British Gas Lite is a business energy service offered by Britain's largest supplier. Since 2018 it has provided energy to organisations with one site and with single gas and electricity meters, British Gas Lite cuts overheads by operating exclusively online. But does cutting costs also mean cutting corners? Find out everything you need to know about British Gas Lite, the budget energy supplier for businesses.

What is British Gas Lite?

British Gas Lite offers 100% online fixed-price energy tariffs for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and microbusinesses and is separate from British Gas. This new service looks to reduce overhead costs and pass on the savings to customers by using smart meters and operating exclusively through the internet.

This means that, rather than having call centres and a phone number, British Gas Lite uses a UK-based webchat team and allows businesses to manage their account online with no physical paper trail.

  • British Gas Lite considers your organisation as a microbusiness if it:
  • Uses less than 100,000 kWh of electricity per year
  • Uses less than 293,000 kWh of gas per year
  • Employs less than 10 workers
  • Generates a yearly turnover of no more than two million euros
Gas flame and light bulb

While cutting out all the usual extra costs to serve a cheaper energy product may sound great in theory, many British Gas Lite reviews mention the frustration customers often face when they are unable to speak to a real human about their issues over the phone, relying instead on its online webchat.

When a customer joins British Gas Lite, the supplier will arrange for a smart meter to be installed on-site at no extra cost. Your new smart meter will accurately monitor energy use, meaning that your business will only be billed for the gas and electricity it uses, rather than relying on estimated bills provided by the supplier. You can submit your meter reading online using your British Gas Lite login on the supplier's website.

Will British Gas Lite install a smart meter for gas? At present, no. British Gas Lite is only installing smart meters for electricity. Businesses with an existing gas smart meter will be able to transfer it to British Gas Lite (subject to compatibility).

British Gas Lite tariffs and prices

electricity bill

To make things simple, British Gas Lite has only one fixed-price plan, for a set duration of one to five years, which is billed every month by Direct Debit.

British Gas Lite Fixed Price Energy Plan

British Gas Lite currently offers one tariff, its Fixed Price Energy Plan, available as electricity-only, gas-only or dual fuel. This can be locked in for one, two, three, four, or five years. If your fixed tariff comes to an end and you choose not to renew or switch, you will automatically be moved on to a more expensive variable deemed rate tariff. Rates on this tariff will depend on your business location, meter type and energy usage. Get a quote for your business to find out how much you would expect to pay with British Gas Lite.

British Gas Lite Variable Price Plan

If your fixed-price plan with British Gas Lite expires and you haven't chosen a new one, you'll be automatically transferred to the supplier's Variable Price Plan, with all applicable terms and conditions. These fees are subject to change or withdrawal, and they can be amended with 30 days written notice.

Electricity Non Half-Hourly variable price plan rates
Meter profile class Standing charge Unit rate
01 - 04 168.00p per day 31.23p per kWh

Prices correct as of December 2021. Rates in the table above exclude Climate Change Levy, VAT and any other applicable taxes.

Gas variable price plan rates
Consumption bands Standing charge Unit rate
0 - 73199 220.00p per day 8.13p per kWh
73200 - 732000 1173.00p per day 7.30p per kWh

Prices correct as of December 2021. Rates in the table above exclude Climate Change Levy, VAT and any other applicable taxes.

British Gas Lite Deemed Rates

Businesses that relocate to premises where British Gas Lite is already the supplier are typically charged deemed energy rates. These rates will apply until the customer either signs a new contract with British Gas Lite or switches their business energy supplier.

Electricity deemed contract rates
Meter profile class Standing charge Unit rate
01 - 04 166.00p per day 36.26p per kWh

Prices correct as of December 2021. Rates in the table above exclude Climate Change Levy, VAT and any other applicable taxes.

Gas variable price plan rates
Standing charge Unit rate
298.00p per day 4.30p per kWh

Prices correct as of December 2021. Rates in the table above exclude Climate Change Levy, VAT and any other applicable taxes.

If you find yourself on either the deemed or variable pricing, we strongly advise switching suppliers or committing to a new plan with British Gas Lite as soon as possible, as these rates are often much more expensive than alternative market options. You can talk to a Selectra business energy expert on 020 3318 3633 to learn more about switching your business energy plan or receive a free customized online quote now.

British Gas Lite Login

laptop

As the service is fully based online, you're going to need to know your British Gas Lite login details. The supplier will send an email when you first sign up, which will allow you to register for your online account.

