Spark Energy are the worst company I've ever come across!!!!!

bobb1985

I'm so furious I can hardly talk, let alone type.. so I'll put this in point form to whats happened so far

1. I moved in to my rented property on the 14th of June 2009 through the letting agents Moginie James in Cardiff.
2. I met my new landlady for a chat and intrduction of the property and she told me that Swalec were the gas and electricity suppliers of the flat
which I was happy about because a good friend works for swalec and have been very happy with their service so far.
3. After a couple of days I received a few letters from an energy company who i'd never heard of before called Spark energy that the energy supplier was switching over to them. This annoyed me firstly that they had my details, and secondly they used my details to start setting up an account without my consent.
4. I immediately contacted them so they could stop the switch over to which they informed me wasn't a problem and that it would be canceled.
5. A month later I received confirmation that they had completed the switch over and they were now my suppliers of both electricity and gas.
Spark takes over supply of gas and electricity on 4th August.
6. I rang swalec so that i could switch back and informed spark that this was happening.
7. a few weeks later i received two letters from swalec informing me spark were blocking the switchover.
8. I rang spark up to see what was the problem and they told me that there was a dispute with the reading between the two companies and it was waiting to be resolved. This took several weeks of phonecalls and they assured me i was being "fasttracked" through the dispute procedure.
9. On the 12th Nov I finally get notification that I have switched back to swalec for my gas.
10. I ring up Spark to see what is happening with my electricity and they say there is still a dispute, they say it can take upto 4 months to be resolved!!!!
11. Spark send me an email to show me how many units have been taken so far and that ive used £140 in electricity. this is not a bill they tell me and they cannot give me a bill because there is a dispute. Sprak are yet to give me a bill. As a couple we use very little electricity... i tend to get nagged to switch plugs and lights off by my lovely girlfriend... however the bill comes out to be just under what it has cost in the past when ive lived with 6 guys.
12. I ring Swalec up and they cant understand why they are continuously blocking the attempts to switch over. Swalec rings up Spark today to inform them I am changing back to them. Swalec informs me that this should be completed on the 10th dec.

I now have to wait for the final bill from spark energy which should arrive around a week after the 10th december. who knows how much they will have charged me...

I now have been informed by a work colleague that the same happened to their house. They had their details used to create an account and they were charged over £200 for a months usage.... unfortunately they couldn't be bothered with the hassle and paid them straight away :S

I am so annoyed by this terrible company!!!!

Mynewt

If you are unhappy with the service you ahve (not) reiceved, you cna try contacting their complaints department and lodging a formal complaint. Aslo request a copy of their complaints procedure it will outline what Spark need to do to resolve the query and when and if OFGem may intervene to broker a resolution for you.

rippedoffbyspark

just wanted to say thanks to mynewt for your help yesterday i had an email from spark last night admitting they where in the wrong and hadnt read the meter correctly at any time lol. so my bill should be wiped out within two weeks at it was 1000 watts over in a month. so thanks

Mynewt

Hi Rippedoffbyspark,

Thank you and glad you got a great outcome!

savemoney

rippedoffbyspark why did you feel need to PM me about this company

Sol00

If you don't get any success with complaining to the company direct, as I suspect you won't, you should contact Consumer Focus for advice.

rippedoffbyspark

re savemoney instead of getting all anxious about me messaging u i did it for a reason im new ok to the forums and i apologise about messaging u in hindsight i should have posted on the board first. ive sorted my problem out now and spark admitted they were wrong so no harm done.. and of course im online since i messaged u i wont hide away i havent done anything wrong. i was just merely asking for advice and with your status you looked knowledgable

savemoney

Thanks

I wasn't anxious mealy unsure why you did it given I know nothing about the company and certainly am no expert on utility matters.

Glad you sorted your problem out anyway. I did reply to that other thread but as you ignored my post but came online I thought I deserved an explanation.

rippedoffbyspark wrote: »

re savemoney instead of getting all anxious about me messaging u i did it for a reason im new ok to the forums and i apologise about messaging u in hindsight i should have posted on the board first. ive sorted my problem out now and spark admitted they were wrong so no harm done.. and of course im online since i messaged u i wont hide away i havent done anything wrong. i was just merely asking for advice and with your status you looked knowledgable

robredz

One question that needs addressing, is if the Op did not sign anything, or had no prior knowledge of Spark, how could they switch them over? Perhaps the toothless OFGEN could clarify?

Premier_2

bobb1985 wrote: »

...2. I met my new landlady for a chat and intrduction of the property and she told me that Swalec were the gas and electricity suppliers of the flat
which I was happy about because a good friend works for swalec and have been very happy with their service so far.
3. After a couple of days I received a few letters from an energy company who i'd never heard of before called Spark energy that the energy supplier was switching over to them. This annoyed me firstly that they had my details, and secondly they used my details to start setting up an account without my consent.
4. I immediately contacted them so they could stop the switch over to which they informed me wasn't a problem and that it would be canceled.
5. A month later I received confirmation that they had completed the switch over and they were now my suppliers of both electricity and gas.
Spark takes over supply of gas and electricity on 4th August.
6. I rang swalec so that i could switch back and informed spark that this was happening....

