EDF bill rip-off

zagfles

backfoot wrote: »

Taken from the ERA COP on Accurate Billing:

How do energy suppliers calculate estimated meter readings?

[FONT=Arial,Arial][FONT=Arial,Arial]They will estimate a customer’s energy consumption by considering the amount of energy the customer has used previously, the amount of energy used by other customers who occupy similar types of homes and whether it’s a time of year when a customer is likely to use more or less energy.

The likelihood is therefore that no account of current year's seasonality and weather conditions has been considered. As in the OP's example this will result in an overcharge of units at the higher post increase price rate.

EDF will be happy to amend queried accounts but I imagine they wouldn't volunteer any global adjustment.
[/FONT][/FONT]

Thanks! So EDF must think February is a time of year where customers are likely to use less energy than April & May!

In fairness to EDF, I've only been with them since last summer so they can't have built up an accurate pattern of usage over the seasons for me individually, but they should be aware from my gas usage that heating must be the major part of it and so it should be obvious I'd use more in the colder months as per the last point they are supposed to consider.

Anyway hopefully I'm sorted - but it'd be interesting to see if they've done this to other people.

zagfles

Flem wrote: »

How many other customers will they have done the same to that probably won’t even notice. It’s called ripping off your customers.

Yes, I suspect the vast majority won't notice. How many customers will even look at their bill closely enough to notice there's an estimate on the date of the price change, let alone work out the units per day for before and after the change?

grizzle_veteran

zagfles wrote: »

Just had my gas bill off EDF. They made a big deal about not raising their prices till after the winter unlike most others - prices went up on 2 March.

My bill covers the period early Feb till late May (nearly 4 months, for some reason). It has an actual reading at the start and at the end, and an estimated reading on 2 March, the date of the price change.

I worked out the units per day they "estimated" I used in both periods, before and after the price rise. They estimated that I used LESS gas per day in February than I did in March/April/May! As the vast majority of gas I use is for heating, this is clearly rubbish especially considering how warm it was in April.

Just tried phoning them as they're supposed to be open till 8pm, but "they are upgrading their systems" so they're closing their lines at 6pm.

Anyone else had similar? Did you get anywhere challenging the "estimate"?

So the basic logic would be this: start read + (((end read) - (start read) / (end date) - (start date)) * (price change date) - start date)) In other words the should pro-rata the usage and evenly spread according to the number of days in the price change occurred. I think everyone here understands that as a good starting point. This alone shows that the usage should not be higher on the second half of the bill. If we factor in the seasonal variations of average usage it's an easy argument to get the company (probably after speaking to a manager only) to recalculate your bill to this effect. I'm sure there is an ofgem endorsed figure regarding base-level seasonal variation which could be factored in but in this case it's not even worth looking it up as they are so wrong!

grizzle_veteran

moonrakerz wrote: »

yawn...........................................

You troll only yourself, ignorant person.

grizzle_veteran

intermynan wrote: »

What a load of rubbish.

For a start, the inability to get accurate reads is NOT the responsibility of the company. It is the responsiblity of the customer to PROVIDE THEM. The meters only legally have to be read by a meter operator every 2 years.

This, therefore, renders your entire post, a load of crap.

Oh the irony. Your post lacks any helpful or even relevant new content. You try to counter a point not even made by anyone else with a less than helpful tone. Maybe try to help the OP instead of furthering your own agenda? Your point about reading the meter is correct but entirely irrelevant as the reads in this care are not the issue - it's the calculation used to apportion usage between two fixed points (i.e. actual reads and dates). Why do you even bother posting here?

grizzle_veteran

Sorry i just read the whole thread and realised the point has been answered many times over! Internyman - such an opinionated obnoxious troll but actually correct in relation to reading the meters. In reality, the suppliers will take responsibility for any issues resulting from not having read the meter in a two year period (excluding mitigating factors such as a lack of access to the property, etc), but not for any billing issues resulting from a lack of accurate reads within any two year period. I used to work for an energy company and i can tell you that this opinion is bolstered by rote repetition several levels above the grunts you speak to on the phone. It would and (arguably) should be the case that your supplier should take the lead on keeping you accurately billed, well informed and on the best tariffs. Unfortunately they follow the money and people tend to join campanies who spend a lot on advertising, field sales agents, welcome bonuses, etc and not on the customer services they get. I, personally, blame consumers for chasing the savings and not prioritising customer services surveys, but if that's what the masses want, that's what they get.

backfoot

grizzle_veteran wrote: »

It would and (arguably) should be the case that your supplier should take the lead on keeping you accurately billed, well informed and on the best tariffs. Unfortunately they follow the money and people tend to join campanies who spend a lot on advertising, field sales agents, welcome bonuses, etc and not on the customer services they get. I, personally, blame consumers for chasing the savings and not prioritising customer services surveys, but if that's what the masses want, that's what they get.

:eek: So I shop around to get the best deal for an essentially identical product. Until I deal with them, I only have the experience of others which show that they are all pitiful with regard to Customer Service within their core business.

I've probably dealt with them all by now and there have always been some problem or other of differing magnitude.

I don't follow advertising,sales agents just regularly do a check using a comparison website.

Why is that my fault? Which company do you recommend based on Customer Service?

Dougieblackwood

Just before we went on holiday last week there was shock & horror that a Scottish power company had increased it's tarriff by a large amount. We got home yesterday to find, among the mail, an announcement from EDF that our tarriffs are being changed. There was nothing to indicate the amount of the change and a quick search on line finds no announcement of the percentage increase.

I run my own comparison based on my annual usage and the published rates of all of the main cartel members. So far I have not been through them all but EDF have increased my "fixed rate on line saver" by almost 20% for gas and almost 30% for electricity. Needless to say I will update my spreadsheet once all of the other players have taken their bite at the cherry.

The bit that really annoys is the attempt to disguise the rate change by juggling daily charges and costs per kilowatt. The daily charge went down by a fair bit but that is insignificant in comparison to the increase in the rate per kilowatt.

There is no real action from the supposed regulator. They only wring their hands and lament about the problem rather than clamping down on these companies and a. making their prices transparent without the necessity for complicated spreadsheets b. banning the golden handcuffs where the consumer is charged to leave the company that rips them off.

backfoot

Dougieblackwood wrote: »

I run my own comparison based on my annual usage and the published rates of all of the main cartel members. So far I have not been through them all but EDF have increased my "fixed rate on line saver" by almost 20% for gas and almost 30% for electricity.

Can you clarify which tariff you are on?

I would be surprised if it was a fixed rate tariff.

EDF have written to customers regarding Online Saver 7 which is a variable priced tariff. Prices have increased dramatically on this tariff. 18% for me.

HalloweenJack

they`ve increased on july 14th , because they were not increased in march

or did you all think that power at 40% below standard rate was going to last??