How to switch electricity retailer in Australia: rules, timing and traps

If you live in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Hobart, Canberra or Melbourne, you can pick who sends your electricity bill. Most people already have: Energy Made Easy says around 91% of customers in the default market offer regions are on market offers. The real question is whether yours is still a good one. Switching is free, needs no electrician, and the rules protecting you are clearer than the ads suggest.

First question: can you switch at all?

Australia does not have one national retail market. Households in NSW, the ACT, South Australia, Tasmania and south-east Queensland are covered by the National Energy Retail Law and the Australian Energy Regulator (AER). Victoria has retail competition too, but under its own rules, policed by the Essential Services Commission (ESC). Western Australia and the Northern Territory are not part of the National Electricity Market, and most homes there have one state-owned supplier. If you are in Perth or Darwin, the steps below mostly do not apply, but our bill-cutting guide does.

The two government comparison tools

Energy Made Easy is the Australian Government’s free comparator, run by the AER. It covers NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT, and EWON notes that it lists all electricity and gas offers in NSW. It cannot switch you itself: you contact the retailer you choose. Upload a bill or your smart meter data for the most accurate result, or call 1300 585 165.

Victorian Energy Compare does the same job in Victoria, which Energy Made Easy does not cover. Its phone line is 13 61 86.

Commercial comparison services can be handy, and some arrange the switch for you. EWON’s advice is plain: they may not show the cheapest product, so read their terms and check their price against the government site. Our own comparison page says which links earn us money and which do not, and we never name a “best” retailer.

Reference prices: DMO and VDO

Every plan advertised in NSW, south-east Queensland and South Australia has to be compared against the Default Market Offer (DMO), a price the AER sets in May that applies from 1 July. In Victoria the benchmark is the Victorian Default Offer (VDO), set by the ESC. Ads show how far a plan sits above or below the reference price, so a plan advertised at 15% below the DMO is, other things equal, cheaper than one at 5% below.

The DMO is also the most a retailer can charge on a standing offer. Energy Made Easy puts the share of households in DMO regions still on a standing offer at about 8.3%. If you have not signed a new contract in years, check your bill: you may be one of them.

The switch, step by step

1. Find your latest bill. Note the plan name, usage in kWh, daily supply charge and whether you have solar, a controlled load or a smart meter.
2. Compare on Energy Made Easy or Victorian Energy Compare, or through a comparison service. Our bill explainer helps if the layout is confusing.
3. Read the plan’s Basic Plan Information Document. Energy Made Easy’s checklist covers rates, contract length, fees, discounts, cooling-off rights, price change rules and whether you can get a concession on the new plan.
4. Contact the new retailer with the plan name and plan ID. You do not need to ring your old retailer. If someone in your home relies on life support equipment, or you hold a concession card, tell the new retailer when you sign up.
5. Wait for the transfer. EWON warns that the welcome pack does not mean it has happened. Your new retailer should give you an expected date and must tell you if it slips.
6. Pay the final bill from your old retailer. If none arrives, ask why.

How long it takes

The transfer happens at a meter read. With a smart meter, EWON says it can be done within several business days. With an older meter read every quarter, Energy Made Easy says it could take up to 3 months. EWON adds that the new retailer can often speed this up by using an estimated read or a read taken in the past few months, so ask what date it can offer. The lights stay on throughout, because the poles, wires and meter belong to the local distributor, not the retailer.

Cooling-off: 10 business days on any new contract

Energy Made Easy is clear: by law you have a cooling-off period of 10 business days when you sign up to a new energy contract, and you can cancel in that time without an exit fee. That applies however you signed, online, by phone or at the door. If a salesperson did not follow the rules, the cooling-off period can stretch to between 3 and 6 months.

Door-to-door sellers may only knock between 9 am and 6 pm on weekdays and 9 am to 5 pm on Saturdays; phone sellers may call between 9 am and 8 pm on weekdays. Neither may contact you on Sundays or public holidays, both must say who they work for, and they must leave or hang up when you ask. They must also make sure you understand what you are agreeing to. You never have to give a marketer your account details. A “Do not knock” sticker, the Do Not Call Register and the retailer’s own no-contact list all stop the approaches.

Exit fees and contract rules

In NSW, early termination fees are prohibited. EWON lists the narrow exceptions: a retailer can recover costs for equipment it installed (solar, a battery, a smart meter) and for some fixed-price benefit periods where the charge was spelled out in the contract. In Victoria, EWOV says a fixed-term contract may carry an exit fee. Elsewhere it depends on the plan, and Energy Made Easy lets you filter for plans with no exit fees.

Victoria adds its own protections. Retailers may raise prices only once a year and must give at least five days’ notice before a change. A discount, credit or rebate you signed up for must last the whole contract. And your bill must carry a “best offer” message, at least every three months for electricity and every four months for gas, saying whether your retailer has a cheaper plan for you.

What if my retailer goes bust?

It has happened, and the system is built for it. EWOV explains that if your electricity or gas company stops operating, you are automatically transferred to a new company. You are not left without a retailer, and once the transfer is done you can compare and switch again like anyone else. Our guide is switching retailer safe? covers this in more detail.

Common traps

Conditional discounts. A big percentage off that only applies if you pay on time can look good in a comparison and cost you when you miss a due date.

Losing a payment plan. If you are behind on bills, EWON notes that your payment plan with the old retailer is cancelled automatically when you switch, and the old retailer does not always have to offer a new one on a closed account. Call it before you move.

Transfer by mistake. A final bill you did not expect, or a letter from a retailer addressed to “the occupier”, can mean your account was moved in error. Both retailers must help fix it.

Chasing a rate you cannot use. A cheap time-of-use plan or the Solar Sharer Offer only pays if you can shift usage to the cheap hours.

Where to complain

Start with the retailer. If that does not fix it, the energy ombudsman in your state or territory handles complaints for free: EWON in NSW (1800 246 545), EWOV in Victoria (1800 500 509), EWOQ in Queensland (1800 662 837), EWOSA in South Australia (1800 665 565), the Energy Ombudsman in Tasmania (1800 001 170) and, in Canberra, the ACT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (02 6207 1740).

When to look again

The best moment is when your price change notice arrives, usually around 1 July, or when a benefit period ends and your discount disappears. Once a year is usually enough. A free contract alert can remind you, and when it does, run a fresh comparison against the new reference price.