Add your feedback on energy supplier Extra Energy

Herbalus

Why bother? Just cancel your direct debit and wait for them to send you a bill for what you owe....

You never know, it might never arrive!

Victor_Delta

Consumer40 wrote: »

(On the phone they say they cannot take a card payment)

Is it the customer service team who can't take card payments over the phone perhaps?

After I cancelled my DD, EE sent me the usual threatening email asking me to phone them on a number which takes one through to the billing team (I think). Whatever the case, the person I spoke to was able to take a manual credit card payment over the phone without any problem.

You certainly want to avoid overpaying them if possible so I would strongly recommend cancelling your DD.

Biggles

Herbalus wrote: »

Why bother? Just cancel your direct debit and wait for them to send you a bill for what you owe....

You never know, it might never arrive!

Quite. I'm in a similar situation; my usage was always somewhat higher than my DD but I had a few months when, for various reasons, I used very much more gas than I had predicted, so I was awaiting the next meter-reader and bill with trepidation to see how much my DD would be (quite rightly) cranked up.

In the event, I had two meter-readers within a week, one wanted to read gas & elec, the other said he was only to read the gas. I watched my online account and eventually there appeared an estimated reading and a bill, based on no figures that made any sense to me, and my DD has been put down by £10!

Excellent result.

Consumer40

Victor_Delta wrote: »

Is it the customer service team who can't take card payments over the phone perhaps?

.

Thanks Victor - I think you are right. I was speaking to the Customer Service team and they told me that I must let the DD go through and wait for a refund - they said that was the process and could not be varied. They declined to take the payment of a lesser amount that I offered.

However, listening to the phone menu again I realise there is a separate option for making a payment - perhaps that would connect me the billing team and perhaps they would be prepared to take a payment.

paulhand

Got a great deal last year - but beyond that service levels have been abysmal. We had a new meter installed before we switched to them which our electrician believes is faulty. I reported this in June and was instructed to take readings and send them to Extra for investigation. Despite numerous calls and promises from them (when you can actually get through) nothing at all has happened. Now that my fixed price is expiring, I Have given notice to move and they are even less willing to help. They do, of course, have plenty of free staff available to call me from their Renewals team as soon as they received my notice of cancellation. Currently waiting for customer service again: apparently my call is important to them, but we are now up to 24mins on hold.... avoid these guys they are out of their depth.....

Consumer40

In case it helps anyone else...


I am switching & calculated that I owe a lot less than the final DD due to be taken this month. EE told me that I must follow the process which is to pay the DD and wait for a refund.


I spoke to Ombudsman Service about my situation. They were adamant that I do not need to pay what I do not owe. They suggested that I offer EE the amount I believe I owe - rounded up slightly. If EE decline to accept the payment then make a formal complaint that they do not have a proceess to allow me to pay what I owe and at the same time cancel the DD. The complaint serves to document that I attempted to pay what I owe and in due course will allow the ombudsman to review EE's inadequate processes (if the complaint goes that far).


I also discussed the situation with my bank because I was not sure about how much notice I needed to give to cancel the DD. They only required 1 day but were keen to point out that if the DD did go through and was not authorised I could claim it back. Apparently there is no particular time limit on claiming back. So people in a lot of credit could presumably claim back several DDs. My bank said they would accept my word that a DD was not authorised and agreed that taking money that was not owed could be considered unauthorised.

Mikey17

I would like to speak about Extra Energy, they are a vile, unscrupulous, bunch of liars. I have been trying to get the money they owe me for several months now. I have made many calls ( from May ), written a letter of complaint (in July ), and I have not had one reply. They even insisted at one point I had already been refunded, even though it was not on my bank statements.The last man I spoke to 'seemed' genuine, although he had no knowledge of any of my previous correspondence, and could not even get my bills up on his screen. He said that he was registering an official complaint, and I would be contacted in a day or two. He told me NOT to contact the ombudsman, as I would have to wait 6 weeks from when the complaint was made. I have heard nothing since.
They talk to you, and when they have put the phone down, they just forget you.
Today I called the Ombudsman, they are taking on my case, and have started the ball rolling.
If anyone is giving the slightest thought to using Extra Energy, then take my advice, DO NOT under any circumstances use them.
Because one day you will decide to leave them, and if they owe you money, thats when your problems will start.

ianG

Interesting...have you tried taking them to the small claims court? I went through that process with a mobile phone company that had not honoured the cash-back agreement. I had a County Court judgement made against that company and had in theory the power to freeze their bank account meaning their employees would not get paid. I used a guide from this site (very useful it was too) and sent them one last LBA (letter before action) - they then paid up!

Regarding EE, they behave much like Tiscali who were another shower of shysters who could not get one thing right, claimed I was connected when I wasn't etc etc. Boy was I glad to leave them (and BT).

fussypensioner

Consumer40 wrote: »

Thanks Victor - I think you are right. I was speaking to the Customer Service team and they told me that I must let the DD go through and wait for a refund - they said that was the process and could not be varied. They declined to take the payment of a lesser amount that I offered.

However, listening to the phone menu again I realise there is a separate option for making a payment - perhaps that would connect me the billing team and perhaps they would be prepared to take a payment.

When I was an EE customer I paid my final bill through my account on their website under "make a payment." I didn't want to speak to anyone because they never did what they said they would.

dann-b-e

Spent a good amount of time setting up my switch, then never heard anything from them, no letter, no welcome pack nothing. I am still stuck with British gas - very dissapointed.