Switch LPG Supplier: Prices, Cylinder Returns and a Safe Handover

To switch LPG supplier successfully, compare more than the price of the next bottle. Your current cylinders may belong to the supplier, the new company may need to inspect access, and the old account may continue attracting charges until equipment is returned. A clear handover plan helps prevent a cheaper quote becoming a cold-shower problem.

Quick answer

To switch LPG supplier, first confirm service availability, the full ongoing price and who owns the cylinders at your property. Agree on delivery, safe changeover and return of the old equipment before closing the previous account. Check notice periods, collection charges, rental and unused-gas treatment in writing so the handover does not interrupt essential supply.

Switch LPG supplier: confirm what is actually being supplied

First establish whether you have delivered cylinder exchange, an onsite tanker refill arrangement, a bulk tank or a metered communal service. This guide focuses on household delivered LPG. A building’s central supply may be governed by arrangements you cannot change individually.

Find the latest invoice and agreement. Record the supplier name, account number, number and size of cylinders, equipment charges and ordinary fuel price. If you rent, ask the property manager who is responsible for the supply account and whether the landlord owns any relevant equipment.

The distinction from mains gas is important. You are organising physical fuel delivery and potentially a change of supplier-owned assets, not just changing the company billing a network connection. For background, see mains gas versus LPG for homes.

Check service availability before cancelling

Give the prospective supplier the complete address and explain the current installation. Ask whether it offers exchange, tanker refill or both at that location. A national service footprint does not guarantee the same delivery method at every property.

Describe gates, steps, steep paths, pets, restricted parking and any recent changes around the cylinder area. Let the supplier decide what access is safe. Do not promise to move cylinders or modify the installation yourself to make a quote work.

Get an expected first-delivery date and ask whether an inspection or licensed gasfitter is needed. Keep the current arrangement active until the suppliers have agreed on a sequence that maintains the service you need. Do not confuse an accepted online enquiry with a confirmed delivery booking.

Compare first-year and ongoing costs separately

An introductory bottle discount may matter in the first year but tell you little about later invoices. Ask for the standard price that applies after any promotion, how prices can change and whether the quote includes GST and ordinary delivery.

Use the same annual fuel quantity for both quotes. Comparing four bottles from one supplier with six from another does not isolate the price difference. Our 45kg bottle duration worksheet helps estimate quantity without relying on someone else’s household average.

An annual-cost example

Suppose Supplier A quotes an invented $155 per bottle plus $100 annual equipment charges. Supplier B quotes $145 per bottle plus $130 equipment charges. At six bottles a year, A totals $1,030 and B totals $1,000 before delivery and transition costs.

The recurring difference is only $30 in this example. If leaving A and starting B costs $80 in total, the first-year result would favour staying on these assumptions, even though B has a lower bottle price. At a different annual quantity the result can change.

These are hypothetical figures, not current supplier offers. Add any genuine introductory credit separately and show the second-year estimate without it. A transparent worksheet makes it easier to decide whether a switch is worthwhile for cost, service or both.

Who owns the cylinders?

Do not infer ownership from the fact that the cylinders have been at your home for years. They may be loaned or rented supplier equipment. Elgas’s published conditions describe equipment lent to customers and restrict refilling and relocation without authorisation.

Ask the old supplier to identify the equipment it expects back. Ask the new supplier whether it provides replacements and whether it is authorised to collect or return the old items. Record the number and identifying details through a safe visual check where practical.

Avoid arranging an independent refill of another company’s equipment simply because a lower fuel price is available. The ownership and safety rules still apply. A genuine supplier change should explain how the equipment will be handled, not leave you to solve it on delivery day.

Get collection and return responsibilities in writing

Supagas’s home LPG page describes a switching service that includes coordination and returning existing cylinders to the previous supplier. Treat that as a service to confirm for your circumstances, not proof that every supplier provides the same arrangement everywhere.

Ask who books the collection, who receives the returned equipment and what evidence you will get. If the new supplier takes the old cylinders away, confirm how the old account will be updated. A cylinder leaving your property and being checked back into the old supplier’s system are separate events.

Retain the delivery docket and return reference. If annual rental continues afterwards, you will have a specific handover date to investigate. Do not discard account documents as soon as the new bottles arrive.

Unused gas and prepaid charges

Ask about remaining fuel before you agree to collection. There may be a difference between the treatment of unused gas, a security deposit, prepaid equipment charges and promotional credits. Do not assume all are refundable on an ordinary voluntary switch.

Elgas’s conditions, for example, describe particular refund circumstances linked to termination for material breach. That is not a general promise of a pro-rata refund whenever a customer changes supplier. Your own agreement and any applicable consumer rights need to be considered on their facts.

If the answer is unclear, request a written final-cost estimate. You can then choose a sensible handover date without deliberately letting essential hot-water or heating supply run out. A small amount of remaining gas is only one part of the transition cost.

Plan the handover day

Agree on the sequence with the suppliers: when the new equipment arrives, who performs the changeover, and when the old equipment is removed. Ask whether someone must be home and whether access instructions are required. Keep a contact number for a missed or delayed visit.

The supplier or appropriately licensed professional should deal with equipment and installation work. Do not disconnect fixed gas fittings or transport household cylinders yourself as a cost-saving shortcut. Elgas’s exchange description illustrates a managed delivery and connection service rather than a customer DIY process.

If gas is suspected to be leaking at any stage, move to safety and contact the appropriate emergency service from a safe location. Do not operate switches or troubleshoot beside the suspected leak. The commercial handover can be resolved after the safety issue.

Close the account after the facts are confirmed

Check the old supplier’s notice requirement and give a clear instruction with the agreed end date. Ask when equipment charges stop, when the final invoice will arrive and how any eligible refund will be paid. Update the forwarding address if you are also moving.

Review the final bill against your contract and return evidence. Pay amounts properly due and raise any disputed item promptly through the supplier’s complaints process. Confirm the status of direct debit rather than assuming a supplier change automatically cancels every payment authority.

On the new account, check the first invoice against the written quote. Confirm the quantity delivered, equipment charges, credits and next ordering responsibility. This catches misunderstandings before another billing cycle passes.

Decide on service as well as price

Ask about local delivery days, ordering reminders and what happens during peak winter demand. A small price difference may not outweigh a delivery arrangement that poorly fits your location or occupancy. Equally, do not pay more solely for a reassuring slogan without checking what service is actually included.

If you are also deciding how deliveries should work, read LPG refill versus bottle exchange. Choose the supply arrangement first, then compare suppliers on equivalent terms.

Sources and review

The CompareUs Editorial Team checked the linked Elgas conditions and Supagas service information on 28 September 2026. Supplier examples are not endorsements or guarantees of availability. Confirm the current quote, contract and safe handover arrangements before authorising a switch.