EBICO Please read this!!!

Melly31
Melly31 Posts: 109 Forumite
Hi folks, just thought i'd tell you my story & it'll hopefully help somebody else?
Joined Ebico April 2006 (supply started May 2006), Southern elec are my suppliers.
My Gas bill has got out of control-£5 per day for a 3 bed semi, brand new combi boiler, gas cooker etc etc (yes i know prices have gone through the roof!), so i started taking more of an interest.
Rang Southern elec and found out i'm supposed to ring them every 3 to 6 months for a refund-NO ONE (INC EBICO) EVER TOLD ME THIS!
Apparently you pay Southern elec tariff prices (inc standing charge-12p per day Gas & £1.40 per wk elec), then Ebico give southern elec the difference between what you pay & the Ebico price (you don't pay a standing charge with Ebico). So Southern elec refund you that difference by cheque-BUT ONLY IF YOU ASK!
So ASK i did, i was due a refund of........
(only) £8 for May-Aug 06 (only put £40 on meter)
£66.56 for Aug-Nov 06 (I'd put £160 on meter)
& they couldn't tell me until 22/02/07 about refund for Nov-Feb 07.
Rang back on 22/02/07 to be told i owe them £10?!?! (i've put £272 on meter Nov-Feb?)
Strange don't ya think?

So after numerous calls to Southern elec i ask to speak to a manager, asked him to explain above, he tells me i only get the standing charge back-NOT THE DIFFERENCE IN THE 2 TARIFFS!
After arguing with him for almost an hour i very kindly told him how stupid he was & hung up.

Next day i rung Ebico, after telling the nice lady my problem she rang SE & THE MANAGER (NOT THE SAME ONE) TOLD HER THAT THIS IS ALL THEY'RE INSTRUCTED TO REFUND CUSTOMERS!?!?! THE STANDING CHARGE!

Anyway I am now getting the difference between the 2 tariffs back thanks to the nice lady at Ebico.

BUT ERM EXCUSE ME, AREN'T THESE 2 COMPANIES SUPPOSED TO HAVE SOME SORT OF A DEAL GOING ON? SO HOW COME 2 MANAGERS AT SOUTHERN ELEC HAVE NO IDEA ABOUT WHAT THIS DEAL ACTUALLY IS?

& HOW MANY OF YOU GUYS ARE NOT GETTING BACK WHAT YOU SHOULD?

I'm now getting a cheque sent to me for £143-the difference in (only for my Gas) the 2 tariffs from May 2006 to now-thats a lot of money i could of lost!

Anyway, please check YOU ARE getting the difference in the 2 tariffs back, as well as your standing charge for both Gas & Electric-the electric i have to say was correct-that department at least seemed to know what they were doing!

Mel.
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Comments

  • roger56
    roger56 Posts: 478 Forumite
    I've always been billed the Ebico tariff stated on Ebico's website with no standing charges: http://www.ebico.co.uk/en/open/pages/tariffsen.php

    Ebico do not have a standing charge and I have never had to reclaim any charges.

    Do make sure your bill clearly states you are on Eguigas or Equipower tariff, if not do get it changed.

    Ebico billing has always been clear and straightforward.
  • roger56 wrote:
    I've always been billed the Ebico tariff stated on Ebico's website....Ebico do not have a standing charge and I have never had to reclaim any charges....Do make sure your bill clearly states you are on Eguigas or Equipower tariff, if not do get it changed.
    I believe 'melly31' operates a pre-payment meter.
    (only) £8 for May-Aug 06 (only put £40 on meter)
    £66.56 for Aug-Nov 06 (I'd put £160 on meter)

    I've bee with EBICO since July 2005 and, just like you, never had any problems. But then, I don't have a pre-payment meter and I have no idea how a pre-payment meter works with EBICO.

    melly31 - get it changed for a credit meter.
  • roger56
    roger56 Posts: 478 Forumite
    melly31 - get it changed for a credit meter.

    I agree, now you're with Ebico, definately consider getting it changed.
    Then, just remember to keep a check on what you've used and save for the
    bill.
  • Acc72
    Acc72 Posts: 1,528 Forumite
    Now I am worried .....

