Economy 7 meter removed - and we save - can we backdate?

Toad

Hi All,
We insisted on having our economy 7 meter removed on the grounds that because only a tiny percentage of our usage was at night that we would make a saving.

It wasn't until recently that we discovered that on E7 - the daytime rate is higher than usual!! So you're usually not making a savinf unless you're using a fair amount of electricity at night - and we're not.

I have asked nPower to backdate our bill (by adding together day + night) to when we first moved in on the grounds that they should have been transparent about the difference in costs and that they also knew our consumption from previous addresses and the usual consumption of the previous tenent - they even told us their direct debit amount - They use this to estimate the direct debit so the darn well knew that we would not benefit from E7!

Do you think I might have a case for a complaint and get my bills backdated to a more sensible tarrif?

jalexa

Toad wrote: »

I have asked nPower to backdate our bill (by adding together day + night) to when we first moved in on the grounds that they should have been transparent about the difference in costs...

The tariff is transparent.

Do you think I might have a case for a complaint and get my bills backdated to a more sensible tarrif?

No

Toad

How is the tariff transparent?
We were told our options for the meter we had installed - we were not told that we could change the meter and make savings - as far as we were concerned, the meter is the meter we have and that's it.
If they were transparent they would have explained this option on the phone when singing up.

nPower

Hi Toad,

When you move into a new property you need to let us know what tariff you need as each customer's circumstances could be completely different to the previous occupier.

You've mentioned that we should use your previous consumption but again this could change - you could have moved into a larger house, have more appliances, etc.

When we open an account, we send you a welcome letter which clearly states the tariff that you are on and then you can contact us to query this if you want to change it.

Hope this helps!

Kind regards,

Adam

Atidi

Being the legacy supplier, we've been supplied by nPower for decades, on their standard tariff.

It wasn't until recently that we discovered we could get a much more favourable tariff from them which is now saving us a small fortune.

I was going to ask nPower to backdate our bills to when we first moved in 30 odd years ago on the grounds that they should have been transparent about the difference in costs of their standard tariff and their more competitive offerings.

Does this now mean we can't expect a huge refund either? :cool:

Toad

Hi Adam,
Thanks for the information.
However when we signed up I was given a DD based on the previous occupants usage. I pointed out that they had three children a lot older than our 1 baby and they actively used all rooms with TVs and games consoles in each. Whereas we used only one room. I was told that the DD must be set up with the property's consumption history and not my own. The agent insisted upon this and would not listen. Today I ahve requested a review of the DD amount based on consumption.

(we've also started replacing all our bulbs with LED alternatives saving up to 80% on lighting costs)

Furthermore, the tariff information gives the current information but does not say "hey, you have an E7 meter - this means you pay more unless you use a lot of overnight electricity". In my opinion, the energy companies should be more transparent on this particular point.

Sounds to me like the electricity companies know that the idea of E7 is not as valid as it used to be and they're just keeping quiet to make the extra profit on the daytime rate or the daily standing charges.

As far as I'm concerned, I've been miss sold a tariff in exactly the same way people have been miss sold PPI and it's going to be hard for me to see otherwise.

Toad

Atidi wrote: »

Being the legacy supplier, we've been supplied by nPower for decades, on their standard tariff.

It wasn't until recently that we discovered we could get a much more favourable tariff from them which is now saving us a small fortune.

I was going to ask nPower to backdate our bills to when we first moved in 30 odd years ago on the grounds that they should have been transparent about the difference in costs of their standard tariff and their more competitive offerings.

Does this now mean we can't expect a huge refund either? :cool:

I understand your point and maybe it sounds like I've seen 2 products on the shelf, taken the more expensive one and now want a refund a year later, but that's not the case.

Because the E7 meter was fitted I was forced onto an E7 tariff and told this was the ONLY option. I had to go E7. Therefore I chose the best E7 tariff that was available, to my knowledge.

As it happens, I later discovered that I am within my rights to demand the removal of this meter to go onto a single rate tariff (thanks to an agent when I called Scottish Power who did volunteer the information right away).

