Start Texas Electricity Service: Deposit and Same-Day Options

Moving into a Texas apartment, flipping the switch at a new small-business location, or restarting power after a lapse in service all funnel through the same basic question: how fast can the lights come on, and how much cash do you need upfront? In most of the ERCOT grid — the competitive zone covering the majority of Texas homes and businesses — you do not call the pole-and-wire utility to buy electricity. You choose a retail electric provider (REP), the company that sells you power, while your transmission and distribution utility (TDU) delivers it. Deposits, prepaid plans, and same-day connection all sit at the intersection of state rules, your credit profile, and whether your address has a remotely switchable smart meter.

This guide walks through how starting service works in deregulated Texas, what deposits actually are under Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) rules, how prepaid service sidesteps traditional deposits, and what "same day" really means on the ground.

Texas Has Two Companies on Your Bill — and Only One Takes Your Order

Texas restructured its electric market so that most customers in competitive areas pick their REP while TDUs such as Oncor, CenterPoint Energy, AEP Texas, and Texas-New Mexico Power maintain wires, meters, and outage response. The TDU's website typically sends new customers to shop for a REP rather than sell them a rate directly — ¹ links to Power to Choose for starting new electric service.

² is the PUCT's official comparison site where certified REPs list plans for free. The homepage describes it as "the official and unbiased electric choice website" where you can "compare offers and choose the electric plan that's right for you." To enroll, you select a REP and plan; that REP submits market transactions to connect or switch service at your address. ERCOT's ³ notes that REPs submit electronic transactions and invoice retail customers while TDSPs facilitate service order requests and connect customer premises to the grid.

Every service address in ERCOT also has a unique Electric Service Identifier (ESI ID) — a 17- or 22-digit number tied to the meter location. You will need this when enrolling. If it is not on a prior bill, your TDU can help you look it up.

For shoppers comparing plan types, the ⁴ explains that Step 9 lets you filter results to view prepaid plans, and Step 8 covers fixed versus variable rates. Before signing up, the guide stresses clicking each plan's Fact Sheet and reading the Electricity Facts Label (EFL) and Terms of Service — those documents disclose fees, contract length, and pricing mechanics.

When You'll Face a Deposit — and When Texas Law Says You Shouldn't

A security deposit is not automatic in Texas. Under ⁵, a REP may require a residential customer to establish "satisfactory credit" before service begins. If you cannot demonstrate that credit, the REP may require a deposit prior to energizing the meter.

Several groups are explicitly deemed to have satisfactory credit under the rule:

• Customers with a strong recent payment history with any Texas REP or utility (no delinquency, no more than one late bill in the last 12 months of service).
• Applicants with a satisfactory credit rating from a consumer reporting agency.
• Customers age 65 or older who are not delinquent on any electric account.
• Victims of family violence who submit the ⁶ directly to the REP.
• Medically indigent customers who meet income and physician-certification criteria spelled out in the rule.

The ⁶ confirms that family-violence victims are eligible to have the electric service deposit waived when the certification letter is completed by authorized personnel and faxed to the REP.

If you are switching REPs but already have twelve months of on-time payments elsewhere, bring that history — it can eliminate the deposit conversation entirely. Affiliated REPs and providers of last resort must also offer a letter-of-guarantee option instead of a cash deposit when a deposit would otherwise be required.

Existing customers face stricter deposit triggers: a REP generally cannot demand a new initial deposit unless you were late more than once in the prior 12 months or were disconnected for nonpayment during that period.

What Deposits Can Cost, How You Get Them Back, and Legal Waivers

When a deposit is allowed, state law caps how large it can be. ⁷ limits total initial and additional deposits to the greater of:

• one-fifth of the customer's estimated annual billing, or
• the sum of estimated billings for the next two months.

Estimated annual billing for new applicants can be based on average usage for the customer class; after 12 months with a REP, you may request recalculation based on your actual usage. Deposits must earn interest at a rate set annually by the commission, paid annually on request or when the deposit is returned.

You get your deposit back after twelve consecutive residential billings paid on time. When you leave a REP, it must refund the deposit plus accrued interest (minus any outstanding balance) or transfer it to your new REP by agreement.

When a REP requests a deposit, it must disclose its deposit policy, refund conditions, guarantee options, and circumstances for increases — typically in the Your Rights as a Customer document or Terms of Service.

Read the full contract before enrolling. A ⁸ review of Texas retail fee practices noted that disconnect, reconnect, and minimum-usage fees vary widely among REPs and are disclosed in contracts customers sign before service — but "there's no standardization for fees in either their presentation to customers or actual charges."

Prepaid Plans: The Main No-Deposit Path

Prepaid electric service is the most common workaround when you cannot or will not pay a traditional deposit. The ⁹ defines prepaid service as purchasing electricity before you use it, with the REP allowing upfront payments to manage usage.

