Meter change c*ck up. What to do now?

barrymung

Hi,

About 10 months ago we trasferred our gas and elec to a fixed rate tariff with Eon.

Four months after joining our electricity meter was changed for a new one. Unfortunately, whoever changed the meter messed up and recorded the wrong readings for both meters. (Luckily I kept a record)

Now, due to this mistake Eon tried to charge us for electric we hadn't used. I kept disputing the meter readings, Eon would say they'd update their records but they repeatedly failed to do so.

As the amount was in dispute, Eon decided not to take our regular direct debit from our account for a good few months (£71) so our account has built up a sizeable debit. I asked them to keep taking the money, they refused to do so.

Hopefully, I have now sorted out our CORRECT meter readings with Eon and the account outsanding is (hopefullY) a fair representation of what we have used (Gas/Elec). However, Eon have decided to DOUBLE our direct debit (~£140) in order to clear this debt.

Obviously, I owe Eon for the electricity/gas I have used and I don't have a problem with that. However, I'm annoyed that I have wasted a great deal of my time in sorting this problem out (££££'s on the phone) and also that it was Eon's fault that this large debt has built up! I'm also annoyed that the amount coming out of my account has suddely doubled, meaning month-month budegting is now harder.

My questions are:

Can Eon charge interest on this debt, even though it was their fault? Why should I pay interest on their mistake?

Does Eon have any compensation scheme in place for such mistakes (I know our water company certainly do)?

What are my rights with regards asking Eon to spread the debt over a longer pay-off period?

Is it worth complaining to the ombudsman?

(Before anyone starts, I'm NOT trying to get out of paying what I actually owe, just be treated fairly and not face hardship due to THEIR mistakes)

Vestra

They will not charge you interest so don't worry about that. If Eon were not taking the direct debit's did you keep the money aside?

They don't have to give you compensation but you could write a letter of complaint explaining what you have said, how you have wasted your time and about the direct debit's and they may give you a small goodwill. You could also ask them to spread the debt, how long are the spreading it over at the moment? You could probably push them to 12 months.

Premier_2

barrymung wrote: »

...My questions are:

Can Eon charge interest on this debt, even though it was their fault? Why should I pay interest on their mistake?

Are they charging you interest?

barrymung wrote: »

Does Eon have any compensation scheme in place for such mistakes (I know our water company certainly do)?

Compensation for what exactly? A mistake was made, you now imply it was corrected and you will therefore only pay for what you've consumed. Meanwhile you've been enjoying interest free credit.

barrymung wrote: »

What are my rights with regards asking Eon to spread the debt over a longer pay-off period?

You can normally ask for payments to be recovered over the period they accrued.
As they failed to collect any payment and have now doubled your DD, this appears to be what they've done.

barrymung wrote: »

Is it worth complaining to the ombudsman?

You need to raise a formal complaint with the supplier and either wait 8 weeks to allow them to investigate and resolve or issue you with a deadlock letter.
To be honest. I'm not sure what your complaint is?
There was a reading error, you complained, Eon rectified the error.

barrymung wrote: »

(Before anyone starts, I'm NOT trying to get out of paying what I actually owe, just be treated fairly and not face hardship due to THEIR mistakes)

If you are facing hardship, you don't appear to have done anything to mitigate that have you?
You were aware that the supplier was not taking payment.
Presumably you knew you were not going to get the energy you were consuming for free?
Why didn't you place the money aside you had hoped Eon would take perhaps in a savings account where you could have earned interest?
(Not that you'd get much in most bank accounts nowadays)

barrymung

Premier wrote: »

Are they charging you interest?

I don't know at this stage. I can find nothing on the website to say they will but then again nothing to say that they won't. Just because I can't find mention of it doesn't mean it's not buried in some sub-cause somewhere!

Compensation for what exactly? A mistake was made, you now imply it was corrected and you will therefore only pay for what you've consumed. Meanwhile you've been enjoying interest free credit.

