The wonderful NPower!

laurax_2

Hey guys, hope your all keeping well!!

Well the story is, me and my hubs moved into this property May this year and within the last 5 months we have not recieved any bill what so ever.
I called up the end of last month, gave the my meter readings, was advised that my bill amount was 165 for both and we will recieve it within 2 to 3 weeks. 4 weeks later i'm still sitting without a bill! I phoned up this morning, theyve decided that the account is now in my husbands name and don't want to tell me a thing & with his work at the moment it will be hard for him to call them while they're open!

They wont send us an account number, would accept payment the previous time I called and are just totaly being really un helpfull!

Has anyone got any tips on how to deal with them, its fustraiting as I want to get them paid off and switch suppliers ASAP because of the horror stories i've read about them. I'm now worried i'm going to be landed with a huge bill that we can't afford to pay!!

xxx

dogshome

Hi laurax - If you 'inherited' n'power as the supplier to this property, be aware that they will have logged you as a new customer and put you on the 'Standard' ie. Expensive tariff
To get onto better tariffs you have to know your annual useage in Kw, which you don't have enough time in residence to find out, but if you post your home's details - Size? Rooms? Semi? Terrace? Type of heating?, on this site someone will give you a rough idea of what they are likely to be.

Take careful note of the dates and who you are talking to at n'power - If they fail to send bills, despite you asking for them, they can't bill for more than the past year

laurax_2

Thankyou Dogshome, i dont know what tarrif or anything were on as they wont supply us with an account number still after 5 months. Thank you for your advice I will write down every coversation and time date etc. As its only me at home most the time, all thats on is the computer, TV in the evening and if its gets too cold the eletric fire for 15 mins. The only gas I use if for about an hour a day cooking tea and water is on automatic so when it drops bellow temp it heats up automaticly. And the bill ammount they told me is pretty much the exact we was using in our last property the same usage but with british gas so i'm not too concerned at the moment about that - I just dont want to rake up a huge bill because they're too imcompitent to send out a bloody bill grr lol

davidgmmafan

If you are on monthyl direct debit NPower only bill every six months. If you aren't on this payment method then you should certainly have had one by now.

dollydolittle_2

About the not talking to one person thing: When we moved in I asked for the accounts to be in both our names but when the paperwork came, they had managed to put the gas in my name and the electricity in my husband's (we have different surnames) We each called them and asked to have the other person's name put on so that they could discuss the account (this isn't the same as being a joint account holder which apparently requires the other person to then ring again so that they can go through all the contract details etc and means you are jointly liable for any debt.)

The lines are open until 8 p.m. so if your husband can find time to make the one relativley quickish call, that should mean that they will at least talk to you from now on.

Very best of luck

Premier_2

laurax wrote: »

..., i dont know what tarrif or anything were on ...

If you haven't previously asked for anything else, then you will probably be on their standard (expensive) tariff

I would suggest you, or best your husband, writes to them recorded delivery. That will be easier, and cheaper, than getting recordings of telephone messages from them.

They have 12 months to bill you, after which as long as you can prove it was not your reason they didn't bill you (which a recorded letter will indicate) then just say 12 month back billing rule to any bills older than that

Edit: You should never receive a huge, unexpected bill. The meter is in your premises; take readings, work out what you think you will owe (tariff details are available either from the suppliers website or a comparison site) and put the money aside ready for when the bill eventually arrives.

undaunted

It will obviously all be your fault for not ringing them when you moved in - not their fault, never is!

Write to them complaining (call centre is useless, not that they are much better in writing but it does at least get it on record - I suggest you keep a copy!). You could point out to them that they are supposedly expected by Ofgem (not that they enforce it!) & indeed the law to provide you with a copy of any contract & to notify you of other options than the deemed contract as soon as possible

PNPSUKNET

undaunted wrote: »

It will obviously all be your fault for not ringing them when you moved in - not their fault, never is!

Write to them complaining (call centre is useless, not that they are much better in writing but it does at least get it on record - I suggest you keep a copy!). You could point out to them that they are supposedly expected by Ofgem (not that they enforce it!) & indeed the law to provide you with a copy of any contract & to notify you of other options than the deemed contract as soon as possible

A deemed contract rule was set by ofgem

ste1985_2

On entering a Vacant supplied property, there will be a letter sent addressed to the occupier, stating that it is urgent that you contact Npower to advise of your details otherwise they will arrange a site visit to confirm if the property is occupied or not. As Npower is the current supplier of the home, You automatically enter into a deemed contract Just like you would if it was a different supplier. If However your not happy and want to transfer to another company then you can with the usual change of supply process.

With regards to the billing issue that you have mentioned, One other post has already pointed out that normally billing would be once every 3 months and each account has a bill date set, and it should auto produce a statement, If however you pay by direct debit then it would be once every 6 months.

Issue that we have is if only one name on the account is shown even if MR & MRS at the property, still need authorization from both parties to amend the account for future to ensure that both can speak.

From what you have described, it does seem very simple and easy issue to sort, Try calling on freephone 0800 551 555 and speak to the billing team (remember though you must have authorization on the account to discuss specific account info)

mattcanary

I don;t like NPower. However, NPower are not mindreaders. The OP did not have a bill for so long because they didn't let anyone know thy had moved in!

undaunted

PNPSUKNET wrote: »

A deemed contract rule was set by ofgem

Actually Ofgem have stated to me that the deemed contract pre-dates them (I haven't bothered checking this though).

Regardless of what you think of the so called "deemed contract" however (I think it's open to legal challenge) Ofgem also stated that they would expect the supplier to make you aware of the contract terms and the alternatives asap.

Clearly they have not done so (or arranged a site visit as suggested above) if they have failed to even provide a bill in 5 months, the consumer is unaware of what tarrif they are on & the supply remains connected (Npowers current letter actually states they may need to disconnect the supply if they do not hear from you within 14 days in case the property is unoccupied)! :rotfl:

Difficult to deal with a company that can't even honour it's own word!