Rebel Energy goes bust – here's what you need to know

Rebel Energy also provided the underlying services for Ebico Living's 800 household customers – if you were one of them, all of the info below applies in the same way.

You'll be transferred to British Gas automatically – don't switch just yet

Here are the key need-to-knows:

• British Gas will take over and your energy supply will continue as normal. Under energy regulator Ofgem's 'safety net' rules, when a supplier fails, a new one is appointed to take over, known as the 'Supplier of Last Resort'.
  
  In this instance, British Gas has been appointed and started to supply Rebel Energy customers' gas and electricity on Sunday 6 April. It was announced on Tuesday 1 April that Rebel had ceased trading.
  
  If you're on a pre-payment meter you can still use your existing pre-payment device to purchase energy at any of your usual outlets and top-up as normal. Any balance on your meter will remain available for you to use. You'll be sent a new British Gas key or card once your new account is set up.

• Typically you're moved to the new supplier's standard variable tariff. These default tariffs are governed by the Energy Price Cap, which sets a maximum amount energy suppliers can charge for each unit of energy and the daily standing charges.
  
  British Gas wouldn't confirm its plans when we asked, only saying it'll be in touch with affected customers in the "coming days and weeks". If you have any questions in the meantime, you can contact British Gas on 0800 015 2216 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm, and Saturday, 9am to 5pm). British Gas also has some information about the move on its dedicated webpage.

• Wait to be contacted by British Gas before switching. This is to help make the account transfer process easier and smoother. Once that transfer is complete, you're free to switch to another provider, and won't be charged any exit fees. Do a bespoke comparison to find your cheapest tariff – don't just stick on the British Gas default tariff, as it's likely you'll be paying more than you need to right now.

• If you've already started a switch to another provider, your switch will continue. You don't need to do anything. If you have outstanding credit it will be paid to you by British Gas once it takes over your Rebel Energy account.

• If you were in the process of switching to Rebel Energy, the switch should still go through. However, you will then be automatically switched to British Gas.

Note: If you had a solar export tariff through Rebel Energy – which pays you a set rate for electricity you generate from solar panels but don't use yourself – this will NOT be automatically transferred to British Gas under Ofgem's rules.

You will instead need to find a new energy provider to export your solar energy to. This could be British Gas – its Smart Export Guarantee tariff pays 15.1p per kilowatt hour (kWh), though this can be beaten elsewhere, so check alternatives. See the best solar export guarantee rates in our Solar panels guide.

Take meter readings now

To ensure British Gas can bill you accurately, make a note of your gas and electricity meter readings as soon as possible. It's a good idea to take a photo of the meter readings as evidence, and email it to yourself. You can then give these to British Gas when it contacts you.

If you have a smart meter, British Gas has said that in most cases it should continue to operate in smart mode and be unaffected by your transfer to British Gas. However, some older models of smart meter may lose some functionality, so you may need to take meter readings manually and submit them to British Gas.

You should also download any recent bills you have received from Rebel Energy and save these for your records, in case of any future bill disputes.

Any energy credit you have will be protected

If your Rebel Energy account is currently in credit, British Gas will refund this to you. Download a copy of your latest bill or statement showing this credit, or take a screenshot of your account balance for your records.

If you'd already started a switch to another energy supplier before the firm went under, British Gas should get in touch to arrange a refund of any credit – even if you haven't been switched to it – but this can take a while.

If you owe Rebel Energy any money, you will still have to pay it. Payments will either go to British Gas or Rebel Energy's administrators. British Gas will let you know how this works once it fully has taken over.

You don't need to cancel your Direct Debit

There's no immediate need to cancel your Direct Debit – and it's probably easier if you don't. Ofgem says British Gas will contact you to explain how it will take over your account, including any Direct Debit arrangements.

If you've already cancelled your Direct Debit, there's no need to reinstate it, and British Gas will explain what to do once it gets in touch with you.

However, it's worth noting that if you don't have a Direct Debit set up when your account is transferred to the new supplier, you may be moved onto its 'standard credit' default tariff, which is typically more expensive than its Direct Debit standard Price Cap tariff – so remember to do a bespoke comparison to ensure you're not overpaying.