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Prepay equipment failure - be careful
weegie.geek
Posts: 3,432 Forumite
in Energy
My mum's got a prepayment meter for her electricity. She was on holiday last week, and I was looking after the house, making sure the cat and dog were fed, and making a dent in the contents of her kitchen cupboards. 
On Thursday I tried to top up the electric meter, but the machine at the shop rejected it. Fair enough, I though, there's probably a problem with the machine. There was still credit on the meter and there was still the emergency credit after that, so there was plenty, or so I thought.
On Friday I try to buy electricity again, and the machine rejects it. Eek. The machine in the shop's working fine apparently, and someone had bought electricity only a few minutes before me. Clutching at straws I go down the road to the next shop to try and buy some there. Nothing.
Dead electronic key.
It's fine though, there's still the emergency credit. That should do until Saturday afternoon when she comes back. She can then phone customer services (they wouldn't speak to me obviously, due to the DPA) and sort it all out.
Just on the off chance there was something I was doing wrong (last place I lived that had prepayment was those little cardboard tokens with the mag strip on them) I call up Scottish Power customer services, just as a general enquiry type thing.
Customer services was shut, and I got automatically redirected to SPEN, the people responsible for the infrastructure. They tell me (judging by the error message on the screen) that the key's kaput, or needs reprogrammed at least. They themselves can't generate the codes. Only the Scottish Power Customer services team can generate the codes, and they weren't due back until the Monday. Systems upgrade apparently. It said as much just before it redirected me to SPEN, so I know they weren't fobbing me off. Apparently it's a flaw in those type of boxes, not specific to Scottish Power in particular, but still. If the boxes have such a massive flaw (in that if your key breaks, one of the times in which you really need to use the emergency credit, you can't use the emergency credit) why did they start using them? And why didn't they introduce procedures to work around this deficiency in the boxes?
So the credit runs out early on Saturday afternoon. Can't apply the emergency credit because the electronic key isn't working. Great logic that, eh?
No electricity. No lights. No hot water, no heating. Fridge freezer's contents are slowly turning to crap. No internet! (Ok, the last one's not an ABSOLUTE necessity, but when your only alternative is to sit in a dark house reading a book by torchlight...)
This morning we got onto them, and they generated an 8-digit code with which to reprogram the key, and all is well.
That's all it took. 8 little numbers. It was a bit of an anticlimax when they finally gave us the code.
Quite why there couldn't have been one person in the call centre with access to the old system, or who could send out a tech to make the emergency credit work or whatever is beyond me. Because of their lack of planning for a pretty mundane and easily fixed problem, a family went without power, light and heat for 48 hours.
They'd just come back from holiday with suitcases full of dirty clothes, ready to have a shower, relax and do a mountain of laundry, and instead came home to a cold, dark house and a fridge freezer full of something that may or may not have been pizza once upon a time.
I'm in the middle of doing research to find out what their SLA is in regards to this (Ofgem call it the Guaranteed Standards) and then I'll be firing off some very stern letters to Ofgem, Energy Watch and Scottish Power, to at least get compensation for the food that was ruined.
I've also insisted that she get rid of the prepayment meters, and I'll be helping her work out which tariff/provider to change to - she's one of these people who just stays with a company, thinking it's more hassle to change than it's worth in savings. I'm sure I'll prove her right, but it'll be me going to the hassle... :rolleyes:
Sorry for the waffling (and the bloody waffles turned to mush too!), but has anyone else been in a similar experience?
Specifically due to a payment card/key malfunction, but in general, has anyone been left powerless for a matter of days due to a fairly minor equipment malfunction that, in the end, took them seconds to resolve?
I'm sure that her key picked a great weekend to die, with there being a system upgrade, but it doesn't excuse that they had no contingency plans whatsoever.
What if there'd been someone who was bedridden, or a baby? It's totally unacceptable that this is even able to happen. There should be measures in place.
So this is partly a rant, partly a warning that things like this can happen and there's apparently nothing they're able (or willing?) to do about it, and partly me asking if anyone else has had a similar situation, and if so what did you/your provider do to rectify the situation?
I'm full of Grrrr tonight.
On Thursday I tried to top up the electric meter, but the machine at the shop rejected it. Fair enough, I though, there's probably a problem with the machine. There was still credit on the meter and there was still the emergency credit after that, so there was plenty, or so I thought.
