Here’s How to Avoid a Debt on Your Prepaid Meter

There’s nothing more inconvenient than having an outstanding on your meter. And it isn't just limited to postpaid meters alone. You can owe an outstanding on a prepaid meter as well.

This can be inconvenient because not only does it make your proposed units lesser, but it also messes up your entire electricity budget. It’s even worse when you aren’t aware of an initial debt on a meter and now you have to pay for it.

In this post, I’ll be showing you why you might have a debt on your meter, how you can resolve it, and the methods to adopt that’ll prevent any future debt migration as well.

Why Do I Have a Debt on My Meter?

When you have a debt on your meter, what it means is that you have an obligation to pay a certain outstanding amount that has been migrated to your meter account. But you cannot pay what you’re not sure of and that’s understandable. So here are a few reasons why you may owe or have a debt on your meter;

1. You have a newly installed meter: During the installation of a new meter, you’d notice that a certain amount of units come with the meter. Now, these units are usually tagged as ‘free’ units. But, it’s not exactly that. You’ll have to pay for those units on your next recharge. So if you have a new meter and while trying to make your first purchase you realize there’s an outstanding, then it’s just the payment for the units that came along with the meter.

2. You had a previous debt: Before installing your prepaid meter, you may have had an outstanding on either your postpaid meter or your estimated billing system. This outstanding, if present, is usually migrated to your prepaid meter account. That’s why even when the meter is new, you keep getting a reflection of the previous debt owed.

3. There’s been a default with your distribution company: If your distribution company discovers any bypass or illegal connections on your end, a penalty is migrated to your prepaid account as a debt. So if you’ve had your prepaid meter for a while and suddenly there’s an unknown debt on your account, you might want to check to ensure that there isn’t a bypass or illegal connection.

How to Check an Outstanding Debt on a Prepaid Meter

Now that you know what might be the cause of a migrated debt, how do you know if you have a debt on your meter account?

With Buypower.ng’s ‘Outstanding’ feature, you can now find out if there’s a debt on your meter before making a purchase. You can get more information on how to use this feature here.

If you have further questions to ask or clarifications to make, simply contact your nearest electricity distribution office as they have all meter profiles and account details domiciled with them.

3 Ways to Avoid a Debt Migration on Your Meter

1. Pay your electricity bills: The easiest way to avoid this is to keep paying your electricity bills on Buypower.ng. With regular bill payments, you won’t have a cause to worry about debt on your account.

2. Do your research before moving into a new apartment: Many houses have a debt profile you aren’t aware of. If you move into these types of houses, it automatically becomes yours to fix. We’ve made a list of things to check out when moving into a new apartment. You can find them here.

3. Avoid bypassing or illegal connections: Finding alternative ways to sort out your electricity bills is great but not when they are illegal or a form of bypassing electricity payment. At BuyPower, we’ve created safer ways to sort out your utility payments even without cash at hand. Try using the ‘Pay with Bento’ or ‘Buy Now, Pay in 14 Days’ payment options to offset your electricity bills and payback at a convenient time.

If you still have a debt on your meter even after adhering to all the guidelines above, please contact your nearest electricity distribution company. Also, share this post with your friends who’ll find it useful.

P.S: To share your thoughts with us, sign up for a free Disqus account. We'd love to hear from you in the comments section.

Did you find this post helpful? Sign up here and we'll let you know whenever we publish a new one.