    I have a pre-pay meter with BG, and after months of wrangling have finally received a refund of £600 from BG as we were overcharged (charged on the same tarriff as previous house holder, who had arrears !!).

    I was just about to change to Ebico for both Gas and Electricity, until I read this thread ......

    I thought that if you were on a tarriff for say 10p per unit of gas and you put £10 on your card, then you would get 100 units ??

    Now I am getting confused ........ I thought that there was not a standiong charge etc. ?

    Could anybody help to explain (in basic terms) how this works ??
  • dc
    dc Posts: 2,547 Forumite
    Call me old-fashioned or a control freak, but quarterly billing in arrears, is the only way you cannot be lured into giving the Utility companies a free loan of your money.
    Quarterly billing with EBICO is so simple, "x"p/ unit for gas, "y"p/ unit for leccy, no standing charge.

    Pre-payment meters have historically been a way to charge the the highest tariffs to people who can least afford. So if you can get a credit meter, do so, as has been said.
    If so but you are scared of big bills, you can put the amount you spend weekly on your card into a savings account or a safe place for the 12 weeks of the quarter. Use that to pay the quarterly bill when it arrives, and I believe you will have quite a surplus. It takes a bit of will power but is cheaper, and you only pay for what you use after you have used it.
    ac's lovechild
  • Cardew
    Cardew Posts: 29,036
    Name Dropper First Anniversary First Post Rampant Recycler
    Forumite
    dc wrote:
    Call me old-fashioned or a control freak, but quarterly billing in arrears, is the only way you cannot be lured into giving the Utility companies a free loan of your money.

    You are not giving them a free loan of your money.

    You receive gas/electricity constantly - it is not as if you get no electricity for 3 months and it is all delivered in one go.;)

    So if you start getting electricity on 01 Jan you pay your first DD on 31 Jan, etc so you are paying in effect monthly for something you have already had delivered; instead of paying quarterly for something you have already had delivered.

    Obviously if you do pay quarterly you have the interest on that money, but most Utility companies( not Ebico) give you a financial incentive to be on DD that far outstrips the saving of interest.

    Sometimes you have a debit balance, sometimes you have a credit balance, and ideally they cancel each other out. However generally the Utility companies are owed far more than they owe.

    Granted with Ebico you pay the same regardless of DD or paying quarterly. You can look at that 2 ways:
    no penalty for quarterly payment
    or
    no incentive for DD payments.

    However the main advantage for most of us is the sheer convienience of paying by DD. I suspect a good percentage of Ebico customers pay by DD for just that reason.
  • Domski
    Domski Posts: 107 Forumite
    I'm with Ebico on prepayment gas and spoke to them today.
    I get a cheaper gas tariff to offset the standing charge on
    my newly installed prepayment meter.

    The only people that need to claim cheques back are
    the ones with older British Gas prepayment meters.

    If going with Ebico get them to fit new Prepayment metre.

    I was with British Gas and they were awful and rude, Ebico has been
    wonderful for the 8 months I have been with them.
  • Stuart_W
    Stuart_W Posts: 1,719
    Name Dropper First Post First Anniversary
    Forumite
    melly31 - if you are able to get the meter changed from prepayment without having to pay a large fee, then once you've had your first bill you can use th barcode to make repeated small cash payments via Paypoint - rather than put it on the meter, so you can still pay-as-you-go and not need any refunds sorting out.
  • Acc72
    Acc72 Posts: 1,528 Forumite
    Domski wrote:
    I'm with Ebico on prepayment gas and spoke to them today.
    I get a cheaper gas tariff to offset the standing charge on
    my newly installed prepayment meter.

    The only people that need to claim cheques back are
    the ones with older British Gas prepayment meters.

    If going with Ebico get them to fit new Prepayment metre.

    I was with British Gas and they were awful and rude, Ebico has been
    wonderful for the 8 months I have been with them.


    Thanks Domski - do you have to pay for Ebico to fit a new prepayment meter or is this free ??
  • No its free to have a meter change
    Filiss
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