In short
Yes, if the account is in your name, which it is for most rentals. You can switch retailer and plan without asking the landlord, and the new retailer handles the transfer. What you cannot change is the meter or the wiring without the owner's agreement, and if the building is an embedded network your choice may be limited to what the on-seller offers.
What you can choose
- The retailer and the plan. Compare like an owner would: on your own usage, with the controlled load if the property has electric storage hot water, and the feed-in tariff if it has solar you get the credit for.
- The Solar Sharer Offer, if the property has a smart meter. It is open to renters and homes without solar. See the Solar Sharer Offer explained.
- A smart meter upgrade, in most cases. The meter belongs to the metering provider, not the landlord, and a retailer can replace it with notice; an owner rarely objects, and cannot stop a rollout.
What you cannot
- The wiring, the hot water system and the controlled-load circuit. Those are the owner's, and so is the decision to put a pump or a tank on Tariff 31 or 33.
- The retailer in some embedded networks. If your bill comes from the body corporate or an on-seller rather than a retailer, read choosing a provider in an apartment.
- The solar. If the property has panels, the feed-in credit goes to whoever holds the electricity account, which is usually you, unless the lease says otherwise; check it.
At the start of a lease
Connect in your own name before you move in, with the address and the NMI from the meter box or the agent, and choose the plan then rather than taking the retailer the agent's connection service suggests. Connecting electricity when moving house covers the steps and the lead times.
At the end
Tell your retailer the date you are leaving so the final bill stops on a read for that day, and take a photo of the meter. If you are moving within South East Queensland, most plans move with you, but a benefit period may not, so compare again at the new address.
Quick answers
Do I need my landlord's permission to switch electricity providers?
No. If the electricity account is in your name you can switch retailer and plan whenever you like, and the new retailer arranges the transfer with no interruption. The only case where the choice is not fully yours is a property inside an embedded network supplied by the body corporate's on-seller.
Does a renter get the solar feed-in credit?
Usually yes, because the credit is applied to the electricity account at the address and the account is in the tenant's name. Some leases set a rent premium for solar or keep the credit with the owner; read the lease. If you receive the credit, compare plans on your import and export together rather than on the feed-in rate alone.
Sources
Official pages this answer relies on. If one of them changes, tell us and we will update the page.
- Solar Sharer Offer · Australian Government, energy.gov.au
- Energy Made Easy · Australian Energy Regulator
- Finding your NMI · Energy Made Easy, Australian Energy Regulator