Billing Advice - SOS - avoid Scottish Power...

cantona_lives

Hi all, and SOS..
Hopefully someone can offer me some advice? Please see below complaint email which sums it up.. How can I get bills after 2.5 years of account closure? Anyone had similar issues at all? Thank you all for reading and any advice... - CL.

Complaint email as follows:

Dear Sir or Madam,
Approximately 2 weeks ago I started receiving texts out of the blue about my “final” bill. This was odd as I have not been with Scottish Power since I moved house over 2.5 years ago. I supplied a final meter reading at the time and as far as I am concerned this matter is closed. I have heard nothing from Scottish Power during this entire period – nothing at all! So I receive final payment text messages out of the blue after 2.5 years. What if I had changed mobile phone number?!

I called customer services at whatever expense that is, to be told that indeed my account was “closed” but had recently had £89ish billed/added to it?! How can that be? How can an account be “closed” if it was not settled? And how is an amount added after such a time lapse. Obviously it was settled I even looked back and have a small “deb” (debit) to my bank account from Scottish power a month after I left. So not a DD – direct debit, but a “debit” which is clearly a balance adjustment. The person at SP I spoke to said he would open an investigation as it was odd. A few days later I got a call from a Vietnam number which was SP accounts apparently. After explaining all this and them too thinking it “odd”, the chap I was speaking to said he would raise this again to investigations and nobody would contact me from billing. Well today I have had a slightly more threatening text about final payment and incurring costs. I think this a best sharp practice and at worst borderline illegal. I ask you, 2 and a half years since the account was “closed”!! I am very upset and disappointed in SP and have no intention of paying a bill because out of the blue a “closed account” says so.

I am prepared to take this matter further (watchdogs and press) as this is troubling and stressful. Please by all means prove to me it was mine, but if so why was the account closed and why is this coming up after 2.5 years? I do not believe this to right, just or even accurate.

The old billing address was:

xxxxxx
xxxxxx

Your faithfully,

Scottish_Power

Hi cantona_lives

Firstly, I am sorry to hear about your situation. There will be an explanation for this and I am confident that this matter will be resolved for you. If you have spoken with ScottishPower already and you have been advised that we will investigate this for you, then we should apply a hold on any debt action. You should not be receiving any calls, texts, letters regarding this now until the investigation is complete.

Have a look at our internal complaints procedure in the link below:

http://www.scottishpower.co.uk/support-centre/service-and-standards/complaints.aspx

Let me know if you have any further issues regarding this matter or if you are unsatisfied with the response you receive. You can contact me through our online complaints email address ([EMAIL="onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com"]onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com[/EMAIL]).

Kind Regards

Colin @ ScottishPower

davidgmmafan

I would imagine such a bill, even if correct, would be difficult to enforce. I'm not 100% but belive it may be covered by the back billing policy, unless there was some new info which meant they couldn't bill accurately until them. But just using common sense no other industry would behave in this way and expect to be paid.

cantona_lives

Thank you Colin,
Are you able to investigate the debt hold please? I am not convinced that anyone I have spoken has been clear at all. Infact they are confused by the close account etc etc. Plus I still got texts even though its supposedly under investigation. As mentioned above, I raised an official complaint yesterday but this is a crazy situation. All SP have is a mobile number! If I had changed the mobile number I would been totally unreachable. Either way - 2.5 years after closure and moving!! Lack of professionalism and class I am afraid. Especially given the respresentatives I have spoken to in regard to this...

Thanks
-CL

cantona_lives

davidgmmafan wrote: »

I would imagine such a bill, even if correct, would be difficult to enforce. I'm not 100% but belive it may be covered by the back billing policy, unless there was some new info which meant they couldn't bill accurately until them. But just using common sense no other industry would behave in this way and expect to be paid.

Thank you.. I completely agree - truely unbelieveable. I initially thought they must have the wrong number and be meaning someone else...