Scottish Power can they do Maths?

Sandybanks

Hello everyone,
I am involved with a long running dispute with Scottish Power which seems to be caused by their inability to do maths. Ive just had their latest reply by email and I wonder if anyone could confirm that my figures are correct.
Scottish Power say my annual usage is 46.82 units per day and at a price of 10.39p a unit and 19.96p a day standard charge my annual bill is projected to be £5,564.36. I assume that this includes vat and ccl and that the other prices dont.
On my calculations usage is £1775.58 and standing charge is £72.85 a total of £1848.43. Add to this ccl at 0.509p per unit (£86.98) and Vat at 20% (£387.08) gives a grand total of £2249.64
Am I correct? Please give yourself 10/10 and a gold star for effort if you have the same answer!
How do I prove it to them that they are wrong? Has anyone else had this problem as frankly I think a 5 year old could do better than the last 3 Annual Statements!

Scottish_Power

Hi Sandybanks we can check this out for you if you e-mail details to [EMAIL="onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com"]onlinecomplaints@scottishpower.com[/EMAIL] Thanks David

Sandybanks

Hi David, thanks for your offer.I have had people helping me at Scottish Power before but they have not been able to get the answer right to this sum. Before you can help me I need to be sure that your maths is up to par. The details you need to pass the test are all in the question. Are you up to the challenge?

Wywth

Sandybanks wrote: »

Hello everyone,
I am involved with a long running dispute with Scottish Power which seems to be caused by their inability to do maths. Ive just had their latest reply by email and I wonder if anyone could confirm that my figures are correct.
Scottish Power say my annual usage is 46.82 units per day and at a price of 10.39p a unit and 19.96p a day standard charge my annual bill is projected to be £5,564.36. I assume that this includes vat and ccl and that the other prices dont.
On my calculations usage is £1775.58 and standing charge is £72.85 a total of £1848.43. Add to this ccl at 0.509p per unit (£86.98) and Vat at 20% (£387.08) gives a grand total of £2249.64
Am I correct? Please give yourself 10/10 and a gold star for effort if you have the same answer!
How do I prove it to them that they are wrong? Has anyone else had this problem as frankly I think a 5 year old could do better than the last 3 Annual Statements!

Sandybanks wrote: »

Hi David, thanks for your offer.I have had people helping me at Scottish Power before but they have not been able to get the answer right to this sum. Before you can help me I need to be sure that your maths is up to par. The details you need to pass the test are all in the question. Are you up to the challenge?

Your OP includes assumptions at the very least.

You have been offered help. If you don't want help, what is the purpose of you posting here? :huh:

lindsayg_2

Although my default position is that all the energy companies are utter, utter b%%sta^rds, I feel obliged to admit that when I have challenged Scottish Gas - armed with regular meter reading information - they have accepted my figures.

They recently increased my direct debit, which was irritating, but as the winter grinds on it looks like they got the amount right, as the credit on my account is getting close to zero as we get to the coldest part of the year.

Why their charges are so high is another discussion, and one my blood pressure can't afford to get into. Their executives, raking in the millions as they do, can probably go private for blood pressure care.

Just as a side note: if the energy company owe you money because of regular payments you make, then legally that's still your money and you have the right to get it back. This was confirmed by a recent Which? report into certain companies withholding.

Sandybanks

Wywth wrote: »

Your OP includes assumptions at the very least.

You have been offered help. If you don't want help, what is the purpose of you posting here? :huh:

Which part of my post are the assumptions? My purpose for posting on here was to get help from Forum members to reassure me that my figures are correct. At the moment Scottish Power are saying that the rubbish that comes out of their computer is correct and that they have no control over it.
Quoting from my past 2 Annual statements,

Annual Statement October 2011
Your usage for the next 12 months will be £6357.62
And your direct debit will be £294 (x12) £3538.00
SHORT BY £2819.62

Annual Statement October 2012
Your usage for the next 12 months will be £6362.87
And your direct debit will be £376 (x12) £4512.00
SHORT BY £1850.87

The purpose of them setting the direct debit is to pay off your annual bill, these direct debits dont.

We have been a customer for over 3 years we have monthly readings, they have usage figures yet the computer keeps sending us this.

