Energy companies dubious tricks

MZeffertt

In February I moved from Birmingham to London. I had used E-ON (Age Concern) but the London accommodation was with British Gas. I asked to switch to E-ON again. B.G. asked me to reconsider, I refused. Nevertheless B.G. took over my supplies. There followed a period when I was taken over first by the one, then by the other, until I wasn't sure who my supplier was, though the charges were inordinately high. There were so many problems with that flat, in May I moved to a new flat (supplier Southern - no problems so far). Naturally I cancelled my direct debits - only to find that B.G. had opened one without my authorisation. I cancelled that and when I checked to make sure they hadn't done so again, found that E-ON had also opened one without consulting me. I cancelled that. Finally E-ON sent me a refund - not the amount I suspect they overcharged, but I was glad to end the problem... only to receive a threat of prosecution from a collection agency for an amount that had never been invoiced to me. This was followed by a second threat and invoices for the period after I moved. More invoices and threats arrived, so I contacted Consumer Focus - whereupon E-ON admitted they couldn't justify the charge for which they threatened prosecution, and acknowledged they were trying to charge for a time after my move (if I hadn't noticed the direct debit, they would have dipped into my account. However they did not feel there was any reason to compensate me for the nightmare they caused an 81 year old (as suggested by Consumer Focus).
So the matter has ended? No, I have received yet another bill for the time after I moved. I have documentary proof of all of the above.
Michael Zeffertt.

Premier_2

Hi MZeffert, and welcome to MSE :hello:

When you moved to London, you would have a deemed supply by British Gas, well at least from the point you started to use it (e.g. turned on a light, etc).

I'm not sure how BG would have set a DDI against your will unless you have them your bank details - Either they hit lucky (probably worst odds than getting the jackpot in this weeks lottery) or they too have a source for very good crystal balls...

It's unlikely E.On would have set up a DDI without your express approval too (although admiteddly they may have had your details from the previous supply address). All errors by originators under the DD scheme are monitored by their sponsors and too many may result in the sponsor withdrawing their sponsorship (preventing the originator from using the DD scheme)
But I suspect with two separate companies making alleged similar errors, the real fault may lie with the common factor in them both

In any event, DD is only a form of payment; it doesn't have any effect the underlying contract and that is what you need to get to the bottom of.
You were originally supplied by BG and I suspect you ow them some money. If you switched to Eon, I suspect you owe them some money too.
Speak with the suppliers, get them to explain any part of the bills you fail to understand and make arrangements to pay for what is agreed you owe. Debts won't just disappear, no matter how much you would like them to, or unilaterally disagree with them.

Compensation? What for???
If the supplier agrees they have taken any money they are not entitled to, I am sure they will refund it shortly after you notified them of thier error.

Wombles

I was looking at the forum this eve to see if there were any comments re EOn & how good it's customer focus is, when I came across this post and was very concerned by his apparent treatment.

Premier, I have read the original msg from MZeffertt and you seem to have missed some salient facts in your comments.

1. It states that his bills were paid for the period of usage and that he has been billed for a period after he moved from the property.

2. I assume that he would have given his DD details when originally with Brit Gas and upon transferring to Eon.

3. Can you please explain who you mean by "DD sponsors" are you referring to the bank?

4. It states that he has contacted the suppliers and has all the documentation, plus contacted "Consumer Focus" when he must have been at the end of his tether.

Can somebody out there please give this 81 year old man some advice please, as to where and what he should do next?

echoecho_2

eon has some board reps who i imagine will be along tomorrow to offer their help. i would ring the complaints number on the bill to see if you can speak to someone who can get this sorted once and for all.

Premier does make good points about the Direct Debit so I don't think complete blame can be placed on the companies, but from what you have said, these problems should have been sorted a long time ago and it is getting silly now.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

Hi MZeffertt and sorry for the late reply.

There are a number of possibilities here.

As the existing supplier, BG will have continued to supply the London property until we took over.

From your post, it sounds as though we then supplied the flat until you moved out in May. At this point, did you advise us of the move and let us have meter readings for the day you moved out?

If you did, we will have issued a final bill to this date/readings. Any outstanding balance would then have been automatically collected through your Direct Debit arrangement.

Similarly, any credit balance will have been refunded through the same arrangement.

However, if you cancelled your Direct Debit before the balance could be refunded/collected, a cheque/debt follow up will have been issued.

As Premier says, we will only have set up a Direct Debit with your permission and details.

If you didn't give us details of the move, we will have continued billing you as though you were still responsible for the flat. This may be the reason you've received bills for energy used after you moved out.

Another possibility may be, if you didn't give us closing meter readings, the final bill will have been estimated. This could then have been corrected once we had accurate readings from the new tenant/landlord/letting agency.

It may be we had originally under-estimated the final bill and have now issued a catch up bill for the extra energy used.

These are just possibilities of which some or none may be relevant; bit difficult to tell from your post to be honest.

I would follow Premier's excellent advice and talk to us about these issues. Ask for an explanation of how the charges have been arrived at. Ask for copy bills to see the dates/readings used to arrive at the figures in question.

If you disagree, ask for a complaint to be raised and escalate to a manager if necessary. Should our explanation/resolution not be to your satisfaction, you can, after 56 days, refer the issue to the Ombudsman for an independent ruling.

Sorry if the above is a bit vague MZeffertt. Give me a shout if you need any more info as will be happy to help. Drop an email to the address in my Profile if you prefer.

Malc