EDF complaint

gracebatley

After living in my flat since january (9 months) I thought things were fine. I'm 19 and I'm renting for the first time on my own and having to deal with all my own bills. Two months ago I realised my wage had gone down fast and at that point didn't have mobile banking.
When I got online banking I checked why my budget hadn't worked out and noticed that EDF had taken £50 more than the amount we'd set up on the 'fixed price plan'. They continued to do this a following month without consulting me about it. When I phoned up they spoke in jargon made me feel very small and like I didn't have a leg to stand on.
To say I work full time and only stay in my flat at the most 2 nights a week I cannot fathom how they got my electric (I dont have gas) to £93 (and had they cheek not to tell me they were raising my bills.)

I just want to know where i stand in all this, as I said i'm not used to it and have no one around me who can explain what I should do.
I want to complain but want to make sure I know all my rights first.

Thank you and sorry for the moan.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

System

gracebatley wrote: »

After living in my flat since january (9 months) I thought things were fine. I'm 19 and I'm renting for the first time on my own and having to deal with all my own bills. Two months ago I realised my wage had gone down fast and at that point didn't have mobile banking.
When I got online banking I checked why my budget hadn't worked out and noticed that EDF had taken £50 more than the amount we'd set up on the 'fixed price plan'. They continued to do this a following month without consulting me about it. When I phoned up they spoke in jargon made me feel very small and like I didn't have a leg to stand on.
To say I work full time and only stay in my flat at the most 2 nights a week I cannot fathom how they got my electric (I dont have gas) to £93 (and had they cheek not to tell me they were raising my bills.)

I just want to know where i stand in all this, as I said i'm not used to it and have no one around me who can explain what I should do.
I want to complain but want to make sure I know all my rights first.

Thank you and sorry for the moan.

:mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad: :mad:

Hi. You are right to seek advice and I hope that we can help. Firstly, there is no such thing as a 'fixed price plan' as far as energy supply is concerned. In mobile phone terms, energy is supplied on a 'Pay as You Go' basis: that is, the more energy that you use, the more you will pay. The 'fixed' element is the price per KWh.

Secondly, EDF has the right to increase your DD if it believes that you are using more energy per year than it first estimated. It should have informed you in advance: have you checked My Messages in your online account?

Thirdly, have you supplied EDF with an up to date meter reading - either by phone or via your online account? If you haven't then there is a possibility that EDF has based the DD increase on an estimated reading.

What to do next? Get a meter reading and call EDF CS. Ask them for a bill and discuss your usage versus the DD that you should pay. Bear in mind that they do have a right to bill you for all the energy that you use irrespective of how you pay. Let us know how you get on.

chanz4

4th check your storage heater settings and hot water thermostat settings

macman

Your £93 DD is almost certainly the result of not supplying regular readings, and an under-estimation of usage. The inevitable result is an agent reading and a large catch-up bill, then a hike in your DD to recover the arrears. Submit your own readings at least every 3 months, as the supplier only has to read every two years.
You are not using £93 per month, a large part of that is probably to recover the deficit.
PS: you don't need online banking to check your banking, you can get paper statements, or mini statements at any ATM.
All electric properties cost about 300% more to run than ones with gas, unless you have E7 metering.

gracebatley

I didn't have access to my meter readings as I live in a flat and the land lords have the keys, but thank you, I feel a lot better after getting advise from others.
Still considering a complaint for the rude customer service.

gracebatley

macman wrote: »

Your £93 DD is almost certainly the result of not supplying regular readings, and an under-estimation of usage. The inevitable result is an agent reading and a large catch-up bill, then a hike in your DD to recover the arrears. Submit your own readings at least every 3 months, as the supplier only has to read every two years.
You are not using £93 per month, a large part of that is probably to recover the deficit.
PS: you don't need online banking to check your banking, you can get paper statements, or mini statements at any ATM.
All electric properties cost about 300% more to run than ones with gas, unless you have E7 metering.

chanz4 wrote: »

4th check your storage heater settings and hot water thermostat settings

Thank you for all the help!

macman

gracebatley wrote: »

I didn't have access to my meter readings as I live in a flat and the land lords have the keys, but thank you, I feel a lot better after getting advise from others.
Still considering a complaint for the rude customer service.

You are legally entitled to access your own meters, as is the supplier-so enforce your rights. If you don't submit regular reads then the situation will recur.
Without access, how do you verify your bills?