Letter complaining to npower - please help

smiler34

Had some problems with a wrong final bill from npower which was only the start of it, the letter explains the rest could someone please read it and tell me if it sounds ok. Thanks.


To whom it may concern,
I am writing to complain about the total incompetence that my recent complaint about an incorrect bill was dealt with. First I rang several times about this bill only to be told over and over that the bill was correct, only after having to ask for a team manager and explaining very simply what was wrong with the bill did your company actually realise there was a fault with the bill. The team manager I spoke to assured me the bill would be dealt with and we would be kept informed of the progress throughout. After a couple of weeks of waiting we received a final demand bill for the wrong bill which I ignored as I assumed some wires had got crossed and the situation was being sorted. Then a few weeks later we received yet another final demand bill stating that a debt collection agency would be called if we didn’t pay the WRONG bill immediately. After reading this I was obviously quite worried and so rang the helpline again, I explained the situation to one of your customer advisors who told me the bill was correct and I would have to speak to a team manager, then when I spoke to the team manager she told me the complaint process was still going through and the customer advisor I had just spoke to had obviously not read this. She assured me that she had put a hold on the account and we would receive no further letters about paying this bill until the matter was solved. I was quite happy to accept this, however, a few weeks later we received a letter from a debt collection agency regarding the bill informing us that we must pay it immediately. Once again I called your helpline, I was then told that there was no hold on the account even though the team manager I spoke to the last time I called was adamant that this would be done. I took the name of the advisor I spoke to this time, which was (name, date and time here) she again told me the account would be put on hold and I would receive no further letters requesting payment for the wrong bill. Finally a few days ago I received a call from your customer service team to tell me the bill was indeed incorrect and I would be sent a revised bill within 14 days. Then when I got home I had another letter, this letter was from another debt collection agency and stated that if we didn’t pay the incorrect original bill straight away we would be taken to court and also that we would receive a court summons costing us £120. I again rang your complaints team and questioned why we were still getting letters and the lady I spoke to told me that now that the bill was sorted we won’t be getting any more letters of this type. I asked her if she personally would let the debt collection agency know that the matter was closed and they didn’t need to contact us any more and she said she would.
What I can’t believe is even though it was the incompetence of your company that sent us a seriously wrong bill (the original being over £200 and the revised bill being just £70) My partner and I had to cover the cost of several calls to your customer service and complaints line on occasions being on hold for up to 30 minutes, which was not only a waste of time but a waste of money as well. Also whilst being heavily pregnant and with a one year old baby I had to deal with the constant stress of worrying that a debt collection agency was going to be coming around to my home or that we were going to be taken to court for a mistake that your company made. This is something I am still worried about at the moment, as although the last person I spoke to said that she would speak to the debt collection company and tell them the matter was closed how am I meant to believe this when I have been told by several of your staff that similar things would be sorted and they never were. I would like your assurance in a signed letter that this whole debt collection business won’t be taken any further because it has already got to a very serious point, and if we were to receive a court summons it could have a serious affect on mine and my partners credit history for a mistake that your company made. I would also like to receive some kind of compensation for the continuous calls I had to make to your company, I believe that calls to 0845 numbers cost approx 3p per minute, as if it wasn’t for the incompetence of the staff members I spoke to I wouldn’t have had to call so many times to query the bill in the first place, nor would I have to call several times about the numerous letters I received. I have kept a copy of all the letters I have been sent and if this matter isn’t resolved I am seriously considering speaking to the citizens advice bureau as this has not only cost money to be sorted but it has also caused me and my partner a great deal of stress at an already stressful time. I would be very grateful if you could have the matter sorted promptly for me, I will expect a reply within the next seven days.

Yours sincerely

wills34

i would mention energywatch

Poppycat

MY mum was with Npower until recently she always pays her bills on time and is alone so doesnt consume that much energy. She got a huge bill a few months ago with was well over £1k, she never has bills that high. She complained meter hadn't been read properly but because it was making her ill and the sheer imcomptence of this company she paid up as she was moving out. Well the over day she got a cheque from Npower of almost £600, okay its great to get money back she paid but the grief she got from them it was making her ill.

I wont ever use Npower at all.

Taffyscot

Hi, We had a very similar experience with Scottish Gas. We got a huge bill of nearly £2000 but it was the meter upstairs not our flat. They said they were going to cut our power off and everytime they billed us they added about a £100 on for expenses and legal costs. I hit the roof and my partner, who has Parkinson's wanted to pay it, couldn't stand the stress. I fought with them and asked for supervisors, team managers, kept giving them updated readings, found out the metre number for them etc. I kept getting the same response as you did. It has been done, it will be fine, you will not get your power cut off, we will sort it out with your new reading. Then two days later we would get another bill higher again. Well after over six months of this lo and behold on one of my new bills there was a number for energy watch and stated if you have tried to sort things out and had problems with a power company to no avail to contact them. I did so and three days later we got a phone call from a supervisor at Scottish Gas with our new bill at 160.00 pounds and offered us 30 pound off it for our inconvenience. I had told energy watch that I wanted compensation for all the phone calls that I had made. I should have stuck out for more than the thirty quid but I was glad to get it sorted. So please contact energy watch it will be the best phone call you will ever make. Sorry I don't have the number handy. It is now finally sorted even tho it did not happen overnight even after calling energy watch. Hope this helps. Taffyscot

tripled

I would break it up into paragraphs. If it is easier to read the person dealing with it is more likely to deal with it effectively.