Advice on EON energy monthly direct debit?

amyjayne27

Hi all,

Thought I would ask for some advice as this new change with our electric has been a big shock and would like to know what you all think.

My partner and I were with EDF energy and it was so expensive, so we decided to check out energyhelpline.co.uk (as suggested on this site) and they did the workings out and suggested we move to EON energy which would be £30 every month. We joined late August I think, and this was much cheaper than what we were paying, so after reading all small print, etc we swapped. Now, a couple of weeks ago, we had a very straight to the point letter from EON saying that because we haven't built up our credit over the summer (as we joined end of the summer) then our monthly direct debit will be £65 from now. Thats over twice as much!

So I phoned them straight away, and they explained that sites like energyhelpline determine the monthly amount and not them, but surely EON would at least look at what energyhelpline suggested our monthly amount to be? I can't believe EON did not let us know sooner, how was I supposed to know I wasn't paying enough? Its the first time moving out for me so this has come as a huge shock. I would much rather have paid slightly more a month than £65! It wasn't like I was trying to get away with paying less, I just had no idea!

I just think that EON should work more closely with these sites if they are suggesting a monthly direct debit which isnt realistic, don't you?

Thanks and sorry for the rant!

Amy

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi amyjayne

Sorry your Direct Debit has had to be increased.

When you put your details on the comparison site did you enter your usage in kWh or put in a monthly spend figure?

If you entered a monthly spend this may have been based on inaccurate info; or maybe something has changed which means you are now using more electric than previously.

Did your statements show a debt building up?

Malc

KimYeovil

You must be very, very rich if over ten months you have never looked at your meter. Who are all these wealthy people who are so flush they do not need to keep an eye on how much they are spending?

amyjayne27

No, we entered our correct usage shown on our meter, so it couldn't have been that. This started in August (end of) and we apparently recieved an email in January about our payments, but I wasn't aware that is was an online account. However that was the only email we recieved, and then got a letter a few weeks back. I said to the woman how surely you cannot just double the monthly direct debit, and I am struggling to pay it to be honest. These sites such as energyhelpline should not be suggesting a monthly amount, and then EON not keeping track of what that is. We paid our monthly bill from September to January without hearing anything, and that was just an email. Then this letter arrives, you can imagine what a shock it was. Can't anything be done? I don't think I can afford to keep paying such a high monthly bill.

Amy

KimYeovil - I found your answer quite rude, don't judge people on here. I am far from rich, I just explained how I cannot even pay these bills, we were checking it, maybe just not as often as is needed. Plus it is our first flat, everything is (or was) new to us, theres no need to be rude.

jimexbox

E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc wrote: »

If you entered a monthly spend this may have been based on inaccurate info; or maybe something has changed which means you are now using more electric than previously.

Did your statements show a debt building up?

Malc

Malc

I think the point the op is making is that due to the fact they moved to Eon late summer, therefore had little chance to build up a surplus to carry them through the more expensive winter quarter, thus are now in debt on their DD account. The original estimate may of been 'ballpark' accurate if they had started payments as of their spring quarter when Eon recalculate DD payments, leaving time to build up credit for the forthcoming winter.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi amyjayne

Jimexbox is right. A debt will have built up due to usage being greater than payments over the winter months.

If you have an online account you would have needed to register with our website. We are unable to do this on a customer's behalf.

Online customers receive emails each time a bill is issued. There is a link in the email to access the bill. This would have shown if a debt was building up.

Have you changed your email address and not told us since you registered? If this is the case, these emails would have gone to the old address.

Direct Debits are reviewed in the spring and adjusted to match usage and cover any debt. Give us a call if you are struggling to pay the revised amount. Ask for a payment arrangement to spread the debt over a longer period. This may make the monthly payments a little more comfortable.

At the same time check what tariff you are on. If you were unaware you had an online account it may be you are not on an online tariff. If this is the case ask to go on one as this will give you a better discount.

