Conned by npower salesmen

gabbleRatchet

I have a bit of a problem with npower at the moment. Sometime in 2010 I had a couple of their salesmen knock on my door and persuade me to change over to them.

They looked at my previous supplier’s bills and offered a deal which was a lower monthly amount and fixed for the first year. It was probably quite naïve of me to swallow this but at the time it seemed reasonable as an introductory offer.

I changed over to an npower DualFuel tariff and stayed with them for a year during which time my monthly payment became considerably more than the sum they had quoted me so I changed to another supplier and when I received the final bill I disputed it.

I had numerous conversations with their complaints department and after a while I heard no more from them. In December 2011 and January 2012 I received two bills which weren’t for the full amount I was disputing so I paid both of those thinking that they had reduced the final amount because of my complaint.

Then I heard nothing until April this year when a debt collection agency started chasing me. I phoned npower and they now refuse to even discuss it saying that it’s been passed to the debt collector and it’s out of their hands.

So is there anything I can do now or should I just pay up and put it down to experience?

agrinnall

Have you contacted Ofgem? If not, that should be your first port of call.

http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Pages/OfgemHome.aspx

Hintza

This isn't difficult. How much electricity did you use multiplied by the tariff(s) plus any standing charge. Less what you have paid will give you any shortfall.

You must have a final reading when you changed suppliers which you can use to work back.

Is the bill incorrect or not? You need to calculate it out.

Your post is a bit airy fairy and unless you have the numbers then you really don't have an argument.

gabbleRatchet

Hintza wrote: »

This isn't difficult. How much electricity did you use multiplied by the tariff(s) plus any standing charge. Less what you have paid will give you any shortfall.

You must have a final reading when you changed suppliers which you can use to work back.

Is the bill incorrect or not? You need to calculate it out.

Your post is a bit airy fairy and unless you have the numbers then you really don't have an argument.

Perhaps you should try reading it again.

I was told by the salesman that the tariff was fixed for the first year and it wasn't.

Is that any clearer?

gabbleRatchet

agrinnall wrote: »

Have you contacted Ofgem? If not, that should be your first port of call.

No I haven't. I was always under the impression that watchdogs were pretty toothless.

I will give them a try if you think it's worth doing.

meggsy

Ofgem doesn't take consumer complaints, you need the Energy Ombudsman OP

http://www.ombudsman-services.org/energy.html

I would also post this on the Gas & Electricity Board

The starting low monthly payment is typical of npower, that is how they get you to sign up, only for you to find increases or debt later in the year. They stopped all door step selling last year.

gabbleRatchet

jannowretired wrote: »

The tariff is what you pay per kWh.

If the tariff is 10p and you use 4000 kWh you will pay £400

If you use 5000 kWh you will pay £500.

The tariff is still the same.

These figures are not actual prices, they are for illustration purposes only.

I know what a tariff is. I don't really get your point

gabbleRatchet

meggsy wrote: »

Ofgem doesn't take consumer complaints, you need the Energy Ombudsman OP



I would also post this on the Gas & Electricity Board

The starting low monthly payment is typical of npower, that is how they get you to sign up, only for you to find increases or debt later in the year. They stopped all door step selling last year.

Yeah that's pretty much it. I'll give them a try. Unfortunately it seems like it's just my word against theirs.

neilmcl

gabbleRatchet wrote: »

I know what a tariff is. I don't really get your point

The point is your tariff would have been fixed NOT your monthly bill.

gabbleRatchet

neilmcl wrote: »

The point is your tariff would have been fixed NOT your monthly bill.

As I stated in my OP they based the amount I would pay monthly on my previous usage. It was the tariff that kept rising NOT my usage

bod1467

It may have been sold as a fixed monthly charge based on expected usage. So the question then would be - was the usage more, less or the same as expected?

Edit: OP replied as I was typing.
So, what was the actual usage? Did it match (near enough) your previous usage?