If you’ve ever looked at your electricity bill and spotted labels like LV, HV, or numbers from 1 to 4, they’re giving you key information about how your building is supplied, how your standing charges are calculated, and ultimately, how much you pay.
Understanding this is becoming more important than ever as businesses look to future‑proof their energy strategy, especially with the impacts of the Targeted Charging Review (TCR) still reshaping costs across the UK.
LV vs HV: What the Voltage Says About Your Supply
Your meter’s LV or HV label tells you the voltage level of the network that supplies your building.
LV = Low Voltage
Your supply comes directly from the local low‑voltage distribution network.
This is the most common for:
-Small/medium businesses
-Retail units
-Offices
-Light industrial premises
HV = High Voltage
Your business is supplied from the higher‑voltage network, often because:
-You operate heavy machinery
-You have high load requirements
-You’re a manufacturing or industrial site
-You have your own on-site transformer
High‑voltage customers typically see larger capacity requirements, different pricing structures and higher daily standing charges.
What the Numbers (1-4) Actually Mean: TCR Banding
Alongside LV or HV, you’ll see a band number from 1 to 4. The number represents how Ofgem structures network charges under the Targeted Charging Review (TCR).
Your band is determined by your maximum agreed supply capacity (KvA), Line Loss Factor (LLF), and your MPAN core (specifically, the information encoded in the top line)
These factors place your business into a charging band, which determines your daily standing charges.
Every site in the UK is placed into a TCR band, and these bands stay the same across all suppliers. Your supplier cannot change them, and neither can you without altering your capacity.
LV1 = lowest LV standing charges
LV4 = highest LV standing charges (often high load or high-capacity sites)
HV1–HV4 = high‑voltage sites with much larger fixed charges
This is why businesses that use less energy annually may still pay far higher standing charges, because TCR banding is based on capacity and network-level impact, rather than consumption.
How Procure Smart can support you
At Procure Smart, we decode your bills and identify your TCR band, assess whether your capacity matches your operational needs, and flag opportunities to reduce non‑commodity charges.
Get in touch on 0330 822 1681 today for a free, no-obligation review of your business costs, and see how much you could save.
