"By the way, we moved out of the Bristol unit last month"
In a routine call, a client mentions that they left one of their units last month and opened a new one across town. Nobody told the supplier about the move out. No final read was taken on the day they left. The new unit is on whatever supply the previous occupier left in place, and nobody has checked what that is.
Now your account manager has to reconstruct the move date, find a read from around that day, contact the supplier about the old unit and find out what is happening at the new one, while the client wonders why this was not handled.
Why site changes are handled badly
Site changes happen at the client's pace, driven by leases and operations, and energy is rarely the first thing on the client's mind.
- Clients do not think to tell their energy consultant until after the event.
- Each change involves several steps: move-out read, supplier notification, final bill, and at the new site, supply and contract checks.
- Steps involve different parties and take weeks to complete.
- Nobody has a checklist, so steps are missed.
- Commission and contract records are not updated when meters leave.
The cost of a missed step
A missing move-out read can leave the client disputing bills for a period after they left. A new site left on whatever supply was in place may be paying rates nobody chose. Final bills that never arrive, or arrive after months, complicate the client's accounts.
For the consultancy, untracked changes mean wrong contract records, unexpected commission clawbacks and hours of reconstruction. And clients remember that their consultant did not catch it.
A site change process from notice to final bill
We build a site change process into your client and meter records.
- Clients report changes through a simple form in their portal or by email: site, type of change, dates and contacts. Account managers can log changes from calls in the same way.
- Each change creates a set of tasks from a template for that type: moving out, moving in, closing, opening.
- Move-out tasks include collecting a read on the day, with a photo if possible, notifying the supplier with the read and the date, and expecting a final bill.
- Move-in tasks include identifying the meters at the new site, checking what supply and terms are in place, and flagging the site for your team to review.
- Tasks are tracked with owners and due dates. Supplier responses are linked to the change.
- The change closes when the final bill for the old site and the first bill for the new site have been received and checked. Contract, meter and commission records are updated along the way.
| Step | Handled ad hoc | Site change process |
|---|---|---|
| Hearing about the change | In passing, late | Reported by form or logged from a call |
| Move-out read | Often missed | Task on the day, with photo |
| Supplier notified | When someone remembers | Task with date and read |
| New site supply | Unchecked | Flagged for review |
| Closing the change | Never formally | When final and first bills are checked |
The process organises the steps. Advice to the client about supply at a new site remains your consultancy's job.
Moves that are handled before they are forgotten
When a client plans a move, they report it in the portal a few weeks ahead. The move-out read task reminds the site manager on the day. The supplier is notified with the read. The new site is reviewed before the client has unpacked. A few weeks later, the final bill arrives and is checked against the read, and the change is closed.
Contract and commission records stay accurate, and the client sees a consultancy that looks after the details.
Are site changes catching you out?
- You hear about site moves after they happen.
- Move-out reads are often missing.
- New sites have stayed on unchecked supply.
- Final bills arrive late or never.
- Contract records are not updated when meters leave.