Please help me!! EDF backdating bills

wilson.luke

Hello, i am hoping someone can shed some light on my problem, i have trawled the net but cannot find anything that relates to my problem.

In 2008 i moved into a new build 2 bedroom apartment property, one of the first things i did was contact scottish power to set up an account. When i did i was told my postcode wasn't on the system, i also tried online to set one up but again never heard anything back. After 6 months i moved out and aware there may be money still due i left the deposit with my landlord to cover any costs i.e utilites that may be incurred.

I have today received a letter on behalf of EDF claiming that for these 6 months i owe £350. Without questioning the actual amount (which seems very high) can they do this? I have read in the codes of practice for energy providers about back dating only applies to the previous 12 months?

I have phoned EDF and the call handler didn't know what codes of practice i was asking about? I also found out the first bill they sent to the property was in 2010 approx 18 months after i have vacated the property.

Any ideas from anyone or suggestions is highly appreciated because i have not got a clue?

Mankysteve

Pay them what you owe and sue the LL.

The contract to supply the utilities was between you and BG nothing to do with LL. You should have paid them sicking your head in the sand is your owe doing.

wilson.luke

Mankysteve wrote: »

Pay them what you owe and sue the LL.

The contract to supply the utilities was between you and BG nothing to do with LL. You should have paid them sicking your head in the sand is your owe doing.

I appreciate your feedback, i wouldnt quite say i put my head in the sand when i made efforts on numerous occasions to find out who supplied the property with electricity and was told scottish power who i tried registering with at the time.

Scottish_Power

Hi wilson.luke

Sorry to hear about your situation. From what you have posted, it would appear that the property you moved into was still being addressed under the original Plot address given by the builders. If all systems are still holding your Plot address, then no supplier will recognise your supply if you provide the new correct address. What normally happens in this situation is that you will be asked to confirm your gas / electricity meter serial number from the meters in your property. This helps to identify your supply details and what address is currently assigned to your meters.

As ScottishPower did not take over the supply, it sounds like EDF were the original designated suppliers for the property and they are responsible for billing you. The EDF Rep will be able to give you more information on the charges that have been applied to your account.

Kind Regards

Colin @ ScottishPower

Cardew

I believe the OP might be thinking(hoping!) that the 12 month backbilling regulation means he will not have to pay.

Firstly £350 is not high for 6 months in an all electric flat(I assume it was all electric) in fact depending of what part of the year, it is very low.

I am not sure why you say 'After 6 months i moved out and aware there may be money still due' if you had no account, you could not have paid anything so why 'may'?

Secondly there is a rule where if you have not been billed and it is the fault of the Utility company, they can only go back 12 months with bills.

However the billing code specifically covers cases where new occupants move in and the supplier is unaware of their occupancy - basically you pay.

As soon as you used any electricity in the flat you entered a legally binding deemed contract and are liable to pay for the electricity you used.

dogshome

Hi wilson.luke - I'm afraid that you are stuck with this bill, but, you are entitled to a detailed bill showing the power used, over what period and at what tariff

Also - You very honestly left a sum of money with the landlord to cover just this situation, so you must contact him asking for the details of who he paid any money to - If in fact he settled a bill from some other Elec. supplier, you should advise EDF. - But in any case you want back any money left over from this deposit

wilson.luke

dogshome wrote: »

Hi wilson.luke - I'm afraid that you are stuck with this bill, but, you are entitled to a detailed bill showing the power used, over what period and at what tariff

Also - You very honestly left a sum of money with the landlord to cover just this situation, so you must contact him asking for the details of who he paid any money to - If in fact he settled a bill from some other Elec. supplier, you should advise EDF. - But in any case you want back any money left over from this deposit

Again thanks fors the replies and feedback. Just to clear one thing up and that is i understand i will pay for what i use, the reason i ask about backdating is i do not want to pay without knowing as much information as possible to ensure i dont get taken for a ride. They have already offered 25% discount which makes me very cautious as they obviously just want my payment quickly no questions asked.

Premier_2

wilson.luke wrote: »

Again thanks fors the replies and feedback. Just to clear one thing up and that is i understand i will pay for what i use, the reason i ask about backdating is i do not want to pay without knowing as much information as possible to ensure i dont get taken for a ride. They have already offered 25% discount which makes me very cautious as they obviously just want my payment quickly no questions asked.

You will owe for the total consumption used during your tenancy.

You are entitled to a full breakdown of those costs, but expect them to be at the standard (expensive) tariff rate.

The supplier probably does want a quick payment! The supply was made 1-2 years ago. They've offered a discount in the hope you'll pay now they managed to catch up with you.

If you don't pay, they may withdraw any discount offered.

Get the deposit off the landlord (assuming there are no delapidations) and use it to pay the bill once they have provided you a copy with that full itemised bill.

davidgmmafan

Have you seen the bill? It would be reasonable to do so before making payment, explain to the company that this is what you are doing. You also need to check they haven't added your name at some point and billed it back the date you left.

Suspect the landlord still has the money you left so hope they are honest!

I'm betting you won't have seen the original bill as they wouldn't have had a forwarding address and would've traced you later on.

Premier_2

wilson.luke wrote: »

...In 2008 i moved into a new build 2 bedroom apartment property, ...

After 6 months i moved out and aware there may be money still due i left the deposit with my landlord to cover any costs i.e utilites that may be incurred...

At that time the tenancy deposit scheme was in operation, so your deposit should be fully protected (assuming it was properly protected as the LL was obliged to do)

wilson.luke

Hello all and thanks once again for your replies.

Did my homework and got the electricity serial number, with this i then contacted EMPAS and found out who had originally supplied the property i lived in during 2008. EDF have been supplying the property since 2007 so a phone call to them to discuss a few matters i.e when was the first bill sent out? (2010) and what dates i was being billed for (apr-nov 2008).

I then read very carefully the Energy Retail associations Code of Practice which is something all the big companies have signed up to. If the company is at fault then they cannot backdate any bills that exceed 12 months.

With this i phoned EDF again at first the call handler didn't know what i was talking about but luckily for me when i phoned back i got a man who knew all about them, he took it to his line manager and the line manager agreed the codes of practice could be applied in my case. Even at this stage they had one last pop at trying to get some money but when i refused again on the ground of the codes then they folded. Had they not i was taking it to the energy ombudsmen.

Words of advice from my experience if you truly think the company is at fault for not billing you and it was more than 12 months ago then dispute it. And make sure you read the codes of practice, if the call handler does not have knowledge of the codes then seek a supervisor who does