Most void energy costs are about getting properties re-let quickly. But some properties aren’t going to be re-let quickly — they’re going to sit empty for months. Major works, decant for regeneration, properties awaiting demolition, units caught in a longer programme. For these long-term voids, the cost question is completely different, and the answer is often counterintuitive: take the meter out.
The problem with leaving a meter in a long-term void
Even when a property is using no energy at all, the meter still costs money every single day,
because of the standing charge. A standing charge is a fixed daily fee for being connected to
the energy network — it applies whether or not a single unit of electricity or gas is used.
For an empty property, that means you’re paying purely for the privilege of having a live
connection to a home nobody is living in. Over a few weeks it’s an irritation. Over many months,
across multiple properties, it becomes a meaningful and entirely avoidable cost.
The maths on a typical 2-bed
Let’s put real numbers on it. Standing charges vary by region and supplier, but a typical
combined electricity and gas standing charge works out at around £0.73 per day for a property
of this size.
That doesn’t sound like much. But run it across a year: £0.73 a day comes to roughly £266 a
year in standing charges alone — before a single unit of energy is used.
Now add the energy that does get used in a long-term void — the heating ticking over to prevent
damp, lighting during works, power for contractors — and the all-in annual cost of energy for a
typical long-term void 2-bed comes to around £1,271 a year. That’s the figure worth keeping in
mind: a single empty property left on supply for a year can quietly burn through over twelve
hundred pounds.
Multiply that across even a modest number of long-term voids and the numbers get serious
quickly. Twenty long-term voids at £1,271 each is over £25,000 a year, much of it avoidable.
When meter removal makes sense
The lever for long-term voids is meter removal. Take the meter out, and the standing charge stops — there’s no live connection to charge for. The widely used threshold is 90 days: if a property is going to be void for more than three months, removing the meter usually saves more than the cost of removing and later reinstating it. Good candidates for meter removal include:
• Properties undergoing major works that will take months.
• Homes being decanted for regeneration or estate remodelling.
• Units awaiting demolition or disposal.
• Any property where you know re-letting is months away, not weeks.
The reinstatement question
The obvious worry is: what happens when the property is ready again? Removing a meter isn’t
permanent — a new meter can be arranged when the property comes back into use. The key is
that the removal is documented, the supply point is properly recorded, and the reinstatement is
planned so the property isn’t held up waiting for a meter when it’s finally ready to re-let.
This is why meter removal needs to be handled properly rather than ad hoc. A removed meter
with no proper record can cause confusion and delay later. A removed meter that’s been documented, with the supply point details retained and reinstatement understood, is a clean saving with no downside.
The decision in practice
The rule of thumb is straightforward: if a property will be void for more than 90 days, work out
the standing charge you’ll pay over that period and compare it to the cost of removal and
reinstatement. For most long-term voids, removal wins comfortably — and the longer the void,
the bigger the saving.
A single empty property left on supply for a year can quietly cost over £1,271. For long-term voids, taking the meter out is often the single biggest saving available.
TSM identifies long-term void candidates and handles meter removal and reinstatement end-to-
end, including supplier liaison and documentation. If you have properties sitting void for months,
request a callback and we’ll work out the saving with you.