The short answer
Switching supplier does not affect your solar panels, your MCS certificate or your DNO notification — but it does not move your SEG export payments either. Your SEG tariff is a separate contract with whichever company pays you, and Ofgem confirms it does not have to be the company that supplies your electricity. You can switch your supply and keep your export income, but only if you re-apply for a SEG tariff in the right order. Nothing transfers automatically.
The most common and most expensive misunderstanding: solar owners assume the export tariff follows the supply switch, cancel nothing, and then quietly stop being paid. Ofgem's guidance is explicit that you are responsible for seeking a new SEG tariff yourself if your current one ends, and that a new licensee can only pay you once the new contract is in place.
1. Your SEG payer does not have to be your electricity supplier. You can use three different companies for export payments, electricity and gas.
2. Any SEG tariff offered must always be above zero — but there is no minimum, which is why rates range from about 1p to 25p per kWh.
3. SEG payments are calculated from export meter readings, so your new payer needs your meter details.
4. SEG licensees must offer a tariff to all eligible generators — so being refused is not the normal outcome for a certified installation.
What happens to your SEG when you switch supplier
There are three possible outcomes, and which one you get depends on the company, not on your supply switch. Most high-paying SEG tariffs require you to be a supply customer, so switching supply normally ends them. Ofgem's own wording is that you can apply for a SEG tariff with any SEG licensee and that your SEG licensee does not need to be the same company as your current energy supplier — you may use separate companies for your SEG payments, your electricity and your gas.
Scenario 1 — SEG stays where it is
Possible only if your current payer offers a standalone or unbundled SEG tariff — one that does not require you to buy electricity from them. These exist, and they are usually the lower-paying open-to-all rates rather than the headline installer or customer rates. If you are on one, switching supply does not touch it.
Scenario 2 — SEG moves with you
You switch supply and apply to the new supplier for their SEG tariff in the same process. This is where the best numbers usually are, because supplier-customer rates pay more than open-to-all rates. The catch is timing: there is a gap. Ofgem states that a new SEG licensee will only be able to make payments for exported electricity once your new SEG contract is in place. Export during the gap is not backdated.
Scenario 3 — Your supplier fails
This is the case Ofgem writes about directly. If your supplier goes bust, no one is appointed to pay your export. Ofgem's guidance: you are responsible for seeking a new SEG tariff for exported electricity, as one won't be appointed on your behalf, and Ofgem advises you to act promptly so you continue to receive SEG payments. Nothing is credited retroactively for the period you were unrepresented.
If you are on the legacy Feed-in Tariff (FIT) rather than SEG, payments also do not transfer automatically when a supplier's licence is revoked or it becomes insolvent. Ofgem may issue a Continuity of FIT Payments Direction to keep payments flowing. SEG has no equivalent safety net — which is precisely why the burden falls on you.
What your export is actually worth
A typical 4 kWp system without a battery exports roughly 1,900 kWh a year. At the low end of the market that is about £20 a year; at the best open-to-all flat rate of around 13p per kWh it is about £247 a year. That gap is the entire reason it is worth thinking about your SEG at the same time as your supply switch, rather than afterwards.
Export rates fall into four groups, and the differences are bigger than most people expect:
| Type of rate | Typical rate | What it requires |
|---|---|---|
| Installer-exclusive flat | 15p – 25p | Solar (and often a battery) installed by that supplier |
| Supplier-customer flat | 12p – 16p | You buy electricity from the same company |
| Open-to-all flat | 4p – 13p | No tie-in — any certified solar owner |
| Time-of-use / dynamic | 9p – 16p typical, uncapped at peak | Battery + SMETS2 smart meter with half-hourly export |
Ranges are the published UK SEG market as at September 2026. Individual rates change with roughly 30 days' notice, so confirm the live figure with the supplier before you commit.
Two Open-to-all examples worth knowing, from verified supplier pages: Octopus Outgoing pays 12p per kWh on a variable flat rate, while its Prime Outgoing tariff pays 16p per kWh between 4pm and 7pm and 9p for the rest of the day, fixed for 12 months with no exit fees. Prime Outgoing suits solar-plus-battery homes that can shift their export into the evening.
A switch that saves you £120 a year on imports can cost you £150 a year in export income. The only number that matters is import cost minus export income. Work out both on the same day, for the same supplier, before you accept anything.
Batteries and time-of-use export tariffs
If you have a battery and a SMETS2 smart meter, a time-of-use export tariff usually beats the best flat rate by 2–3×. A flat rate pays the same at noon as at 6pm; a peak export tariff pays you most when the grid is tightest. Octopus's Prime Outgoing pays 16p per kWh from 4pm to 7pm against 9p for the rest of the day, and Agile Outgoing matches uncapped half-hourly wholesale prices so you can export only when the price spikes.
The reason this matters at switching time is that time-of-use tariffs are normally tied to a supply contract. They are the rates most likely to disappear when you move. Two things to check before you switch away:
- Does peak-rate export need half-hourly metering? Yes — and it needs a SMETS2 smart meter actually recording export in half-hourly intervals. A flat-rate SEG tariff can run on far less data.
- Does your battery's automation depend on your supplier? Some optimisation setups and supplier-controlled charge schedules are built around a specific import tariff. Moving supplier can silently disable the schedule that made the export maths work.
Worth remembering: Ofgem's rule is that generators are entitled to payments based upon actual meter readings, even where a supplier offers an alternative payment model. If your export payments look like an estimate rather than a reading, ask.
How to switch without losing SEG payments
Get the new SEG contract agreed before your supply switch completes, and never cancel your old SEG tariff first. Export payments stop the moment you have no contract in place and are not backdated. The sequence below keeps you covered end to end.
