Utilita

Secure Gas and Electricity Website Payments

Utilita is an independent UK company, licensed by Ofgem and Ofcom to supply gas and electricity, servicing some 15,000 customers and growing. Utilita is committed to helping households become energy efficient and reduce carbon emissions through the provision of smart meters, energy-efficient products and advice.

Challenge

Utilita wanted to offer their customers more choice in how they pay for gas and electricity. In particular, they wanted a way for pre-pay meter customers to make payments for electricity and gas, securely over the web. and using their phone.

Solution

Utilita customers that have pre-pay meters can purchase electricity or gas using the EckohPAY web service. Customers are pre-identified through a unique meter ID detailed on their top-up card. The card authorisation and settlement is handled in real-time and the customer is issued with a code, which is sent via SMS directly to the meter to activate the purchased electricity or gas

Customers can also register their mobile number online and when they want to 'top-up', they send an SMS message with their electric or gas card number and the amount they wish to pay to a dedicated shortcode. Once the details are validated and authorised, the customer is issued a code to activate the purchased electricity or gas.

EckohPAY is a Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) compliant solution.

Value

"Following the successful launch of Eckoh's web payment solution last year, we were keen to work with them to expand the scope of services offered to our customers. With this new mobile payment facility, our customers have another convenient and secure method for purchasing their electricity or gas, and we expect to add further services during the course of our contract." Bill Bullen, Managing Director and Founder of Utilita.