Business Stream Scotland Charges & Customer Service

emy_sheba

Hi I am writing this for a family member. They have a very small shop with a small sink and toilet, they have been ill and the shop has been shut for nearly a year. They have been hounded by Business Stream to the extent it has caused them to have a breakdown for a bill of over £1000.00 which is what they reckoned had been used in water before they fitted the meter for a year??? They are now getting a bill of £118.00 a month before any water charges are added this is charges for the meter! Obviously there are no charges for water at present as shop has been shut. They are paying this large bill back at £50.00 a month which was an agreement made over the phone with there customer service. Customer service told them last week there is no agreement in place even though they have paid £250 so far, and they will be cutting them off. If they need the water reconnected it will mean getting new pipes laid etc???? We are at the end of our tether with this and do not know where to turn for help. The customer service said on Thursday " Well you have the shop, sell it and pay of this debt, and stay at home, that will save you money"! I have dealt with them too and I have never come across such poor customer service and threatening behaviour. Has anyone else had similar service from Business Stream Scotland? Or similar treatment?

Kind Regards

Business_Stream

Hi there

First of all, let me apologise for your experience with our customer service team. That’s simply not how we want to conduct our business with our customers and you should not have been spoken to in this way – we’re currently looking into the matter and will be taking steps to address it. In the meantime, we want to help you find a solution to this issue as quickly as possible. We’d like the chance to speak to you more, so please call me directly on 0131 338 3240 or email me at sarah.scott (at) business-stream.co.uk

Yours sincerely


Sarah Scott
Customer Relations Manager
Business Stream

Gothicfairy

Sarah...you need permission to post here for a company or it will be removed.

Gothicfairy

emy_sheba wrote: »

Hi I am writing this for a family member. They have a very small shop with a small sink and toilet, they have been ill and the shop has been shut for nearly a year. They have been hounded by Business Stream to the extent it has caused them to have a breakdown for a bill of over £1000.00 which is what they reckoned had been used in water before they fitted the meter if it is for an RV bill then usage has nothing to do with it, RV is based on the rateable value of the property and is payable unless the account is in void..ie the water can and will be disconnected. Also the bill will be for surface water drainage etc which remains payable for companies of a certain size no matter whatfor a year??? They are now getting a bill of £118.00 a month before any water charges are added this is charges for the meter Does this include SWD ? it seems high for a small shop ? what size meter / banding are they applying for this charge! Obviously there are no charges for water at present as shop has been shut. They are paying this large bill back at £50.00 a month which was an agreement made over the phone with there customer service. Customer service told them last week there is no agreement in place even though they have paid £250 so far, and they will be cutting them off. If they need the water reconnected it will mean getting new pipes laid not true, they will not remove the pipes, there is a way they can disconnect and leave 99% of the pipe work intact although a charge can be applied for reconnection etc???? We are at the end of our tether with this and do not know where to turn for help. The customer service said on Thursday " Well you have the shop, sell it and pay of this debt, and stay at home, that will save you money"! I have dealt with them too and I have never come across such poor customer service and threatening behaviour. Has anyone else had similar service from Business Stream Scotland? Or similar treatment?

Kind Regards

You should not have been spoken to like that at all but if the bill is based on set charges (RV or assessed) then it is valid if they are not told the property is empty..that I am afraid is a fact.
The payment plan should have been set and have paperwork to prove it as it should have been on the system. Without you would have problems unless you can remember the date of the call and are lucky enough that the call was recorded ( not all are )

The way forward now would be a proper payment plan and for the water to be disconnected (temp) until things are back on their feet.

Shame Sarah could not address some of the point here though as it might well help others with the same problem.

Former_MSE_Andrea

Hi everyone

Just to let you know, we've spoken to Business Stream and they are genuinely from the company but they won't be permitted to answer any more questions. As the question's been answered though we've left the post.


Andrea