Scottish hydro meter problem

Hughie_w

Hi all,
I have recently moved into a flat supplied by Scottish Hydro with payg meters, on putting credit in the gas meter I noticed that £5.64 was removed for "debt", I contacted them and was asked to provide information from the meter, when I followed the instructions the meter did not behave as described and I was unable to access the information requested,
I informed them of this and they offered to phone me and talk me through the process of reading the meter which is pointless because it does not function as per instructions, I requested an engineer to come and read and reset the meter to remove the debt and was informed that the engineer would not be available until 22nd of September, they say they want to resolve the situation but appear not to be reading what I am telling them and in my opinion are stalling, surely the quickest way to resolve the problem is for an engineer to attend promptly and reset the meter to remove the debt?,
is this normal behaviour by Scottish hydro?, how should I proceed?
cheers all.

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

Hughie_w wrote: »

Hi all,
I have recently moved into a flat supplied by Scottish Hydro with payg meters, on putting credit in the gas meter I noticed that £5.64 was removed for "debt", I contacted them and was asked to provide information from the meter, when I followed the instructions the meter did not behave as described and I was unable to access the information requested,
I informed them of this and they offered to phone me and talk me through the process of reading the meter which is pointless because it does not function as per instructions, I requested an engineer to come and read and reset the meter to remove the debt and was informed that the engineer would not be available until 22nd of September, they say they want to resolve the situation but appear not to be reading what I am telling them and in my opinion are stalling, surely the quickest way to resolve the problem is for an engineer to attend promptly and reset the meter to remove the debt?,
is this normal behaviour by Scottish hydro?, how should I proceed?
cheers all.

They're correct. The quickest way to stop the meter recovering debt is this (and is something everyone should do when they move home):

1. On the day you move in, phone the incumbent supplier. If you don't know who it is http://www.ukpower.co.uk/who-supplies-my-gas-and-electricity#.U-4RgfldWSo

2. Tell them who you are, and give them meter readings. They will create a new account, and stop any debt action from the previous occupant.

It doesn't need an engineer to visit the property unless the meter is actually faulty, which is very rare.

Hughie_w

Cheers for the reply BoA, I cant give them the meter readings though that is the problem, the meter does not behave as described by their instructions so I can not provide them with the info, they know it is a new account they created it and supplied me with the payg card and key?, it beggars belief that I can change supplier faster than they can get an engineer out?, from your reply I assume they can reset the account without a visit, if so why not reset it for a new customer without including another persons debt?, why is the debt even on a new account that they are aware of?.

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

Hughie_w wrote: »

Cheers for the reply BoA, I cant give them the meter readings though that is the problem, the meter does not behave as described by their instructions so I can not provide them with the info, they know it is a new account they created it and supplied me with the payg card and key?, it beggars belief that I can change supplier faster than they can get an engineer out?, from your reply I assume they can reset the account without a visit, if so why not reset it for a new customer without including another persons debt?, why is the debt even on a new account that they are aware of?.

They can't intuit when people move home. They need to be told, just like everybody else (council tax etc.)

They need a few basic pieces of information to allow the new account to be opened. One of these is a meter reading.

If you can't read your meter as you describe, put a picture of it up here. I know there are others on this board who will be able to describe how to access the reading (I never dealt with PAYG meters).

If it's still not working, then you will indeed need an engineer to come round. If you then feel they owe you money for the debt repayments, you'll have to write to them with a letter headed "Complaint", outlining what you're owed and what you expect to be done.

If you changed supplier you'd still have this problem - PAYG transfers take the debt with them!

Hughie_w

Hi BoA, they set up the new accounts at the request of my landlord who was responsible for the move, they have issued the payg card and key to me as a new customer, I know how the meter should behave and have followed their instructions but the fact is I can not access the information they request which is why I have repeatedly requested an engineer but they say he is not available until the 22nd of September, I can not afford to continue to lose £5 on every purchase of credit while waiting for the engineer to appear.