A quote from Scottish Powers reply to us pointing this out.
"Scottish Power would not deliberately reduce an installment to put a customer in debt" so what are the figures in bold going to do?

If I posted some of the bills you wont believe the mess the computer gets them into and we do send correcting actual readings.

Wywth

Sandybanks wrote: »

Which part of my post are the assumptions?

This bit

Sandybanks wrote: »

I assume that this includes ...

Now how about taking up the offer of help from the SP rep?
Or don't you actually have an SP account at all ???

Sandybanks

Well that assumption is just a figure of speech. It actually does include vat and climate Levy.
There wont be much to these forums if the only answer everyone got was to speak to the company representative.

For 3 years running Scottish Power Reps have directly attempted to sort my account and each time have had their work undone by their own system.
It follows the same pattern. We highlight the problem, it takes an exchange of emails, they finally understand, we agree action and then the computer changes the direct debit and it all goes to hell. If any human being working at Scottish Power was able to "lock down" the direct debit then we would not have a problem. They say they cannot.


As I am new and you have plenty of experience would you say that the company reps are on here to help or to prevent the discussion of their companies problems in public?
Are the company reps Money Savers who happen to work for Scottish Power or the other way round?
Could the Scottish Power rep point me in the direction of details of the objective of their direct debit system?

Tarian

Wywth said:
"You have been offered help. If you don't want help, what is the purpose of you posting here?
Your OP includes assumptions at the very least"

On another thread Wywth seems to find unit prices very difficult to understand so you can make your own mind up about his contribution.

The only assumption that I can see is that VAT is to be added.

Your arithmetic seems fine [i.e. units x days x unit price + sc (another unit price) x days] - with one (silly?) mistake in the final total posted of £2249.64. I think you missed the £72.85 - so your total would be £2,322.49.
Would you agree?

Wywth might mention other factors such as discounts for payment method or on-line - but these would reduce the bill (which anyone with basic sums could calculate).

Your point seems to be that Scottish Power present a much larger £ amount of over £6,000 - with a DD that relates neither to £6,000+ nor your calculation.

Clearly there is a mis-match between your (broadly) correct calculation and the £ amounts Scottish Power forecast/DD.

Is it possible that you have misread the bill somehow. e.g.
"Your usage for the next 12 months will be £6362.87"

(Being pedantic?), a £ amount is not "usage" but a cost resulting from the usage of units (+ a SC before Wywth picks me up for imprecision).

Sandybanks

Your point seems to be that Scottish Power present a much larger £ amount of over £6,000 - with a DD that relates neither to £6,000+ nor your calculation.

This is the exact point I am making and they are unable and unwilling to explain how it happens. They are happy to send Excel spreadsheets with direct debit amounts and invoice amounts over set periods but they have not provided their workings for the predicted amounts on the annual statement.

What is also interesting is the fact that the annual statements have no mention of units used either for the year just gone or the one predicted. I believe in some ways its actually an attempt to hide the cost and hope that if your direct debit monthly amount seems reasonable you wont notice the price per unit. Which did in fact increase by 46% for the units and 95% for the standing charge.

I realize you are thinking that Scottish Power could not have got it so far wrong and I must have made a mistake. I can assure you that except for the odd silly mistake I haven't.

jalexa

Sandybanks wrote: »

I am involved with a long running dispute with Scottish Power

Why choose a long running dispute over raising a complaint on the first occasion you are dissatisfied with a customer service outcome? As a "micro business" (which I think you are) the Energy Ombudsman scheme is open to you after 8 weeks.

Your later point "What is also interesting is the fact that the annual statements have no mention of units used either for the year just gone or the one predicted" is indeed interesting even if you say so yourself:D. Regulations require domestic consumers to receive an annual statement containing actual (or estimated) kwHrs for the previous 12 months and a cost for the next 12 months based on the stated previous 12 months consumption at current tariff rates. I am reluctant to believe Scottish Power can't provide that for a domestic consumer and suspect as a business user you are being treated differently or perhaps for unknown reasons, a unique situation. In your case the contract has greater weight. Refer to that again, in particular the contract end-date and notice requirements.:)