Energy suppliers must complete a household's switch to a new supplier within five working days, under rules that took effect on 1 April 2024. If the switch is not completed in that time, the customer is entitled to £30 compensation1.
The deadline replaced a longer previous window. According to Which?, suppliers previously had 15 working days to complete a switch, while only signatories to the voluntary Energy Switch Guarantee aimed for five days3. Ofgem data cited by Which? showed that in the months before the change it had typically taken six days to switch electricity supplier and 17 days to switch gas supplier1. Uswitch states that the switching process previously took 21 days2.
The compensation sits alongside the Switching Guaranteed Compensation Standards, which Uswitch says Ofgem introduced in May 2019 and which oblige suppliers to compensate customers when problems occur during a switch2. The five-day deadline is separate from the 14-day cooling-off period a supplier must allow from the day after the customer agrees the new contract3.
The Energy Switch Guarantee is a separate, voluntary set of 10 commitments run by Energy UK, the industry trade association2. Which? lists its signatories as British Gas, Ecotricity, EDF Energy, E.on Next, Fuse Energy, Octopus Energy, Outfox Energy, Ovo Energy, Scottish Power and So Energy, correct as of May 20263. Uswitch says all of the big six have signed up, along with several smaller suppliers2.
The two sources differ on the compensation figure. Which?, writing on 28 March 2024, states the entitlement is £301, and Uswitch also gives £302. Which?'s later switching guide, updated 15 May 2026, states that customers are owed £40 compensation from their new supplier if the deadline is missed, and lists £40 payments for other guaranteed standards failures, including where a supplier takes more than 20 working days to decide whether a switch was correct, payable by each supplier3. The sources do not reconcile these figures.
| Guaranteed standard | Payment stated |
|---|---|
| Switch not completed within five working days | £301; £403 |
| Compensation not sent within 10 working days | £40 from the supplier3 |
| No reply to a switching mistake report within 20 working days | £403 |
| Switch correctness undecided after 20 working days | £40 from each supplier3 |
| Supply not re-registered within 21 working days of the mistake being found | £403 |
Why it matters for households
A shorter switching window changes how quickly a household can act on a cheaper tariff. Under the five-day rule, a switch agreed on a Monday should be running by the end of the following working week, rather than the weeks that gas switches previously took1. For a home trying to move off an out-of-contract variable rate, that shortens the period spent on the old, usually more expensive, terms.
The compensation is automatic in principle. Which? states that if the payment does not arrive, the customer can remind the supplier that it is owed1. The guaranteed standards also cover failures after the switch itself, including delays in refunding credit and in resolving disputes about whether a switch was correct3.
Switching does not interrupt supply, and no one needs to enter the home as part of the process unless a meter is being fitted2. Exit fees can still apply on fixed-term deals, typically £100 or more per fuel, and cannot be charged in the last 49 days of a tariff3. Households in debt can still switch in some circumstances: where a direct debit or bill-pay customer has owed money for less than 28 days, or where a prepayment customer has less than £500 debt on each meter3.
What happens next
The five-day deadline and the compensation standards are in force. Which? advises sending both suppliers a meter reading on the day of the switch so that both bill correctly, though this is not needed with a smart meter sending daily readings3. Final bills should arrive within six weeks, and any credit should be refunded within 14 days of the final bill date under the Energy Switch Guarantee2.