ARGH EDF!! Switch nightmare.

JayZ

I am soooo cheesed off (trying to be polite - finding it very difficult!) with EDF energy. We switched in november 2010 and it has just been !!!! up after !!!! up. It took over a year to move the gas to us, and when they did they had an opening meter reading of 00068 - resulting in a bill of £8k!! Surely somebody could have looked at that and realised it couldn't possibly be correct for a resdential property. We phoned and thought it was fixed then they took £1k from our account!! We had to claim this back as we didn't have the money. We phoned them and they sent us a new bill saying we were £68 in credit but we didn't realise this was before the £1k was retuned to us. Next thing we are receiving red letters showing we owe them £1k without any explanation of why. so we phoned to check and, despite paying monthly since Dec 2010, apparently we still owe them £1k and they want payment by 15 July! Now I am on maternity leave so frankly that isn't going to happen. I'm really really annoyed as we paid off all of our debts before the baby came and we have an excellent credit rating. I wish I had NEVER EVER switched and I'm going back to Scottish Power - their excellent customer service is worth the extra money.

jalexa

JayZ wrote: »

we still owe them £1k and they want payment by 15 July! Now I am on maternity leave so frankly that isn't going to happen.

Unfortunately you may find your switch will be "debt-blocked".

Your situation is both easy and difficult to deal with. You only need to give the supplier one and only one opportunity to resolve an issue 100% to your satisfaction. If you are not satisfied raise a formal complaint strictly in accordance with complaints procedure, by email or Recorded Delivery letter. If the Complaint is not resolved 100% to your satisfaction within 8 weeks you are then entitled to refer the matter to the Energy Ombudsman.

Why did you let this drift?

dogshome

OK - You are now embroiled in a Debt problem caused by EDF and until you write them a letter headed COMPLAINT, their system will just grind on attempting to collect a Phantom Debt

The letter should stop all further demands for payment until the problem is resolved - If you get any demands from a Collection Agency, tell them to refer the matter back to EDF

Hopefully you have a note of the Meter Reading you gave for the switch, but proof positive of the meters reading at that time is the figure on the Final Bill you recieved from your previous supplier

JayZ

I have the final bill from Scottish Power. I didn't let it drift, they sent me a bill on 22 May 2012 saying we were £68.88 in credit. Then a letter on 4 June 2012 demanding £1k.

I have sent an email complaint and we have telephoned them for an explanation but of course the email standard response is 'within 10 days' so I think I will have to write a letter like you suggest.

dogshome

It would be nice if you had a record of the Gas reading you gave EDF when they asked for it and advised you of the date on which they would be your supplier, but it appears from your second post that you do not have this record.

Scot Power
Scot Powers final bill should be based on the Gas reading you gave to EDF, and it's EDF who pass it on to SP.
It seems SP are confused as they issued a Final Bill listing a credit balance, and then a letter with a £1k demand
A letter is not a bill and SP cannot demand a payment based on it.

I'm afraid it's down to yet another letter headed Complaint, this time to SP insisting they issue a fully detailed bill for this £1k demand.

Meanwhile
EDF
Write Complaint letter rejecting the Start meter reading on their bill enclosing with it a copy of your letter to SP, and stating that you will not accept any further bills from them until they and SP have settled the matter of the Change-Over reading to your satisfaction. (But if you are paying EDF by Direct Debits, keep the payments going)