Compensation for the loss of time, stress, cost of phone calls, letters, inconvenience etc. Also it bugg3rs up my cash flow..

Other utility companies offer compensation payments in the event they make a mistake..do Eon do the same? If they do, then I'll obviously ask for it! If you don't ask you don't get..

Also, it's not like I asked them to rectify the situation and they did it. I had to REPEATEDLY go back and ask them to sort it, they repeatedly failed to do so.

You can normally ask for payments to be recovered over the period they accrued.
As they failed to collect any payment and have now doubled your DD, this appears to be what they've done.

You need to raise a formal complaint with the supplier and either wait 8 weeks to allow them to investigate and resolve or issue you with a deadlock letter.
To be honest. I'm not sure what your complaint is?
There was a reading error, you complained, Eon rectified the error.

They haven't fully rectified the error. I'm out of pocket and clearly inconvenienced by what they have done. Maybe you like giving up your time for free?!

That is my complaint!

If you are facing hardship, you don't appear to have done anything to mitigate that have you?
You were aware that the supplier was not taking payment.
Presumably you knew you were not going to get the energy you were consuming for free?

You haven't read what I wrote above have you?? LOL! I clearly stated that I'm happy to pay for what I have used! I also clearly stated that I asked them to take payment, they did not so was clearly aware that they weren't taking the money.

Why didn't you place the money aside you had hoped Eon would take perhaps in a savings account where you could have earned interest?
(Not that you'd get much in most bank accounts nowadays)

I have placed the money aside..

To clarify my query:

1. I don't want to be out of pocket for their mistake. I currently am.

2. I want a FAIR period of time to pay the money back. (Note the word FAIR)

3. If there is compensation due, then I want to claim it! I'd be stupid not to!

barrymung

Update: Have just found a document I was sent when we opened the account called "Our guaranteed standards of service" which indeed offers compensation for various failures on their part..

Three bits of interest are:

"If we've been told you're due a refund, we'll make payment within five days. And if we fail to meet the deadlines....we'll give you £20"

"Accuracy of meters...we'll give you a valid explaination within five working days...or we'll give you £20"

"If we fail to meet any of our guarantees...we'll give you £20"

Any views on whether a meter reading c*ck up when swapping meters would constitute an "accuracy" problem? The readings they had recorded on their system certainly aren't an accurate representation of what was used!

What constitues a "refund"? The have certainly taken well over 5 days to credit our Eon account after they accepted their meter readings were incorrect.

Any views?

Fire_Fox

Put the complaint into writing, firmly and politely, referring to the time and financial outlay of sorting this out. Include a copy of your phone bill if possible and ask for compensation as per the standards of service (quote them).

E.ON_Company_Representative

barrymung wrote: »

My questions are:

Can Eon charge interest on this debt, even though it was their fault? Why should I pay interest on their mistake?

Does Eon have any compensation scheme in place for such mistakes (I know our water company certainly do)?

What are my rights with regards asking Eon to spread the debt over a longer pay-off period?

Is it worth complaining to the ombudsman?

Hi barrymung,

Looks like you’ve had loads of good advice so far.

So just to give some clarification I’ll just confirm the above points.

Firstly we don’t add interest on to unpaid amounts so no worries there.

Compensation is offered in some circumstances, but it will depend on all the factors.

The new Direct Debit amount will be made up of projected usage and the debt spread over a set time period, if you are struggling with the size of the Direct Debit the debt repayment period can be negotiated. 12 months is normally the maximum, but this could make a difference.

In regards to the Ombudsman, approach them if necessary; however as premier pointed out ensure you follow the E.ON complaints process first. The Ombudsman will only investigate the complaint if you have done this.

Brian

greenbee

If you've been putting aside the money that wasn't being collected by DD while this was being sorted out, then ask to make a one-off payment to clear the debt.This avoids any problem with your cashflow and ensures that your DD is back to a reasonable amount.

Deal with the compliant separately, as advised above.