Electrical fault - who pays?

keiron12

I have recently had an investigation into my electricity meter by Scottish Power because I did not agree with a bill. To cut a long story short, I am being charged for using over 100kwh/day despite the fact I live alone and am regularly away. The meter was found to be working within acceptable boundaries and I now face a bill of £5651.93.

Given that it is not a meter problem, I guess it must be a wiring problem and, given the level of usage, think it is most likely to be a fault with either the thermostat controlling my underfloor heating or a wiring fault. The dramatic usage increase has occurred since I had the underfloor heating installed in my living room and, while I am aware these systems use a great deal of electricity, have still seen a huge electricity usage when I have been away and the system 'off'.

What I am asking is, am I liable for this usage when it is the result of a fault? If the fault is with the thermometer, can I sue the manufacturer? If the fault is with the wiring, do I have a claim against the electrician who fitted it?

Many thanks.

macman

Yes, of course you are liable if the fault is on your side of the meter. Whether you can recover anything from a third party is much more complex, but why don't you first establish what/where the fault is?

spiro

When you had it installed did you not think to check how much elec it was using and turn it off as soon as you saw the meter spinning like a tornado?

keiron12

Yes I did check, but there was some confusion over which meter was mine - I live in a flat and it is located in a bank of meters. The serial number on my meter does not match exactly that on my bill, which Scottish Power say is because their system can only handle a certain amount of digits. As a result, I was reading a neighbours meter and sending these readings to Scottish Power.

macman

How long has the system been installed in order to rack up a £5.7K bill? What should it be using when full on?
I don't understand how if the system is 'off' then it can still be drawing power. if it is drawing power, where is it all going if it's not generating heat?
Are you sure there is not another issue with your wiring that is involved here?

keiron12

I have not yet had a full investigation of the wiring - I have removed the thermostat from the living room for the past week and am going to compare usages to establish if that really is where the problem is based (though I agree - if it is not generating heat, where is the electricity going?). The system has been installed for 2.5 yrs in the living room and kitchen. Ive had the same system in my bedroom and bathroom for 4-5 years and didn't notice a dramatic increase in my bills, hence why I decided to install it throughout the flat.

rgwhunter

Is a neighbour nicking your electricity perhaps?

If you live in a block of flats i would be checking all my ceiling wiring(and any floor level wiring depending on what level you are on). If you lift the chipboard/floorboards you will probably see your neighbours wiring, which could easily be tapped into.

keiron12

Dont think this is the case - I'm on top floor and have exclusive access to loft space. When I turned off my consumer unit for 5 days, there was zero usage.

Owain_Moneysaver

keiron12 wrote: »

Yes I did check, but there was some confusion over which meter was mine - I live in a flat and it is located in a bank of meters. The serial number on my meter does not match exactly that on my bill, which Scottish Power say is because their system can only handle a certain amount of digits. As a result, I was reading a neighbours meter and sending these readings to Scottish Power.

It's quite possible that there is still a problem over mixed meter readings and that is more likely than you having a 5kW heater running continusously and not knowing it.

Scottish_Power

Hi keiron12

Sorry to hear about your situation. The advice I would give for you in this situation is to get a consumption table created for you showing your average daily use based only on the accurate meter readings received from the meter. This will highlight for you how much electricity is being consumed for certain periods. It may highlight a specific period when your electricity consumption has dramatically changed. This could either highlight what changes within your flat have caused the increase or highlight an error with meter readings used to bill your account.

Just send me an email to [EMAIL="onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com"]onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com[/EMAIL] and I'll provide you with this information.

Kind Regards

Colin @ ScottishPower

keiron12

Thank you Colin.

I have already been in touch with Scottish Power and have this information. I can see when the usage increases, but there is no rational explanation for this. If anything, my electricity usage should have decreased over this time period as I now spend at least two nights a week away from the flat.

I have been told by Scottish Power that, as the fault is not with the meter, I am liable to pay it. They have offered, as a gesture of goodwill, to let me pay it over 12 months at £682/month (to take into account ongoing usage). I'm not sure whether this was sarcasm or not. I would have hoped someone might get in touch when they saw my usage increase from a daily average of 5kWh to 147kWh between two meter reads? Scottish Power's customer charter promises:
'We will conduct regular assessments of Direct Debit accounts to prevent debt building up', yet it is quite clear that no review of my account has taken place.