I think if that were me, I would have contacted my existing supplier as soon as I became aware of a supply being switched without authority.

Natural behaviour suggests that someone will make more effort to correct matters if by acting they gain (i.e. prevent a loss of a customer) than someone who is likely to gain a customer if they don't act.

Though you do have the right to contact either company.

The Erroneous Transfer Customer Charter has been set up to deal with problems that arise where transfers are begun without a valid contract. For suspected fraudulent contracts the consumer should contact the Energy Retail Association (ERA) to investigate under the AES code if the supplier has been unhelpful.

http://cfe.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/cfe.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=5292&p_created=1210089225&p_sid=NFp8crNj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MTgzLDE4MyZwX3Byb2RzPTAmcF9jYXRzPTAmcF9wdj0mcF9jdj0mcF9wYWdlPTEmcF9zZWFyY2hfdGV4dD1lcnJvbmVvdXMgdHJhbnNmZXI*&p_li=&p_topview=1

...If the Erroneous Transfer was caused by a proven forged signature, £250 compensation should be paid to domestic consumers by suppliers who are members of the AES Code of Practice

http://cfe.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/cfe.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=5676&p_created=1210089333&p_sid=NFp8crNj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=5292&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MTgzLDE4MyZwX3Byb2RzPTAmcF9jYXRzPTAmcF9wdj0mcF9jdj0mcF9wYWdlPTEmcF9zZWFyY2hfdGV4dD1lcnJvbmVvdXMgdHJhbnNmZXI*&p_li=&p_topview=1

The Erroneous Transfer Customer Charter (ETCC) is a voluntary code which all suppliers had signed up to by early 2002. The ETCC was set up due to the large number of erroneous transfers which take place in the gas and electricity industry.
Under the Erroneous Transfer Charter the customer can contact either the old or new supplier in order to resolve the problem. The supplier who is contacted is required to take responsibility of the situation and liaise with the other supplier to find a resolution.
The contacted supplier should send the customer a letter within 5 working days of being informed of the situation. This should explain how the erroneous transfer process works.
A second letter should be sent within 20 working days of the supplier being informed of the situation This should explain why the erroneous transfer took place and also confirm that the supply will be returned to the original supplier within 20 days of the problem being reported.
Suppliers have signed up to a voluntary compensation scheme that requires them to pay £20 compensation to domestic consumers when the confirmation letter has not been recieved within the 20 day period.

http://cfe.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/cfe.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=5663&p_created=1210088800&p_sid=NFp8crNj&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=5292&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9MTgzLDE4MyZwX3Byb2RzPTAmcF9jYXRzPTAmcF9wdj0mcF9jdj0mcF9wYWdlPTEmcF9zZWFyY2hfdGV4dD1lcnJvbmVvdXMgdHJhbnNmZXI*&p_li=&p_topview=1

I have no idea if Spark are signed up to that charter, but would strongly suspect Swalec are.

robredz

bobb1985, you pay your landlady through an agent?

Sparks' website indicates it specializes in the lettings market, for landlords' letting agents, and, tenants. The agent most likely, switched you, see here:

http://www.sparkenergy.co.uk/

Specifically the FAQ section for tenants, where it states that the agent will most likely have passed on your details, and here from the FAQ regarding switching:

"Q. Someone else supplies my property.....what do I need to do?
A. If you think your property is supplied by another energy company don’t worry, you don’t need to do
anything. Sometimes it takes a little while to switch from the old supplier to us and you may be the first tenant
in the property since we were asked to supply. If this is the case we’ll let you know when your supply goes live
and ask for a meter reading at that point, we may also call you to confirm some details. Sit tight, take it easy
and we’ll do the hard work!

Q. What if I don’t want Spark to supply my property?
A. It would be a real shame to miss out on the benefits of being supplied by Spark. After all we exist to make
your experience better. Because our supply is covered in your lease you need to check with your agent before
initiating supply elsewhere. Why not give us a call first; we may be able to put your mind at rest."

Spark offer a tailored service for the rented sector. The agent may be unhappy when you manage to switch back to SWALEC though, as it seems there are benefits in regard to property management for them to have Spark as suppliers of properties in their portfolio with power and gas.

I wonder how this sits with OFGEN and freedom of choice of supplier if a landlord or their agent can switch you at their own preference, or convenience?

Reading your original post leads me to believe that your landladies agent switched you to their preferred choice, due to her remarking that Swalec were the supplier, and you both seemed happy with that. There will most likely be a clause in some standard tenancy agreements drawn up by letting agents, specifying Spark, as supplier with a prohibition on switching as mentioned in their FAQ. In view of the information on Spark, it is likely that they will prevent you from switching if they can, it is in theirs and the agents interest to resist a switch back, and that is why they have dragged things out. Hope you are sorted on Dec 10th However as is the case on here others may know better imho.