Octopus Energy: how to leave, exit fees, price rises, moving home and complaints

Octopus Energy Limited (company number 09263424) is registered at UK House, 164-182 Oxford Street, London, and supplies gas and electricity to households across Great Britain. This page is based on the general terms and conditions for domestic customers (version 3.9), the Octopus help centre and Ofgem’s switching rules.

How to leave Octopus Energy

You do not need to tell Octopus you are leaving. Sign up with the new supplier, and they notify Octopus and arrange the transfer. Ofgem requires a switch to complete within 5 working days unless you ask for a later date; if the new supplier is late, it owes you £40 automatically. Give the new supplier an opening meter reading around the switch date. It becomes the closing reading on your final statement, after which any credit is refunded.

If you change your mind, you have 14 days from signing up with the new supplier to cancel the switch. The rule works the other way round too: within 14 days of applying to join Octopus you can cancel by e-mail or on the website, and Octopus cannot charge an exit fee or block a move to someone else. Octopus can only stop a switch over a debt that is more than 28 days old; a younger debt is added to the final bill.

Notice period and fixed tariffs

Octopus has no notice period. On a variable tariff or a deemed contract you can leave at any time, and the terms say no exit fee applies when a deemed contract ends. The only question is whether your fixed tariff carries an exit fee. Octopus says it tells you at sign-up if it does, and that fixes sold without a fee keep that term for their whole life even if newer fixes have one.

Where a fee exists, the terms are clear about the end of the term: no exit fee is charged if you cancel within the final 49 days before the end date. That mirrors Ofgem’s rule from 2013, under which a supplier must tell you your fix is ending 42 to 49 days beforehand and cannot charge a termination fee from that notice onwards. If you take no action, Octopus does not roll you onto another fix with a fee. The terms say you go to its cheapest variable tariff, to a fixed tariff that is as cheap or cheaper, or to a variable tariff comparable to your old one. Our guide Fixed energy tariff ending explains how to use those seven weeks.

Price rises: your rights

On a fixed rate tariff Octopus will not change the prices during the term; the terms state this plainly.

On a variable tariff Octopus must give reasonable notice of any increase or other change that leaves you worse off. If you do not accept it, the terms let you switch to another supplier or start a new Octopus contract without penalty. Ofgem set the underlying rule in 2011: at least 30 days’ warning before a price rise takes effect. Read the notice for the date the new price starts and begin your switch before it.

Moving home

Octopus asks you to tell it as early as you can, so the new property can be supplied from the day you move in, but it also says that telling it late or after the move is fine. The terms give you 28 days from moving out. If you keep Octopus, the old contract is closed and a new one set up for the new address. If not, the contract is cancelled two working days after your move date. If you never tell Octopus, it ends on the day a new occupier starts taking supply.

The property you move into stays with its current supplier under a deemed contract until you choose a tariff, so nothing is cut off. Our guide Moving house: what to do about your energy supplier walks through the order of steps.

Contact and complaints

General questions: hello@octopus.energy or the free line 0808 164 1088. For complaints, e-mail issueresolution@octopus.energy, call between 9am and 5pm Monday to Thursday or 9am to 4pm on Friday, or write to Octopus Energy Ltd, UK House, 5th floor, 164-182 Oxford Street, London W1D 1NN, with your account number and a short description of the problem. You can also write to the chief executive at greg@octopus.energy at any stage.

If Octopus cannot resolve the complaint, or it has been open for eight weeks, it issues a deadlock letter. You can then go to the Energy Ombudsman (0330 440 1624, enquiry@energyombudsman.org), a free and independent service whose decision binds Octopus but not you. Citizens Advice (0808 223 1133) and, in Scotland, Advice Direct Scotland (0808 196 8660) give free advice beforehand.

What to check before you switch

Find the end date of your fix in your sign-up e-mail or online account and note whether an exit fee was listed; the 49-day rule removes it near the end. Check that your credit balance looks right against recent meter readings, which our page on reading your energy bill helps with.

Ofgem’s Confidence Code accredits comparison websites, not suppliers, so it says nothing about Octopus itself. Compare deals in the UK energy comparison and read Is switching energy supplier safe? if you have doubts. The contract end reminder will tell you when the 49-day window opens.