Key distinctions from postpaid service:

• No deposit. Prepaid does not require a security deposit. Instead, the REP requires a "connection balance" of up to $75 before service starts. That payment funds your account rather than sitting as collateral. You may also owe TDU pass-through fees at enrollment, so the total due before energizing can exceed $75 — the Prepaid Disclosure Statement (PDS) breaks this out.
• No monthly bill. You receive electronic balance updates instead of a mailed invoice. On request, the REP must provide a Summary of Usage and Payment covering up to twelve months.
• Pay-as-you-go risk. Service depends on keeping a positive balance. REPs may set a disconnection balance of up to $10; fall below it and power can shut off with as little as one day's notice if usage drains the account faster than expected.
• Variable pricing. Most prepaid products are variable-rate plans whose per-kWh price can change daily, similar to gasoline pricing. The FAQ directs shoppers to compare prepaid options on Power to Choose.
• Reconnection speed. If prepaid service disconnects, you must clear any negative balance, re-establish a connection balance, and may need to confirm third-party payments. Service should restart within two hours of fixing the disconnect reason, per the FAQ.

The ¹⁰ adds that REPs offering prepaid require payment in advance, with bills based on estimated usage reconciled against actual consumption.

Prepaid is not for everyone. Critical-care and chronic-condition customers cannot enroll in prepaid while holding that designation; if your status changes mid-enrollment, the REP must help you transition without a fee. Some bill-assistance programs may not serve prepaid accounts — the PUCT advises confirming eligibility with the assistance agency before signing up.

Payment assistance for low-income SNAP or Medicaid households is optional for REPs and requires the program participant's name to match the bill; self-enrollment is not allowed for the electric matching program, per the ⁶.

Same-Day Power: Smart Meters and Move-In Timelines

Whether you can flip power on the same day you sign up depends less on your REP's marketing copy and more on meter type and transaction type.

Smart meters enable remote connect

Texas has deployed Advanced Metering System (AMS) meters across much of the ERCOT footprint. The ¹¹ notes that smart meters wirelessly send readings to the utility and that "the wireless communication of the meter allows for shorter times to start and stop service." Usage is recorded in 15-minute intervals, which also supports time-of-use products.

ERCOT's ³ classifies AMS Remote (AMSR) meters — typically residential service at 200 amps or below — as supporting remote connect and disconnect. AMS Manual (AMSM) and non-AMS meters require a truck roll.

Move-in versus switch

Starting service at an address with no active REP account is a move-in (market transaction 814_16). Switching REPs while someone else already holds service at the premise is a switch (814_01). ERCOT's processing table in Retail 101 shows:

The ¹² notes that a standard switch allows "same day request and completion" with no switch fees in many cases, while move-ins may encounter move-in fees and potential delays. Switches also carry a three federal-business-day rescission right; move-ins do not.

Practical implications:

• Same-day move-in is possible at addresses with AMSR meters when the premise is de-energized or ready for a new customer, your REP submits the move-in transaction in time for TDU processing, and you have satisfied any deposit or prepaid funding requirement.
• If power is still on under another customer's name, you need a switch or a move-out/move-in sequence — not a same-day cold start.
• Manual or legacy meters add one to two business days even when everything else is in order.
• New construction without an established meter may require a TDU construction process before any retail enrollment.

Individual REPs set internal order cutoff times for same-day processing; those cutoffs are not standardized in PUCT rules. If you are hours from a deadline, calling the REP directly is often faster than online enrollment.

How to Start Service Today: A Practical Checklist

1. Confirm your address is in a competitive area. Enter your ZIP on ². If no plans appear, your area may be served by a municipal utility, electric cooperative, or outside ERCOT — and this shopping process does not apply.

2. Gather your ESI ID, meter number, and move-in date. Landlords and prior tenants' bills are good sources.

3. Decide deposit strategy. If your credit history is thin, compare prepaid plans (filter on Power to Choose) against postpaid plans and ask whether a letter of guarantee from a current provider is available.

4. Read the EFL, Terms of Service, and PDS if prepaid. Factor TDU delivery charges, minimum-use fees, and early-termination penalties into the true cost — not just the advertised ¢/kWh.

5. Enroll early on a business day. Same-day AMSR move-ins depend on same-day market processing windows. Weekend and holiday enrollments typically roll to the next business day.

6. Fund the account. Postpaid may require a deposit charge to your card; prepaid requires the connection balance plus any TDU fees before energization.

7. Verify activation. Smart-meter customers can confirm usage through Smart Meter Texas once enrollment completes, per ERCOT's ¹³; contact your REP if power is not on within the expected window.

Business customers follow the same REP-selection model in competitive areas but face nondiscriminatory credit criteria set by each REP under §25.478, with no deposit required for governmental entities.

If You're Outside Deregulated Texas

Not every U.S. address shops for generation supply. Regulated markets keep generation, transmission, and distribution bundled under one utility — you contact that utility to start service, and deposit policies follow state commission rules or utility tariffs rather than REP contracts.

Maryland deregulated retail supply in 1999, allowing consumers to choose their electricity provider while utilities continue delivering power, according to ¹⁴. Ohio likewise allows customers to choose generation suppliers under restructuring legislation referenced in ¹⁵. In both states, deposit and credit requirements are set by individual suppliers or default utility tariffs — ask before you switch.

Areas outside ERCOT — including cooperatives and municipally owned utilities — do not use the Texas REP/TDU split described here. Those customers start service through their local utility.

Wherever you enroll, the through-line is the same: understand who sells power versus who delivers it, know whether your meter supports remote connection, budget for deposits or prepaid funding, and read the contract disclosures before you pay. In deregulated Texas, same-day service is a realistic outcome at smart-metered addresses — but only when you choose the right plan type, clear any credit hurdle, and submit enrollment while same-day market windows remain open.