Smooth your bill payments
Whether you want super smooth bills day-in, day-out, or you're happy for your payment amounts to change a little and just want to knock the top off those high winter bills, Bill Smoother's got you covered.
How it works
When you set up your Bill Smoother, you'll choose how much you want to contribute at each bill and the power bill amount that’ll trigger Bill Smoother to use your credit to help pay your bill.
How you use Bill Smoother is up to you and your budgeting style: whether you want predictable payments all year round, or you're OK with some flexibility at each bill but want to set aside credit for those big bills. It's up to you!
1. Set up Bill Smoother
Summertime set-up is ideal, so that you’ll have time to build up credit before those high winter bills come knocking. Decide how much you want to contribute at each power bill, and the amount at which you want us to use money from your Bill Smoother credit to help pay your bill (for super smooth bill payments, we recommend making these amounts the same).
You can edit your settings whenever you want – to make sure changes show on your upcoming bill, edit your Bill Smoother settings before Sunday.
2. See your Flick bill
We’ll send you your normal bill on a Tuesday, and take a payment on Thursday. But what we take, and from where, depends on how you've set up your Bill Smoother. The choice is all yours.
3. Watch Bill Smoother do its thing
When you get your bill, here’s what can happen:
If your bill costs less than the amount you’ve chosen to round up to at each bill, the difference goes into your Bill Smoother credit.
If your power bill’s more than this amount, but less than what you’ve chosen for when you want us to use money from your Bill Smoother credit, we’ll take the difference from your chosen payment method.
If your power bill’s higher than the amount you’ve chosen for when you want us to use money from your Bill Smoother credit, then we’ll use the balance of that to pay the difference.
Watch Bill Smoother do its thing
Setting up your Bill Smoother? Tino pai! Here's how Bill Smoother does its thing:
Kezia’s average weekly bill in summer is $20. Her average weekly bill in winter is $40.
Kezia uses Bill Smoother and sets the amount she will pay each week (her 'minimum payment') at $30. Predictable - yay!
She wants to use Bill Smoother to cover any bills higher than $30, so she sets her 'when to use Bill Smoother' amount at $30, too.
Through the summer her stash builds up by around $10 a week because her bills are $20 and she's always paying $30.
This means that come winter, Kezia continues to pay $30 each week, and her bills over $30 are covered by the credit she's built up in her Bill Smoother account. Easy as!
More reasons to choose Flick
Award-winning customer service for energy providers
Choose when you pay with our flexible billing
We make sure you’re on the best Flick power plan for you
FAQs
How do I open a Bill Smoother account?
Go to the Bill Smoother tab in your dashboard, or the account tab in your Flick mobile app and click 'Set up Bill Smoother'. After you set a minimum payment and a "When to use Bill Smoother" amount, your Bill Smoother account will be activated for the next week starting on a Monday.
How do I change my contribution amount?
You can change your contribution amounts in your dashboard or Flick app any time, and the change will take place after the nearest Sunday.
If you want to pause your Bill Smoother for the week that we're in or you want to take your entire bill using your Bill Smoother stash, you'll need to give us a call.
Can I add a lump sum to Bill Smoother?
The way to do this is to add how much you want to put in to your minimum payment, and then change it back.
So if your minimum payment is $30 and you want to add $100, then make your minimum payment $130 for one week (before Sunday) and then change it back after the payment is taken on Thursday (but before Sunday).
What do I do if I want to use my Bill Smoother balance up?
If you want to run your balance down quickly, then set your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount to $0 and we'll take the full amount of your next bill out of your Volt.
Remember though, using our Bill Smoother feature gives you a stash to take the edge off the occasional high bill, so if you deliberately run it down, you won't have that option anymore.
Will I ever pay more than my minimum payment?
Possibly, it depends how you set your Bill Smoother up. Remember, you have all the control!
Here are the things that could happen...
If your bill is lower than your minimum payment
Then the difference between your bill and your payment goes into your Bill Smoother.
If your bill is higher than your minimum payment, but less than your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount
Then we deduct the total bill from your bank account/credit card.
If your bill is higher than your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount
Then the amount up to your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount will be deducted from your bank account/credit card, and the amount above your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount will come out of your Bill Smoother account.
If your bill is higher than your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount but there isn’t enough in your Bill Smoother account to cover it
Then the amount up to your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount will be deducted from your bank account/credit card, your Bill Smoother account will be emptied, and any outstanding balance will be deducted from your bank account/credit card.
Can I pause my minimum payment?
When your Bill Smoother account is paused, you’ll go back to paying the same amount as your bill on Thursday.
If your bill is more than your "When to use Bill Smoother" amount, the amount above it will come from your Bill Smoother account until your credit is used up.
When you reactivate your Bill Smoother account, your minimum payment will start again on the next Thursday cycle.
Remember you can always reduce the amount of your minimum payment if you find you're paying too much or need to reduce your outgoings.
Is there a limit to how much I can have in my Bill Smoother?
You can have up to $500 in your Bill Smoother account. If you reach this threshold, we'll automatically stop your contributions.
Can I get my credit back?
If you need your credit with Flick refunded to you, you can contact us on 0800 435 425 or hello@flickelectric.co.nz to request a credit refund.
We will look at your debt balance, the timing of upcoming bills, and how much is in your Bill Smoother stash, to make a plan with you.
If you are leaving Flick, any possible refund will be processed after your final bill is calculated.
Check out the Terms & Conditions of Bill Smoother for more details.