Spark Energy - HELP!!

EatsRainbows

OK, so my partner & I used to be be Spark Energy customers in our previous rented property. When we moved out we gave the final reading, and waited for a bill. And waited. And called. And waited. And called. And waited.

Three months later, we get a letter to say our final bill is over £1,000(!). I was off work with a bad back and flu that day so called them up, and after being on hold for forever, was told that there was no way we owed them that much, as we'd paid £80/month and that should have pretty much covered what we used according to the meter readings. The employee I spoke to (who's name I noted) told me I'd get a new bill sent out early the next week. Unsurprisingly it didn't arrive, and as I don't have twenty more more minutes to waste on hold, plus Spark's offices are shut when I get home from work & at weekends we waited some more. I'd go online every now & again to check our account (their website is about as bad as their phone service BTW) and - as was promised - the erroneous charges were removed from our account. Progress!

I kept checking the website & nothing changed, our payments were still recorded but no charges. On Friday just gone, we have a solicitor's letter demanding we pay the "final amount" plus extra (for late payment, instructing the solicitor etc).

Obviously, I can't call them until Monday (my boss will love me - not!), though I tried to access their website on Friday evening & it was totally and completely unresponsive. I was away all day yesterday, but have just managed to log on to our account today and the £1,000 "charge" is there. They're really trying to tell us that we've spent double the amount of the direct debit we had paid them each month.

Is there anything I can/should mention when I call Spark on Monday? I'm going to ask to speak to a manager, and tell them the stress they've caused for my other half too; but I was wondering if they've made a 'schoolboy error' so to speak in their handling of us - should they have told us we were spending well over our DD? We were in the property for about 14 months in total, and never once got a bill, or in fact any communication from them - is that right?!

vibebl

Spark Energy is the worst company i have near problem as you, i´m trying to fix it to, on Feb make adjustment paying them 300£ and them till 12 march they put a bill of 140£.Is just a Cr.. company and we should report it to everyone.

macman

EatsRainbows wrote: »

OK, so my partner & I used to be be Spark Energy customers in our previous rented property. When we moved out we gave the final reading, and waited for a bill. And waited. And called. And waited. And called. And waited.

Three months later, we get a letter to say our final bill is over £1,000(!). I was off work with a bad back and flu that day so called them up, and after being on hold for forever, was told that there was no way we owed them that much, as we'd paid £80/month and that should have pretty much covered what we used according to the meter readings. The employee I spoke to (who's name I noted) told me I'd get a new bill sent out early the next week. Unsurprisingly it didn't arrive, and as I don't have twenty more more minutes to waste on hold, plus Spark's offices are shut when I get home from work & at weekends we waited some more. I'd go online every now & again to check our account (their website is about as bad as their phone service BTW) and - as was promised - the erroneous charges were removed from our account. Progress!

I kept checking the website & nothing changed, our payments were still recorded but no charges. On Friday just gone, we have a solicitor's letter demanding we pay the "final amount" plus extra (for late payment, instructing the solicitor etc).

Obviously, I can't call them until Monday (my boss will love me - not!), though I tried to access their website on Friday evening & it was totally and completely unresponsive. I was away all day yesterday, but have just managed to log on to our account today and the £1,000 "charge" is there. They're really trying to tell us that we've spent double the amount of the direct debit we had paid them each month.

Is there anything I can/should mention when I call Spark on Monday? I'm going to ask to speak to a manager, and tell them the stress they've caused for my other half too; but I was wondering if they've made a 'schoolboy error' so to speak in their handling of us - should they have told us we were spending well over our DD? We were in the property for about 14 months in total, and never once got a bill, or in fact any communication from them - is that right?!

The supplier only has to read the meter once every two years. If you didn't submit a reading in over a year, then it may well be that you've used far more than your DD allowed for. Spark are not psychic, the don't know what you use unless you tell them, so a big catch-up bill may be possible.
However, since you have the closing (and presumably opening) readings, it should be simple enough to work out exactly what you owe and compare that to what you have already paid. At the moment you see to have no idea whether you owe anything or not. Do the final read billings and dates even match your own final reads?

EatsRainbows

The dates are right, and I think the readings are right, I'd have to check back through my notebook to find where I've put them to see if they are 100%.

Stuff