Bills are set to drop – and taking a meter reading at the right time could save you hundreds of pounds (Picture: Getty Images)

With the energy price cap set to drop from £3,280 to £2,074 from July 1, the annual bill of a typical household should fall by around £426 a year – but to make the most of it, you’ll need to read your meter.

The drop will come as welcome news for many, as energy prices have reached astronomical levels over the past year, due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Your energy supplier needs regular readings from your gas or electricity meter to work out the cost of your bills.

So if you don’t send them readings (unless you’re on a smart meter), they’ll estimate your usage, meaning you could be paying for more, or less, energy than what you use.

Recently, MoneySavingExpert Martin Lewis has urged people to take meter readings before July 1, to make the most of the price drop.

But how do you take a meter reading? Here’s what you need to know including why you should do it in time for July.

How do I take an electricity meter reading?

It is easy to take your own meter readings (Picture: Getty Images)

If you have a single-rate digital meter, you need to first look at your digital or electronic display.

It will have five numbers on it followed by red numbers. You need to take note of the first five numbers shown from left to right for your meter reading.

If you have a two-rate digital meter, that means you will have two lines of numbers.

The top row shows how many units of cheaper electricity you’ve used, and the bottom row shows how many units of standard-price electricity you’ve used.

To take a reading, you need to take note of the numbers from left to right on both rows, ignoring any in red.

If you have a dial meter it may look more daunting to take a reading.

When taking a reading, look at the first 5 dials from left to right while ignoring any red dials or dials marked 1/10.

If the dial’s pointer is between two numbers, write down the lower number, and if the pointer is directly over a number, write down that number and underline it.

Any numbers that you’ve underlined, check the next dial to the right.

If you’ve underlined a number, check the next dial to the right. If the pointer on that dial is between 9 and 0, you need to reduce the number you’ve underlined by 1.

How do I take a gas meter reading?

Old-style gas meters often look like this (Picture: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Reading a gas meter is similar to reading an electric meter.

If you have a digital metric meter, write down the first 5 numbers shown from left to right, ignoring any after the decimal point.

If you have a digital imperial meter, you need to write down the first 4 numbers from left to right, ignoring the rest shown in red.

To read a gas dial meter, you need to read the first four dials from left to right, ignoring any large or red dials.

Like an electric dial meter, if the pointer is between two numbers, write down the lower number and if the pointer is directly over a number, write down that number.

Why should I take a meter reading before July 1?

You need to submit your meter readings before October 1 to save money (Picture: Getty Images)

MoneySavingExpert Martin Lewis has told people to take meter readings soon, in order to stop your supplier estimating how much energy you used before the price cap drop.

He said: ‘Virtually all households on standard tariffs will see prices change when the Price Cap falls on 1 July. So unless you’re on a smart meter which does it for you, it’s worth doing a meter reading around that date to draw a line in the sand to show how much energy you actually used on the current higher rate, and how much you used on the new cheaper rates.’

He added: ‘It stops your supplier from estimating usage and potentially assuming that you’ve used more at the higher rate than you actually have.’

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