Hope this helps.

Malc

amyjayne27

I must've given an old email address, as I was definately not getting monthly emails to show my bill or I wouldn't be in this situation!

Why is it that the bills are only reviewed in Spring? And when I joined EON, I was not told anything at all about having to have a credit built up in summer or our payments would be more, why wasn't I advised more about this? I had no idea as this is out first flat about this credit you are supposedly building up throughout the summer, why couldn't have our payments been a bit higher?

The point I am trying to make is these sites which say they can save you money are actually suggesting an unrealistic monthly payment, so why is this not looked at more closely by EON? Do you just accept every single suggested amount by these sites and not even look into them? I would've been more than happy if someone from EON had phoned up after looking at this suggestion and offer me a more realistic monthly payment.

I have phoned EON about not being able to afford it, all they could offer me was a payment meter which all the debt would go on but I cannot do this as the place is rented and my landlord wouldn't allow it. I have to pay £65 for over a year to get rid of the debt, why couldn't I have just a sufficient amount over the winter to cover all the cost?

Amy

Magentasue

The idea of building up credit over the summer has gradually been adopted to avoid people going into debt, as you have. I can see that you wouldn't have known about this - this board is full of posts from people who have been caught out. As for monthly payments, again you took it at face value, but in the future, if you switch, you need to make sure the payment is adequate for what you use over the year. I've switched before and had to ring the supplier and have the DD increased.

The monthly amount you need to pay now, is to pay for what you use and to clear the debt over a reasonable time. If you really can't afford it, you have a few options. The first is a prepay meter. Or you could borrow from friends or family short term and make a payment to reduce the debt, and thereby your monthly payments. You could negotiate with eon to reduce the payments by extending the repayment period, but they may have already done that.

Could you make cutbacks elsewhere? I hesitate to say get rid of broadband, TV and mobiles because people see these as essentials but, as a short term measure, cutting a few quid a month of several things would cover the payments. Long term, you could look at cutting back the amount of energy you use, but it doesn't look as if you are high users anyway.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi Amyjayne

When switching your supply either through our website or a comparison site the Direct Debit cannot be set below the projected usage.

We do not have details of usage for new customers. Therefore, calculations in these cases are based on the info provided.

It may be since you switched to us your usage has changed. It was a particularly harsh winter and this may have led to you using more energy than expected. I know I did.

For existing customers the Direct Debit is reviewed regularly throughout the year, usually following a bill.

However, for new customers the first review is longer than this. Again, this is to make sure we are using accurate usage info. If a debt is beginning to build it is advised on the bills to give you the opportunity to contact us and amend it.

Unfortunately, having an old email address meant we were unable to advise you this was happening. Very important you change this so we can make sure you are kept up to date in future.

This can be done online by going into the Your Account page and following the instructions.

Malc

amyjayne27

Thank you for you post, Magentasue. I will definately be keeping a closer eye on everything now thats for sure! It's just a shame that people who are new to this and have moved out for the first time seem to get in trouble.

I won't be using any of those sites again, they may offer cashback or a gift etc, but really it has meant that I can hardly afford to pay my bills.

And you are right, our flat luckily is quite warm so we rarely have the heating on so we cannot cut our usage much more!

As it happens, EDF was not that expensive, it would've been so much easier to stay with them!

Thanks for your advice, I will just have to try and keep paying it off!

Amy

Magentasue

amyjayne27 wrote: »

I won't be using any of those sites again, they may offer cashback or a gift etc, but really it has meant that I can hardly afford to pay my bills.

Amy

Using the sites doesn't create the problem and can save you money. Now that you have an idea of how much you use a year, you can calculate what you need to pay each month by multiplying the number of kwh by the unit price and dividing the annual bill by twelve. Even doing this as a rough calculation is useful. Online account management and reading your meters regularly will stop you going off the rails. It's a lesson learned, but shouldn't stop you from switching in the future.