What is a Business Energy Letter of Authority (LOA)?

TL;DR: Key Takeaways

What is an LOA? A Letter of Authority is a legal document that authorises a third party to access your energy data from industry databases like ElectraLink ↗ (opens in new tab) and Xoserve ↗ (opens in new tab).

Level 1 LOA (Safe): Only allows data access and quote gathering. You retain full control - nothing happens without your explicit signature on a separate contract.

Level 2 LOA (Dangerous): Grants “Power of Attorney” over your energy. The broker can sign binding contracts on your behalf without your consent, including auto-renewals years later.

The Hidden Uplift Scandal: Court cases have revealed brokers using Level 2 LOAs to add 5p+/kWh hidden uplifts to contracts - increasing costs by 31% while taking 80% of commission upfront.

Meet George’s Approach: We only use Level 1 LOAs. We gather your data to find the best price, but we cannot move your supply until you click “Sign Contract” yourself.

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What Is a Business Energy Letter of Authority?

A Letter of Authority (LOA) is a legal document that authorises a third party - like an energy broker or the Meet George platform - to speak to energy suppliers and industry data operators on your behalf.

Without an LOA, strict data protection laws prevent suppliers and data aggregators from sharing your energy data. You would have to manually find your MPAN/MPRN numbers, annual consumption (EAC/AQ), and contract end dates yourself.

The LOA allows a third party to pull this data instantly from the central industry database to give you an accurate quote.

However, not all LOAs are the same.

The Two Types of LOA: Level 1 vs Level 2

In the industry, LOAs are split into two categories (sometimes called “Layers”). The difference between them is the difference between delegating admin and delegating your bank account.

✅ Level 1 LOA (The “Information Only” LOA)

This is the safe, standard authority used by reputable platforms including Meet George.

What it does:

• Allows the third party to read your meter
• Request historical consumption data
• Get quotes from suppliers to present to you

What it does NOT do:

• Sign contracts on your behalf
• Agree to terms or pricing
• Move your supply without your explicit signature

The Result: You get the data and the quotes, but you make the final decision.

❌ Level 2 LOA (The “Full Authority” LOA)

This is the trap used by many traditional cold-calling brokers.

What it does:

• Grants the broker “Power of Attorney” regarding your energy
• Allows the broker to sign contracts on your behalf

The “Auto-Renewal” Trap: If you sign a Level 2 LOA today, the broker can use it in 2 years to auto-renew you onto a new deal. They don’t need to call you. They don’t need to show you the rates. They just sign it. Learn more about how to protect yourself from these digital renewal traps.

The “Hidden Uplift” Scandal

In the recent Court of Appeal case Expert Tooling v Engie, it was revealed that brokers using Level 2 LOAs had applied “hidden uplifts” to client contracts without informed consent.

In one instance, the broker added over 5p/kWh to the unit rate - increasing the client’s costs by 31% - and took 80% of that commission upfront.

The court found that this created a conflict of interest.

Do not give a stranger this power over your business.

The “Friction Trap”: Why Traditional LOAs Take Days

The legal risk isn’t the only problem. The process of getting a traditional LOA signed is a massive drain on your time.

The Old Way (High Friction):

1. Broker asks you to send over your bill
2. You email the bill
3. Broker manually types your data into a template
4. Broker emails you a PDF or DocuSign link
5. You open it, read it, sign it, and email it back

Result: Days of back-and-forth emails. You lose momentum, get busy, and the switch stalls.

The Meet George Way (Zero Friction):

1. You upload a PDF of your bill
2. Our AI instantly extracts your business details
3. We auto-populate a Level 1 LOA on screen
4. You sign it digitally in seconds

Result: Done in moments. No email tennis. No manual data entry errors.

Why Meet George Only Uses Level 1

We fundamentally reject the Level 2 model. Meet George was built to empower business owners, not replace them.

We know that SMEs are experts at running their own businesses. You aren’t “uninformed” - you are just busy. You know your trade, but you aren’t an energy market expert. Traditional brokers prey on this gap in knowledge.

Our goal is to close that gap. We use AI to help you ask questions about contracts, understand terms, and make an informed decision yourself.

• Level 1 LOAs only: We gather your data to find you the best price, but we cannot move you until you click “Sign Contract”
• Transparent & Cheap: Because our process is automated, we charge a flat 1p/kWh fee - significantly less than the 4-5p uplifts hidden by traditional brokers

How to Check What You Are Signing

Before you sign any document from a broker, check the wording carefully.

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