August 2026).
Your notice period is on your contract, and for a micro business on a fixed term it should also be printed on your bill with the end date (Ofgem, retrieved August 2026). Read it off your own paperwork. The rules here have changed more than once.
What happens if you do nothing
You go down a ladder. E.ON Next describes its own version plainly: you move to a variable business tariff, "generally higher than on a fixed plan", and eventually to out-of-contract prices, which are "higher than our variable price plan" (E.ON Next, retrieved August 2026).
Here is what the bottom of that ladder costs.
| Where you are | Electricity unit rate | Source and date |
|---|---|---|
| Negotiated contract, UK non-domestic average | 24.14p/kWh (incl. CCL) | DESNZ Quarterly Energy Prices, Q1 2026, published 30 June 2026 |
| Renewal offer | Not published anywhere | Priced per customer; yours arrives by letter |
| Out-of-contract (EDF Extended Supply) | 48.307p/kWh | EDF published rate schedule, effective 1 June 2026 |
That EDF rate is 2.00 times the DESNZ average. One caveat on the arithmetic: EDF's published rates exclude VAT, CCL and metering, while the DESNZ average includes CCL. The real multiple is under 2.00x, and still close to double. Ofgem puts deemed contracts at 80% more than a negotiated rate (Ofgem, retrieved August 2026). Different route, same answer.
Two details most renewal pages leave out. At EDF, doing nothing after a contract ends costs you more than never having had a contract at all: 48.307p on Extended Supply against 38.298p on deemed, same supplier, same date. And these rates ratchet. EDF's Extended Supply rate went from 47.297p in April 2026 to 48.307p in June 2026.
Standing charges vary more than unit rates. EDF's Extended Supply standing charge runs from 290.40p a day in London on profile classes 1-4 with no residual charge, to 947.67p a day on Manweb in band 4 (EDF, effective 1 June 2026). Check your own region.
Ofgem does put one floor under this. A supplier can roll a micro business over onto a new contract for a maximum of one year (Ofgem, retrieved August 2026).
The full mechanics live in deemed and out-of-contract rates. If you're leaving instead covers the switch.
When staying put is right
Sometimes the renewal offer is the best number available, because you fixed at a good moment or your usage profile suits that supplier's book. If that is what we find, we will say so in writing and tell you to stay put. We will check again the month before your next end date.
We would rather tell you that than move you for the sake of a commission.
Send us your renewal letter. We price it against the market, with our commission shown before you sign. It takes two minutes and one cup of tea. We ring you once, with numbers.
Renewing electricity and gas together
If both contracts end within a few months of each other, review them in one sitting. Our business gas renewal page covers the gas side, and one quote form handles both.
Common questions
- When should I renew my business electricity contract?
Six to nine months before your end date is when we aim to have your options priced, while you still have room to negotiate. Suppliers come to you earlier: EDF starts around 200 days out, E.ON Next up to a year ahead (EDF and E.ON Next, retrieved August 2026).
- Can I renew my business electricity contract early?
Yes, and how early depends on the supplier. E.ON Next opens online renewals within 67 days of your end date and agrees renewals up to a year out (E.ON Next, retrieved August 2026).
- What happens if my business electricity contract expires?
You move to a variable or out-of-contract rate with the same supplier, and your supply carries on as normal. At EDF that out-of-contract rate is 48.307p/kWh, effective 1 June 2026.
- What are out-of-contract electricity rates?
They are the rates a supplier applies when your fixed contract ends and you agree nothing new. The supplier publishes them and puts them at the top of its price list. EDF's own renewal page calls them "often more expensive than our other rates" (EDF, retrieved August 2026).
- Is there a business energy price cap?
No. The Ofgem price cap covers domestic customers only. Nothing limits what your supplier can charge a business that does not renew. That is why the renewal letter deserves an hour.