So, as far as I'm concerned, I was told this was the ONLY option and quite clearly it wasn't. Other products were available but concealed from view by the very presence of the type of meter already being present in the property.

If I recall correctly, I was asked 'what type of meter is installed?... right.. here are your options' ... which did not include 'we can replace the meter and here are your further options'

espresso

You have not been "miss sold a tariff in exactly the same way people have been miss sold PPI" at all. When you moved into the property you were required to register with the current supplier which you did. You then could have changed the tariff to the most suitable one for your requirements or probably better still used a comparison site to find the best deal elsewhere.

You were not forced to stay on E7, how would any supplier know if you had ripped out expensive electric heating and installed gas central heating etc? It was up to you to decide which tariff you wanted to be on e.g. E7, standard, dual fuel, fixed etc. etc. You can't blame your supplier for your ignorance and expect to be refunded for it as well! Have you actually used a comparison site to find the best deal?

Toad

espresso wrote: »

You have not been "miss sold a tariff in exactly the same way people have been miss sold PPI" at all. When you moved into the property you were required to register with the current supplier which you did. You then could have changed the tariff to the most suitable one for your requirements or probably better still used a comparison site to find the best deal elsewhere.

You were not forced to stay on E7, how would any supplier know if you had ripped out expensive electric heating and installed gas central heating etc? It was up to you to decide which tariff you wanted to be on e.g. E7, standard, dual fuel, fixed etc. etc. You can't blame your supplier for your ignorance and expect to be refunded for it as well! Have you actually used a comparison site to find the best deal?

As I was told that I must remain on an E7 tariff then I would dispute that I was not miss sold. Surely being told "you must have PPI" and "you must have E7" is very similar indeed.

I agree that I was ignorant of the option to have the meter removed, but I'm not an expert in energy supply and would expect this to be listed as an option. I am also not expected to know the history of a property I'm renting to know that the heating had been replaced (a long time ago looking at the boiler!)

I have used comparison sites and they say the nPower is the best in my area and indeed I have found that overall nPower are a better company to deal with (except for this one issue) and I'm happy with their level of customer service.

Edit: removed the part about uSwitch not asking about overnight - I hadn't seen the E7 option

Edit again: using the same values for consumptions I tried with and without the E7 options. With E7 it suggest a saving of 5p/year. But if I go for a non-E7 tariff with the same consumption (adding the day and night) then I see a saving of over 100/year - however, nowhere does it say - 'hey - you'll save more taking off the E7 !!"

Richie-from-the-Boro

- dwelling .1. - 12 bedrooms / 12 baths per night / 18 night store heater commercial B & B
- dwelling .2. - little~old~lady / Housing Association one bedroom flat / sit in electric shower / 2 night store heaters

When each moved in they were immediately on a 'deemed contract' they each then decided their preferred tariff, or negotiated a new different tariff with their existing supplier or changed to a new supplier. That's how it works.

You the householder chose from a menu of options [tariffs] and your supplier contracts with you. Its your job to know and ask them questions, your ignorance is not a defence.

Sorry Toad my friend, its an 'own goal' as far as I can see !

Toad

Richie-from-the-Boro wrote: »

- dwelling .1. - 12 bedrooms / 12 baths per night / 18 night store heater commercial B & B
- dwelling .2. - little~old~lady / Housing Association one bedroom flat / sit in electric shower / 2 night store heaters

When each moved in they were immediately on a 'deemed contract' they each then decided their preferred tariff, or negotiated a new different tariff with their existing supplier or changed to a new supplier. That's how it works.

You the householder chose from a menu of options [tariffs] and your supplier contracts with you. Its your job to know and ask them questions, your ignorance is not a defence.

Sorry Toad my friend, its an 'own goal' as far as I can see !

I agree, with consideration to the entire thread I see that on the whole I should have done my research and if nPower do not agree to the backdating to before the meter was changed then I'll have to take it on the chin. However, we should be able to have a certain degree of trust in these large suppliers.

But what I will also take from this is not to trust that I am being given all the information and that I'm likely to be ripped off at every turn even if this is only through omission.

Should the newsletter maybe run an article on E7 and see how many other people can save?