On Friday I try to buy electricity again, and the machine rejects it. Eek. The machine in the shop's working fine apparently, and someone had bought electricity only a few minutes before me. Clutching at straws I go down the road to the next shop to try and buy some there. Nothing.
Dead electronic key.
It's fine though, there's still the emergency credit. That should do until Saturday afternoon when she comes back. She can then phone customer services (they wouldn't speak to me obviously, due to the DPA) and sort it all out.
Just on the off chance there was something I was doing wrong (last place I lived that had prepayment was those little cardboard tokens with the mag strip on them) I call up Scottish Power customer services, just as a general enquiry type thing.
Customer services was shut, and I got automatically redirected to SPEN, the people responsible for the infrastructure. They tell me (judging by the error message on the screen) that the key's kaput, or needs reprogrammed at least. They themselves can't generate the codes. Only the Scottish Power Customer services team can generate the codes, and they weren't due back until the Monday. Systems upgrade apparently. It said as much just before it redirected me to SPEN, so I know they weren't fobbing me off. Apparently it's a flaw in those type of boxes, not specific to Scottish Power in particular, but still. If the boxes have such a massive flaw (in that if your key breaks, one of the times in which you really need to use the emergency credit, you can't use the emergency credit) why did they start using them? And why didn't they introduce procedures to work around this deficiency in the boxes?
So the credit runs out early on Saturday afternoon. Can't apply the emergency credit because the electronic key isn't working. Great logic that, eh?
No electricity. No lights. No hot water, no heating. Fridge freezer's contents are slowly turning to crap. No internet! (Ok, the last one's not an ABSOLUTE necessity, but when your only alternative is to sit in a dark house reading a book by torchlight...)
This morning we got onto them, and they generated an 8-digit code with which to reprogram the key, and all is well.
That's all it took. 8 little numbers. It was a bit of an anticlimax when they finally gave us the code.
Quite why there couldn't have been one person in the call centre with access to the old system, or who could send out a tech to make the emergency credit work or whatever is beyond me. Because of their lack of planning for a pretty mundane and easily fixed problem, a family went without power, light and heat for 48 hours.
They'd just come back from holiday with suitcases full of dirty clothes, ready to have a shower, relax and do a mountain of laundry, and instead came home to a cold, dark house and a fridge freezer full of something that may or may not have been pizza once upon a time.
I'm in the middle of doing research to find out what their SLA is in regards to this (Ofgem call it the Guaranteed Standards) and then I'll be firing off some very stern letters to Ofgem, Energy Watch and Scottish Power, to at least get compensation for the food that was ruined.
I've also insisted that she get rid of the prepayment meters, and I'll be helping her work out which tariff/provider to change to - she's one of these people who just stays with a company, thinking it's more hassle to change than it's worth in savings. I'm sure I'll prove her right, but it'll be me going to the hassle... :rolleyes:
Sorry for the waffling (and the bloody waffles turned to mush too!), but has anyone else been in a similar experience?
Specifically due to a payment card/key malfunction, but in general, has anyone been left powerless for a matter of days due to a fairly minor equipment malfunction that, in the end, took them seconds to resolve?
I'm sure that her key picked a great weekend to die, with there being a system upgrade, but it doesn't excuse that they had no contingency plans whatsoever.
What if there'd been someone who was bedridden, or a baby? It's totally unacceptable that this is even able to happen. There should be measures in place.
So this is partly a rant, partly a warning that things like this can happen and there's apparently nothing they're able (or willing?) to do about it, and partly me asking if anyone else has had a similar situation, and if so what did you/your provider do to rectify the situation?
I'm full of Grrrr tonight.
They say it's genetic, they say he can't help it, they say you can catch it - but sometimes you're born with it
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Comments
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This is one of the huge disadvantages of prepayment meters.
The newer ones do have a non-disconnect period that means it won't turn off even if you run out of credit (but the times/days are set by the supplier).
The 8 digits will have been given by another company that issues the keys, and they (currently) don't work weekends. As you say, one person would be enough, or even something on the web where you enter your details and it gives you the numbers. (OK, you'd have needed an internet cafe or willing friend, but it's an option).
One thing this does bring home is don't put things off.
If your key/card doesn't work, at the shop or in your meter, find out what it says on the screen, make a note of the serial number on the meter and anything else appropriate (is it a new key, did it work before etc), and get in touch ASAP.