- Read your current SEG contract first. Is the rate fixed-term or variable? Are there exit fees? Is the rate conditional on you being a supply customer? This single check tells you whether the tariff survives a switch.
- Find out who actually pays you. It is not always your supply company. Check a recent SEG statement or your online account — you may already be on a standalone tariff with a different company.
- Decide which of the three options you want: keep the existing SEG payer, move the SEG to your new supplier, or move to an open-to-all SEG licensee that pays a better rate with no tie-in.
- Apply for the new SEG tariff. SEG licensees must offer a tariff to all eligible generators, and each publishes its own application process. Do this before the supply switch.
- Have your paperwork ready: MCS certificate, DNO notification or G98 approval, MPAN, export meter details, proof of address and your installation date. Missing meter details is the most common cause of delay.
- Keep the old SEG contract live until the new one is confirmed. Then cancel it. In that order, not the reverse.
- Expect a short gap anyway, and accept that it will not be backdated. Ofgem's rule is that the new licensee pays only once the new contract is in place.
- Check your first payment and keep taking meter readings. If the figure looks wrong, raise it early — SEG payments are reading-based.
Usually not. Ofgem's rules let you move to a new supplier if you have been in debt to your old one for less than 28 days; the old supplier adds what you owe to your final bill. You cannot switch once you have been in debt for more than 28 days until it is repaid. With a prepayment meter you can still switch while owing up to £500 for electricity and £500 for gas.
The traps that cost the most
The single most expensive trap is assuming the SEG follows your supply switch. It does not. After that, the next four are about tariffs, not paperwork.
1. Assuming the SEG moves with the supply
It is a separate contract. Nothing transfers automatically, and no one will write to you to remind you. If you do nothing, you simply stop being paid for exports.
2. Comparing import tariffs only
A cheap unit rate can hide a SEG tariff that pays a third of what you had. Always compare import cost minus export income for each supplier on the same day.
3. Chasing an installer-exclusive rate you cannot qualify for
The 15p–25p headline rates are typically limited to customers whose solar, or solar and battery, was installed by that supplier. If your system was installed by someone else, budget on the open or customer rates instead.
4. Switching off a time-of-use tariff without running the numbers
Battery owners on peak export rates can lose more from the export side than they gain on imports. Check what the new supplier pays at 4–7pm before you move.
5. Assuming you cannot switch because you have solar
You can, and Ofgem's rules do not restrict switching for solar owners. The 28-day debt rule applies to you exactly as it does to everyone else.
An unexpected welcome letter or final bill can mean an erroneous transfer. You can claim £30 from either the old or the new supplier if you did not agree to the switch. Check whether your SEG moved with it — that is the part people forget to look at.
See what your export is worth on your own numbers
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Open the savings calculatorFAQs
Does switching energy supplier affect my solar panels?
No. Your panels, inverter, MCS certificate and DNO notification are all unaffected by who supplies your electricity. Nothing physical changes at your property and no one needs to visit. What can change is who pays you for exported electricity, because the SEG is a separate contract from your supply contract.
Will I lose my SEG payments if I switch?
Only if you let the contract lapse. SEG tariffs are not transferred automatically, and most high-paying ones require you to be a supply customer. Ofgem confirms you can hold your SEG with a company that does not supply your electricity, so you can keep exporting to your existing payer while buying from someone new — if that payer offers a standalone tariff and you re-apply in time.
Can my SEG tariff be with a different company from my electricity supplier?
Yes. Ofgem states you can apply for a SEG tariff with any SEG licensee, that your SEG licensee does not need to be the same company as your current energy supplier, and that you can use separate companies for your SEG payments, electricity supply and gas supply. The rate, contract length and terms are set by each supplier, and the rate must always be above zero.
What happens to my SEG payments if my energy supplier goes bust?
They stop until you arrange a replacement yourself. Ofgem's guidance says you are responsible for seeking a new SEG tariff for exported electricity because one will not be appointed on your behalf, and that a new licensee can only pay for exports once the new contract is in place. Ofgem advises acting promptly, and the gap is not backdated.
Do I need a battery to get a good export rate?
No, but a battery changes which tariff suits you. Without storage, a simple flat export rate is easiest, and open-to-all flat rates currently run from about 1p to 13p per kWh. With a battery and a SMETS2 smart meter recording half-hourly export, a time-of-use tariff can pay more by shifting exports into the evening peak.
Can I switch supplier if I have solar panels and owe my old supplier money?
Yes, in most cases. Ofgem allows you to move if you have been in debt to your old supplier for less than 28 days, with what you owe added to your final bill. You cannot switch once you have been in debt for more than 28 days until it is repaid. With a prepayment meter you can still switch while owing up to £500 for electricity and £500 for gas.
Sources: Ofgem, "Smart Export Guarantee (SEG)" and "Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) — Generators" (ofgem.gov.uk, read 13 September 2026); Ofgem, "What happens if your energy supplier goes bust" (ofgem.gov.uk, read 13 September 2026); Ofgem, "Switching energy supplier" (ofgem.gov.uk, read 13 September 2026); Octopus Energy "Outgoing Octopus" export tariff pages (octopus.energy, read 13 September 2026). All SEG rule wording quoted above is taken from Ofgem's published guidance. Rates and terms change with roughly 30 days' notice — confirm the live figures with the supplier before committing.
Disclaimer: this guide is for general information only and is not financial, legal or energy-contract advice. uksolarcalc.co.uk is not an energy supplier, a SEG licensee or a broker. Always confirm your own SEG contract terms, eligibility and the current rate directly with the supplier before switching.