Advice with energy supplier and management company

l20tte

Hi

Could anyone offer me any advice I have recently changed electric supplier to Scottish Power and I have joined the Fixed Online Tarif where i read my own meter and input the reading on their website.

I have now encountered a problem as I live in an apartment the electric meter is on the ground floor and locked. I have contacted the management company who have informed me that I can not have access to my electric meter for legal reasons and that they are under no obligation to take a meter reading. However my electric supplier can go 30 miles to pick up a key to read the meter although I have joined a rate where I indicated that I would read the meter.

Could anyone shed any light???? and should I be able to have access to my meter or is it a legal requirment????

Thanks Charlotte

Pink_fluff

l20tte wrote: »

However my electric supplier can go 30 miles to pick up a key to read the meter although I have joined a rate where I indicated that I would read the meter.

Could anyone shed any light???? and should I be able to have access to my meter or is it a legal requirment????

Thanks Charlotte

I'm not sure you supplier would drive anywhere to pick up keys to read your meter! Have they agreed to this, or did you mean it as a suggestion?
Say for example you wanted to have a pre payment meter fitted, then you would NEED to have access to this cupboard, otherwise you couldn't credit the meter, so there must be some way around it.... maybe worth putting some pressure on the management company?

DirectDebacle

I have no idea on the legality of what the management co. say. Ask them the legislation that this refers to. I would have thought that there would be more legislation allowing you access than not allowing it. Is your meter locked in its' own box or does the box house the meters for the other apartments as well. If the latter and say there were six meters each with a different supplier how does the management co. arrange for the meter readings to be taken?

Can the management co. supply you with a key for your meter box? All seems very strange to me and more likely some obscure rule from the management co. and not a legal requirement at all, unless it is in the terms of the lease/letting contract.

spiro

Flats are frequently a problem with meters as they tend ot be installed in the 'intake' room with other plant and this results in restrictions due to health and safety. Prepayment metering for such properties is a nightmare and can result in the customer have a credit meter in the intake room and a prepayment meter in the flat. Suggest you contact the company and say that you want to agree access once a month at a set day/time. If you are reading the meter on behalf of your supplier rather than your supplier send a man around (who has no more training) then then should allow you access even if this is supervised.

Premier_2

Legally you have to provide access to the supplier to read their meter should they request it (and that doesn't mean a supplier expected to drive 30 miles to get a key!)

I suggest you talk again with the management company and if they still refuse to provide you with access, then contact your solicitor for legal advice.