If your recipient needs help paying their water bill, the right product is an Energy Card. The Energy Card is a digital prepaid Mastercard that can be used to pay any UK water supplier online or by phone.

There is no separate water voucher product. The Energy Card is a single product that covers energy bills, water bills, online meter top-ups and off-grid fuel. For full pre-send detail (KYB, fees, limits, what can go wrong), see: Energy Card - what you need to know before sending. This article focuses on the water-specific points.

Before you start: KYB

The Energy Card is a regulated prepaid debit card product. You'll need to pass a Know-Your-Business (KYB) check for prepaid debit cards before you can send Energy Cards for any purpose, including water.

If you haven't yet passed prepaid debit card KYB, email us at disbursements@huggg.me to start the process. It typically takes 3-5 working days to process a KYB form.

Fees

There are extra fees associated with this product. For an up-to-date breakdown of issuance fees, cancellation fees and any other charges, email us at disbursements@huggg.me.

When water is the right use case

Send an Energy Card for water when your recipient:

Pays their water bill by direct debit, standing order or ad hoc payment
Is in arrears with their water supplier and needs to make a one-off payment
Has access to a phone or computer to make payments online or by phone

Energy Cards cannot be used in person at a shop or till. If your recipient cannot use online or phone, the Energy Card will not work for them. Note that Huggg does not offer a meter top-up product for water - PayPoint and Post Office vouchers are for energy meter top-ups only.

Pre-send checklist

Before you send an Energy Card for water, confirm:

Your organisation has passed prepaid debit card KYB
Your recipient is able to use online or phone payment
Your recipient hasn't already received the maximum allowed: 3 active cards at a time and £500 in total in the past 12 months. Above the £500 threshold, an Enhanced ID Check on the recipient is required (with an additional processing fee). Note: this limit is shared across all uses of the Energy Card - so a recipient who has previously received an Energy Card for energy will already have used part of their allowance.
Your recipient understands the card expires at the end of the month shown

How your recipient pays their water supplier

Once they have generated their card, your recipient can:

Go to their water supplier's website and use the card details to make a payment online
Call their water supplier and ask to make a card payment, reading out the card number, expiry date and CVV

Most UK water suppliers accept Mastercard payments online or by phone. If your recipient pays by direct debit, they can still make a one-off card payment to their account - they just need to ask their supplier how to do this.

Common issues and what to do

Issue	What to do
Recipient's water supplier doesn't accept Mastercard online or by phone	Most UK water suppliers do. If yours doesn't, contact us at support@huggg.me and we'll help.
Recipient already has 3 active cards	A new card cannot be issued until one of the active cards expires or is fully spent.
Recipient has had over £500 in Energy Cards in the past 12 months	An Enhanced ID Check on the recipient is required before a further card can be issued. This incurs an additional processing fee. Email disbursements@huggg.me to discuss.
Recipient is in serious arrears and the bill is much higher than the card	Cards can be used to make a partial payment - the recipient should ask their supplier to take the card amount and confirm how the remaining balance will be settled.

How your recipient uses the card

Recipients open their link, generate the card, and use the card details to pay their water supplier online or by phone. For full recipient instructions, see the recipient-side articles: How do I get my prepaid card? and How do I use my prepaid card to pay my bill?