Need advice please? x

Lucy110182

Hello, I was wanting to know if anyone can give me some advice!

Oct 2009 I moved out of my property gave over (as the nor) my meter reads for both Gas and Elec.
I received my final bill for Gas and we paid what was owing. The Gas and Elec was with the same company and both were being paid by direct debit every month.
We had nothing in regards to the Elec so we thought that what we had been paying monthly covered what we used.
So two days (April 2012) ago I get an Elec bill from them date 4th Feb 2010 for a bill of £176.
This is the first time they have tried to contact me as the old property I live in 2 of my friends moved into that house and gave me any mail I had forgot to give my new address to and they lived there for maybe over a year from moving in Dec 2009.
So my question is do I have to pay this as they have made no effort to contact me before now even though they have my contact number and had my new forwarding address?

Would be great if someone could tell me how to go about this!
Thanks x

jalexa

Lucy110182 wrote: »

So two days (April 2012) ago I get an Elec bill from them date 4th Feb 2010 for a bill of £176.

You may be entitled to backbilling relief under the "Billing Code".

http://www.energy-uk.org.uk/publication/finish/43-code-of-practice-for-accurate-bills/412-the-code-of-practice-for-accurate-bills-back-billing-for-domestic-customers.html

Decide for yourself and ask the supplier. Make sure you keep scrupulous records of any contact with the supplier. If the supplier declines post again for further advice.

Lucy110182

I also forgot to say that i gave my meter reads when i moved out in Oct 2009 and the bill i received 2 days ago say its estimated? So how do i pay for something that is estimated and 3 years old now?

macman

Dispute the bill and get them to resissue it based on the readings you supplied. Unless of course the estimated one is in your favour.

Terrylw1

Sounds ti me like the account has been held in some sort of suspense or it had been closed down to produce a nil balance onn the elec.

If it was in suspence so no bill at all could be produced, ofgems code states you cannot bill any consumption older than 12 months where no energy is being billed for. This is aside from the billing code.

There is thread just like this on the board. Are you Bgas?

Lucy110182

Ok so I called company SE last night to ask why it has taken 3 years to send the bill and asked why it was estimated as I gave a reading when I moved out?
They have said they did received the reading and didn't know why it said estimated on the bill and that also they have only just done a check of all old records of outstanding bills and that's where they came across mine. To which the chap on the phone told me that their was no finale bill sent and no follow up letters sent after I moved and that they had not chased the bill until now!! ( even tho they had a contact number for me for all this time )
Am I in the right to not to pay this bill as I called them to give them my final reading and date I was leaving the property and yet they have done nothing until now 3 years later!!!

jalexa

Lucy110182 wrote: »

Am I in the right to not to pay this bill

OK, a technical answer to make a point. It is never "right" not to pay a bill. The issue is whether it is "right" for Southern Electric to have issued the bill.

Please study the "Billing Code" link in my earlier post. On the face of it 12 month backbilling relief applies. You should not need to ask but you may have to.

You didn't mention in your OP that your supplier was Southern Electric. SSE companies, of which Southern Electric is trading name, are not signatories to the "Billing Code", however there is an equivalent measure (required by supply regulations) in their Customer Charter.
http://www.southern-electric.co.uk/uploadedFiles/CoreMarketingSites/Assets/Documents/CustomerCharterSouthernElectric.pdf

see page 24

Lucy110182

Yeah i know and i don't want to just leave it as i don't want a bad debt to my name! I'd be ok to pay it but i think its just wrong how they have gone about it!
I was thinking of maybe going to my local citizens advice to ask them what i should do?
I have read through the link above but i'm not getting it! ( I'm not the brightest spark ) lol.

jalexa

Lucy110182 wrote: »

I have read through the link above but i'm not getting it! ( I'm not the brightest spark ) lol.

You may not have seen my edit to my most recent post. Just phone up Southern Electric and refer them to page 24 of the Customer Charter.

Lucy110182

No i didn't. Thank you i have it now.

Terrylw1

So your account was in suspense with no bills being produced. Well aside from the billing code, ofgems policy prohibits suppliers charging for periods over 12 months where no energy was being billed.

Raise it to their complaints team. They sat on their back sides doing nothing and now they have been checking old aged issues to find they've just stopped billing people? That's their problem.

Also, have your friends been sent bills by them? If so, I dont think I trust who you spoke to since you wouldn't normally have 2 live customer accounts to the same property in a billing system.