As to not speaking to you because of DPA, that sounds like a cop out. What damage could you do with a meter key? You might... buy credit! DPA is used like this too often (IMO).0 -
I had a probelm with a prepayment gas meter, i went through 4 new cards 3 visits where the techi reset the meter before one of them said the meters battery is nackered (the meter was 4 months old) and then i got a new meter no problems, Such a pain in the !!! and this was during winter period when heating was defo needed,
In the end i lost 3 working days due to appointments for the same fault, and not even a sorry
Lol what do you expect0 -
This is one of the huge disadvantages of prepayment meters.
The newer ones do have a non-disconnect period that means it won't turn off even if you run out of credit (but the times/days are set by the supplier).
Yeah, it's 6PM saturday to 9AM monday for her meter/company, but it ran out a couple of hours before the cutoff. Even if it'd gone straight into the emergency without intervention it'd have been fine.
[quoteThe 8 digits will have been given by another company that issues the keys, and they (currently) don't work weekends. As you say, one person would be enough, or even something on the web where you enter your details and it gives you the numbers. (OK, you'd have needed an internet cafe or willing friend, but it's an option).[/quote]
Yeah, something on the web would be great. All the needed was the MPAN to generate the new code. No reason that can't be an automated system, either on the web or via a touch-tone phone.One thing this does bring home is don't put things off.
If your key/card doesn't work, at the shop or in your meter, find out what it says on the screen, make a note of the serial number on the meter and anything else appropriate (is it a new key, did it work before etc), and get in touch ASAP.
Yeah, you're not wrong there. I put it down to the machine in the shop being wonky, with the emergency credit as backup in case it was the key. Needing a working key in the machine before the emergency credit can be applied is absolute stupidity.As to not speaking to you because of DPA, that sounds like a cop out. What damage could you do with a meter key? You might... buy credit! DPA is used like this too often (IMO).
Yeah but you just know if they bent the rules just once they'd bend the rules for some whistleblower who'd kick up a fuss about them having breached the DPA. :rolleyes:monoxideuk wrote: »I had a probelm with a prepayment gas meter, i went through 4 new cards 3 visits where the techi reset the meter before one of them said the meters battery is nackered (the meter was 4 months old) and then i got a new meter no problems, Such a pain in the !!! and this was during winter period when heating was defo needed,
In the end i lost 3 working days due to appointments for the same fault, and not even a sorry
Lol what do you expect
It's shocking. I have no doubt that if she'd had a running meter and it had broken they'd have been down the same day to fix it.
Another case of the poor* being treated as second class citizens. It's bad enough that it costs more to boil your kettle with a prepayment meter than with a running meter, without you basically being ignored and told to call back on Monday when you lose power.
*Ok, not just the poor, people who've got into debt, students, people renting, the list goes on... The fact remains that if you're on a prepayment meter you're clearly not classed as a priority, and it's fine for you to go without hot water/lights/heating for a few days here and there.
Awful treatment. :mad:They say it's genetic, they say he can't help it, they say you can catch it - but sometimes you're born with it0 -
It all depends on who you have a prepayment key with. If you are with Southern electric then as long as you are below 50p emergency then they will send an engineer out to you with a new key within 2-3 hours of you calling the emergency helpdesk but i am aware that some companies do not offer this service.0
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I have a key meter with Scottish Power. Their rules are if you have 1p left at 6pm Friday night IT WONT cut off until 9AM Monday.
Same at tea time if 6PM it wont cut off until 9AM next morning.
Hope this helps someone..BSC No: 186 There is always light at the end of the tunnel. Unless someone's nicked the candle !
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get_me_out wrote: »I have a key meter with Scottish Power. Their rules are if you have 1p left at 6pm Friday night IT WONT cut off until 9AM Monday.
Same at tea time if 6PM it wont cut off until 9AM next morning.
Hope this helps someone..
They told me it was 6PM on Saturday.
tinkerbelle wrote: »It all depends on who you have a prepayment key with. If you are with Southern electric then as long as you are below 50p emergency then they will send an engineer out to you with a new key within 2-3 hours of you calling the emergency helpdesk but i am aware that some companies do not offer this service.
Interesting that some will and some won't. I guess there's more to choosing a provider than who's just cheapest. There should be an industry-wide SLA for something as necessary as power.They say it's genetic, they say he can't help it, they say you can catch it - but sometimes you're born with it0
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