Paying our Meralco (Manila Electric Company) bill is easier if our Meralco account is already enrolled in our BPI (Bank of the Philippine Islands) bank account as one of our billers. The good news is, paying through BPI online banking or mobile banking app is free! There is NO charge when paying this electric bill. Let me repeat, this is FREE of charge.
I have been using this online facility for more than 7 years already and I can totally say that using online banking gave its account holders a convenient and safe way to pay utility bills like Meralco aside from PLDT. Because I never encountered a problem using this online banking to pay my bills for FREE, it gives me the comfort of avoiding the hassles of getting in line at Meralco branches or Bayad Centers with the assurance that my bills are being paid on time.
So here are the steps on how to add Meralco as your biller in BPI online banking.
Login to your account using your own username and password
https://online.bpi.com.ph/portalserver/onlinebanking/sign-in
Select “Other Services” to Add Recipients
From the main menu, select “Other Services”. Under “Recipients”, click “Manage Recipients”.
Click the button with “+” sign and Add New Recipient.
Fill out the form with the required information. Under Recipient, choose “Billers”. Under Biller, “Select Manila Electric Company | Meralc”.
Enter or type the Meralco Account Number under Reference Number.
Your Meralco Customer Account Number (CAN) can be found in your Meralco bill. This is the same number that you should put into the Reference Number field. Enter just the digits without the dash”-” sign.
Review the Details if Correct
Check if the figure or numbers you entered match exactly that is found in your paper bills. Review it twice or thrice…the better then click the “Confirm” button.
Confirm the Enrollment With OTP
BPI will confirm if the enrollment is a legitimate transaction by sending the OTP (One-Time PIN) to your registered mobile number. If the number is correct, click the “yes, send me the code” button.
Once you received the OTP in your own mobile number, enter the 6-digit numbers and click the “Submit” button. Below is just an example OTP! Do not copy. Your own OTP will arrive in no more than 5 minutes, so just wait. If it took longer than 3-5 minutes, just click the link that says “Resend code via SMS”.
Enrollment Was Successful
If you confirmed the OTP right, the enrollment is successful just like below.
Now, you can pay your own Meralco bill online by yourself. Follow this another blog post on how to pay the Meralco bill online using BPI. The additional Meralco reference number can be tricky so you have to be careful and I will guide you and give you a walkthrough in the next post.
UPDATE:
Beginning October 1, 2020, there will be a new process for enrollment and payment for Meralco bills on BPI Online.
Clients just need to enroll Meralco as a biller into their BPI account, and encode the 10-digit Customer Account Number (CAN) located on the upper left portion of the Meralco bill. No additional reference numbers are required. Clients must also pay at least the exact amount stated on their bill on or before the due date.
Clients who have previously enrolled Meralco as a biller under the same CAN do not need to re-enroll.
