Managing Agents: Change of Tenancy & kVA Reviews
When a management agent takes over a property, getting the electricity account into the right name is only the first job. A Change of Tenancy establishes liability. It does not tell you whether the inherited supply is set up efficiently.
We are dealing with exactly that situation now on the communal electricity supply to an apartment block. Before the new contract has even been arranged, the capacity review has identified a potential saving of more than £5,000 a year.
Establish the correct incoming account and liability.
Meter, demand, capacity and network setup.
Capacity, billing or metering before procurement.
Put the right energy deal around the right setup.
A COT changes the account. It doesn't reset the old setup.
A new managing agent can inherit years of old decisions on day one: supplier arrangements, meter configurations, estimated reads, authorised capacity, network classifications and contact information that may not have been reviewed for years.
That is why we treat the Change of Tenancy as a useful trigger for a wider energy check. The account still needs to be transferred correctly, but somebody should also ask whether the supply being inherited still makes sense for the building.
In this case, the incoming agent had only just taken over responsibility for the site. The COT was being dealt with and the incumbent supplier would initially bill the new account on its applicable variable/deemed position. Rather than waiting until the contract stage, we requested the site's capacity and demand data from SP Energy Networks.
The site was reserving 300 kVA. Its demand never exceeded 17.
SP Energy Networks identified the connection as LV SUB with LLF Class ID K04. Across the monthly data supplied, maximum demand sat between 12 and 17 kVA while Authorised Supply Capacity remained at 300 kVA.
This remains an active case. The figures below are being published as a live example of the review process, not as a completed saving.
The demand pattern is unusually consistent.
From August 2024 through August 2026, the 25 monthly peak-demand figures supplied by the DNO range from 12 kVA to 17 kVA. Their average is approximately 14.8 kVA.
That is why we have recommended reducing the ASC to around 20 kVA. The proposed level remains above every peak in the data supplied while potentially removing 280 kVA of capacity the communal supply has not been using. At the current deemed capacity rate, that unused headroom is worth an estimated £5,309 a year before any contract savings are added.
Why not simply cut it as low as possible?
Because a capacity reduction should reflect both historic demand and what the building may need next. Planned lifts, pumps, EV charging, communal heating or other electrical works can change the requirement. Capacity that is surrendered may also be difficult or costly to restore if network reinforcement is later required.
The capacity alone is worth about £5,309 a year.
SSE Energy Solutions' published Variable Business Rates effective June 2026 show an available-capacity charge of 158.00p per kVA per month for HH unrestricted LV/LVS supplies. Its day/night and 7-rate LV/LVS capacity charge is virtually identical.
Using 158p/kVA/month as the working basis:
We have rounded this to £5,309/year in the client communication. It remains a potential saving until SP Energy Networks approves and applies the reduction.
Crucially, that number does not include the saving from moving the incoming account away from the supplier's variable/deemed rates and onto a negotiated contract. It also does not include any further network-cost impact if the capacity reduction changes the applicable LLFC or tariff.
What should be checked when a site enters your portfolio?
Establish exactly who is responsible and from what date, with evidence that supports the incoming account.
Understand what the site is being charged while the COT is completed and before a new contract goes live.
For suitable HH supplies, compare the capacity being paid for with what the site has actually drawn.
Check the DNO data, connection type and LLFC/tariff rather than assuming the inherited setup is still appropriate.
A competitive unit rate matters, but procurement should sit on top of a supply that has already been checked properly.
There may be more saving here. We won't count it before it exists.
The useful way to present a live case is to keep confirmed facts, calculations and future opportunities separate.
Current position: 20 kVA recommended. £5,309/year remains potential until SPEN confirms the change.
Still to establish: whether reducing the ASC also changes the applicable network classification or associated charges.
Not included: the separate saving from replacing the supplier's variable/deemed position with a new negotiated contract.
The contract is not the first thing we're fixing.
For managing agents, that is the wider point. A Change of Tenancy is an account event, but it is also a natural audit point. If the only action is to change the occupier name and compare unit rates, old structural costs can simply follow the property into the new management period.
Check the supply before you inherit the old setup unchanged.
We can deal with the Change of Tenancy, review the metering and capacity position, identify obvious account issues and then look at the energy contract.
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Thomas McGlynn leads Smart Energy Company’s commercial energy strategy and contributes to its Market Desk. His specialist areas include business energy procurement, wholesale market timing, supplier and billing disputes, metering and kVA. His analysis forms part of the wider Smart Energy Company advisory service supporting businesses across the UK.