Once you've followed the link in this email and created your British Gas Lite login username and password, you'll be given access to the British Gas Lite portal, where you can manage your account details, view your energy use and speak to one of the customer service webchat team.

At present, British Gas Lite does not offer its own dedicated app for smartphone or tablets, which does seem something of an oversight for an online-based energy service. Instead, you must use your British Gas Lite login webpage from your mobile browser.

Extra services and products

As a budget energy service, British Gas Lite focuses on keeping its own costs down to provide the customer with low gas and electrcity prices. Therefore its list of extra services and products on offer is a fairly short one in comparison to some other business energy suppliers.

British Gas Lite Smart meters

British Gas Lite aims to install a latest generation SMETS2 smart meter on the business' premises within 90 days of taking over the supply. Smart meter readings are automatically taken monthly on the customer's scheduled bill date, though can also be provided manually through their online account in the absence of a smart meter.

Financial aid for British Gas Lite customers

Although British Gas Lite does not offer its own financial aid programs, the supplier urges customers to contact its webchat team should they be having issues paying bills, to discuss options for repayment.

If you have been undercharged, you may be back billed for the sum owed, though British Gas Lite will limit this to a maximum of one year.

Business owners that are struggling with debt are encouraged to get in touch with Business Debtline, a charity that provides free, impartial and confidential debt advice to small business owners and the self-employed.

Fuel Mix

British Gas Lite's mix of fuels used to generate its electricity for the period 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 was largely made up of renewables, with nuclear energy supplementing this.

UK average: coal 3%, natural gas 38%, nuclear 16%, renewables 40%, other fuels 3%.

British Gas Lite environmental impact

green light bulb

CO2 emissions: 0/kWh (UK average: 194g/kWh)
High-level radioactive waste: 0.0018g/kWh (UK average: 0.0011g/kWh)

The good news for the environmentally-conscious consumer is that the largest chunk of British Gas Lite's fuel mix comes from renewable sources. However, at present British Gas Lite doesn't offer its own 100% clean energy tariff.

If running a green business happens to be your main concern, we would recommend taking a look at the 100% renewable energy tariffs on offer from commercial suppliers such as Positive Energy and Opus Energy.

How do I Contact British Gas Lite?

British Gas Lite keeps its energy prices low by cutting out call centres and paper bills or statements, with its online webchat facility being the only way of getting in touch with the supplier.

The British Gas Lite webchat team is availble Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm. However, they may refuse new chats at 4:45pm on busy days to allow the webchat team to resolve the chats they are currently dealing with. It's recommended to begin your webchat as early as possible to ensure you reach a webchat agent.

British Gas Lite Contact Number

telepone

Although British Gas Lite is entirely based online, you can still use the following contact numbers in case of an emergency:
Gas Emergency: 0800 111 999 (freephone, lines open 24/7)
Electrical emergency or power cut: 105 (free to call from most landline and mobile numbers, lines open 24/7)

In addition, if you think you have a fault with your electricity smart meter, or a gas safe registered engineer has confirmed a problem with your gas meter, you can call the British Gas Lite team on 01253 501 478 - please be aware this number is for weekends and bank holidays only.

Contact British Gas Lite by mail

Unfortunately, as part of British Gas Lite's low-cost measures, at present, the supplier is entirely based online, with only a webchat facility available for customers to contact.

If you're not a British Gas Lite customer

If you're not yet a British Gas Lite customer, but you're interested in finding out what the energy supplier can offer your small business, you can register your interest by filling out the form on the supplier's website. You'll need a few details handy:

  • Your full name
  • Your email and phone number
  • Business name and full address
  • Your MPAN number

Moving premises with British Gas Lite

moving truck

Whether your business is leaving its current British Gas Lite-supplied site or has just moved into premises already hooked up to the supplier, you'll need to use the online webchat to let British Gas Lite know.

Moving out

If your company is due to move out, British Gas Lite requests that you inform it 28 days before the move day. Then, on moving day you'll need to contact the supplier through its webchat with the following to end your contract:

  • Your final meter reading
  • A forwarding address for correspondence, whether that’s the company’s new premises or a home address
  • Name, phone number and (where possible) email address of the new occupier
  • Documented proof that responsibility for the property is changing

Moving in

If your business has moved into a building already supplied by British Gas Lite and you're happy to stay with the supplier, you'll need to contact its online webchat team to update your account details. When getting in touch, you'll need:

  • Your opening meter reading
  • Full name, postal address, phone number and email address
  • Documented proof that responsibility for the property has changed

When registering your details through the British Gas Lite webchat, you will be automatically placed on deemed rates. Therefore, it's important that you agree a contract with the supplier as soon as possible.

