Moving house? Economy 12 tariff time bands are assigned to a property and not to a customer. This means if you have recently moved, the time bands you have become used to may have changed. 

The Economy 12 tariff is divided into two rates. The lower rate is made available to customers for a 12-hour period each day. The 12 hours of low rate comprises of a 10-hour period during the night and a 2-hour period during the daytime. The 'normal' rate applies for the remaining 12 hours. 

Low-Rate Periods: 

A 10-hour period somewhere between 19:45 and 08:15 

A 2-hour period somewhere between 12:00 and 16:40 

 To find out your exact Economy 12 times, first check your electricity meter to see if they have been printed on this. If not, contact us by phone on 01481 200700 or email customer.accounts@electricity.gg 

Spend less

For customers on this tariff, we strongly recommend running some appliances such as washing machines, dishwashers, heating water in hot water cylinders and charging electric vehicles where possible between 11:00pm and 5:00am. In fact anything that uses electricity counts, from the smallest device to a big electric van. 

During this period, you can run appliances on low-rate electricity, and in winter the power station is not needed overnight to top up our imported renewable electricity. This means you don't need to rely on diesel-generated electricity to use some of your appliances.  

Run some appliances more economically and use 100% imported renewable energy.

Are you using as many appliances during low-rate times as possible? 

On average customers who on an Economy 12-meter use 48% of their electricity during low-rate times and 52% during normal rate times. We recommend using this as a benchmark for your home. Your low-rate times and the percentage you’re using are confirmed on the reverse side of your bill for your information.

Some appliances you can control during your low-rate times.

• Washing machine,
• Tumble dryer
• Dishwasher
• Vaccuum cleaner
• Iron
• Electric vehicle charging
• Hot water cylinders. 

If you have timers, the best time to set these to run is between 11pm and 5am as during this off-peak time, the power station is also not needed to top up our electricity demand. 

We also have a handy energy calculator to help you understand what savings you can make by switching to low-rate times

How much am I spending?

Always switch off when you've finished

A light, games console or monitor left on burns both your money and diesel at the power station. Why pay for it when you don’t need it?

Peak usage times are around breakfast, lunch and dinner, when most people need electricity for heating, working and cooking. Switching off what you don’t actually need means lower electricity bills and lower carbon footprints.

We have fridge magnets available from our shop on the bridge to help remind you of your low-rate times.

There could be a few other potential reasons for higher-than-normal energy bills. 

Your appliances could be using more energy than you realise. Consider whether you’ve bought any new gadgets recently or been using them more than usual. Remember that devices can use a small amount of power when they’re on standby, too. 

You have some installations that use a lot of electricity. Hot tubs, electric heating and fast charging points for electric vehicles for example use a lot of power. If you have had these installed recently, you will notice an increase in your electricity bill  

The weather’s getting colder, and your heating’s on more. In winter months, energy bills tend to be higher than they are in summer. 

You’ve extended your home. Naturally, if you’ve grown your home, your energy bills may grow too.  

There have been more people in your home than usual. If you’ve had guests, or if you’ve been working from home, this could increase the amount of energy you need to use.  

Your boiler isn’t working efficiently. Sometimes, old boilers can cause your heating bills to creep up, for no obvious reason. If yours is getting on a bit, it might be time for a boiler service.  

Your meter is counting, or “clocking”, too fast. This is rare, but it does occasionally happen. Keep reading to find out what to do if you think this is happening to you.  

If none of these sound like the cause please get in touch with our customer service team. 

Anyone with the incorrect time on their meter should give us a call urgently on 01481 200700 so we can check the issue. We can then either resolve the issue remotely or send out someone to fix onsite, either by replacing/updating the meter or resetting the time to the meter.

The time on your Super Economy 12 Meter does impact your low-rate time bands so it is important to check that the time on your meter is correct and have it resolved as soon as possible if necessary.

A visit to fix a problem with your meter will be free of charge, and our offices are open 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday.

Call us

If you are using a meter with off-peak times, it will automatically switch between the low and normal rates. Our Super Economy 12 tariff often has different times available across Guernsey, depending on how the network is set up in your area to manage the islands peak demand. To find out the specific times your meter operates, refer to page 2 of your electricity bill.

The switching times are controlled by your meter's internal clock. When your meter connects to us, it will check the clock. Occasionally, the clock may drift slightly over time. We always recommend you check your meter's internal clock to ensure your times haven't drifted. This can happen in rare occasions. If you notice your meter is running more than 15 minutes ahead or behind, we recommend you contact us, and we will ensure it is connecting properly.

Rest assured you will always receive the correct number of off peak hours regardless of your meter's internal clock.

If you’d like to make the switch to electric heating but are unsure about the upfront cost, you may be able to receive a preferential rate from lenders who offer "green lending". 

Your best option would be to get in touch with your preferred lender and enquire about discounted loans based on purchasing an electric heating system as an alternative to gas or oil. 

We will email your registered email address and attach your electricity bill or statement as a PDF which can be printed as and when you need it. 

In an emergency, please use our 24 hour freephone emergency number 0800 587 0285. Our engineers are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. 

If you believe your emergency is due a wider power failure, please refer to the advice on our Customer Information pages: Power Failure Help 

If however, you have established that the fault is within your property only - call us and we can send out an electrician.