Octopus Energy to take on Iresa's 90,000 customers - here's what you need to know

Regulator Ofgem has appointed renewable energy firm Octopus Energy – which currently has about 250,000 customers – to supply Iresa customers from Wednesday 1 August, after Iresa ceased trading last Friday. Octopus plans to contact all 90,000 Iresa account holders over the next few weeks.

Here are the need-to-knows:

• You won't lose your energy supply.

• Your electricity will be transferred over at 00.01am and gas at 05.01am on Wed 1 Aug.

• All Iresa's customers will be moved onto the Flexible Octopus tariff – it's the supplier's cheapest but is likely to be pricier than Iresa's deals and at an average £955/year based on typical use it's about £100/year more than the market's cheapest. It's a variable rate with no exit fees.

• Ofgem says Octopus will contact you by Tue 14 Aug with tariff confirmation and new contract details.

• As Octopus may not be your cheapest deal, it's wise to check if you could save by switching. But only sort this once it's contacted you to confirm you've been transferred. Then you can switch penalty-free so do a full market comparison on our free .

• If you're in credit with Iresa, Octopus says it'll pay this back to you. You can use it to offset future use or just have it paid back to your current account. It's unclear when this'll happen just yet.

• Take a meter reading to be safe, in case you later have a billing dispute.

Who is Octopus Energy?

Octopus Energy is a renewable supplier which launched in April 2016. It's grown quickly over the last two years, attracting around 250,000 customers.

It's performed strongly in our customer service polls – and even came joint top for service in our latest poll, with 93% rating it 'great' and 3% 'poor' (from 245 votes).

It's backed by Octopus Investments, an investor in renewable energy, healthcare, property and small businesses.

If you have any questions you can check Octopus Energy's information page or Ofgem's FAQs. For urgent queries you can use Octopus Energy's dedicated number for Iresa customers – 0808 178 1551 – or email iresa@octopus.energy.

What if I've already cancelled my direct debit with Iresa?

If you did, Octopus will be in touch to reinstate it over the next few weeks. If you didn't cancel it, your direct debit will be transferred over to Octopus Energy.

What if I'd already started to switch away from Iresa?

If you're in the process of switching away from Iresa, it should continue as normal – there's nothing you need to do.

I'm owed compensation from Iresa – what happens?

If, for example, you've been awarded money by the ombudsman for poor service, Octopus Energy won't pay this.

Ofgem says you'll need to contact Iresa's administrators. Once this information is available, you'll find it in the 'Further help and advice' section in Ofgem's FAQs.

What if my Iresa account is in debt?

This won't be moved to Octopus. Instead, you'll likely be contacted by Iresa's administrators to pay back what you owe. Ofgem is advising you contact Citizens Advice if you have any problems doing so.