British Gas Lite complaints

Not happy with the service provided by British Gas Lite? We did some research to find out what its complaints process is and, in our tests, we waited an average of 18 minutes before a webchat operator was available to deal with our query. To register a complaint with British Gas Lite, you'll need to follow these steps:

Step One: Contact British Gas Lite

The first step is to get in touch with British Gas Lite by webchat. They will be able to register your complaint and try to resolve it at the same time. The webchat team will give you a complaint reference number if they can't resolve it at the first point of contact. You can use the reference number to follow-up on your complaint if you need to contact British Gas Lite regarding your complaint.

Alternatively, you can email your complaint to British Gas Lite at [email protected]. Just be aware that it can take at least five days for the supplier to reply via email.

In both cases, it's important to have some information ready when making your complaint. British Gas Lite will need the following information to register your complaint:

  • Your British Gas Lite account number (starting BGL)
  • Your full name and business name
  • Postcode of the supply property
  • Details of the complaint

Step Two: Escalate your complaint

If you're not happy with the British Gas Lite response in step one, you can ask for your complaint to be escalated to a manager. British Gas Lite managers have the authority to make management level decisions to resolve your complaint.

To escalate your complaint to a manager, you can simply ask your British Gas Lite webchat agent to put you in touch a manager. Your complaint will be passed to a manager who will let you know the complaint has been received within 24 hours, and they will get back to you once they have reviewed your complaint, usually within ten working days.

Step Three: Contact the Energy Ombudsman service

If your British Gas Lite complaint hasn't been resolved after completing step one and two, and 8 weeks have passed, you will be issued with what is known as a 'deadlock' letter, with the supplier's final offer. From here, you can approach the Energy Ombudsman for advice on what steps to take next. If you are not a microbusiness, you may need to seek independent legal advice instead.

If you wish to submit your escalate your British Gas Lite complaint to the Energy Ombudsman in writing, you can do so at the following address:

Ombudsman Services: Energy
PO Box 966
Warrington WA4 9DF

Or you can contact the Energy Ombudsman by phone:

Energy Ombudsman Contact Number Opening hours
0330 440 1624 Mon-Fri: 8am-8pm, Sat: 8am-1pm

Calls to the Energy Ombudsman contact number are charged at the same rate as a standard local landline call.

Lastly, if you prefer to send an email to the Energy Ombudsman about your British Gas Lite complaint, the email address is [email protected]

British Gas Lite reviews and verdict

At the time of writing, British Gas Lite has a 3.5 out of 5 rating on the popular consumer review site Trustpilot. This is from 1,525 reviews posted by British Gas Lite customers since January 2019.

Trustpilot Reviews December 2021
Excellent Great Average Poor Bad Overall Rating
47% 14% 4% 3% 32% 3.5/5
★★★★☆

Based on 1,525 reviews as of December 13th 2021

Megaphone

Whilst a large number of customers have complained about poor customer service and a lack of communication from the supplier. Recent reviews also praise British Gas Lite on how easy it was to trasnfer their energy supply and the user-friendliness of the webiste.

In fact, most customer gripes were based around its webchat facility, which it exclusively utilises in place of a contact email, address or phone number.

In our tests, we waited no longer than 25 minutes to speak to a customer service advisor, but reports of hour-long waits and frustrating experiences with the webchat team can be found in British Gas Lite reviews on consumer websites.

It's not all bad news, however, as some customers did mention British Gas Lite being among the cheapest energy quotes they received for their business.

There was, however, more confusion when it came to smart meters, with some customers sending photos of their malfunctioning meters with no response. Others reported that they were still waiting on their smart meter six months after signing up with the supplier, relying on 'exaggerated' estimated bills in the meantime.

Business owners will be more than happy with cheaper energy costs, but British Gas Lite's service seems to have left many customers feeling frustrated, unhappy with the lack of effective communication from the supplier. This is something to consider before signing up.

If you do decide to sign your business up with one of the established 'name' brands, take a look at British Gas's other business energy plans, which come with their own customer service helplines and dedicated email contacts, in addition to the webchat feature that is the norm with most energy suppliers these days.