Scottish Power chasing payment for Prepayment meter

dpc036

Hi,
Since moving out of our old house last June i have been chased by Scottish Power for a final payment on a Prepayment Gas meter.

Unfortunately when we left the property i never took a final reading for that meter.

When i received the original bill i queried it because, as i understood it, we could only use what we had prepaid onto the meter. I was told that the account showed a variety of figures, one even said they owed me. At this point it was passed to a department to look into further. I heard nothing until i receive a debt collection letter in January which prompted me to ring again. The account was put on hold so that it could be investigated further. After not hearing anything for a month i rang again, but the account hadn’t been looked into and would be put on hold until April.

I have now started to receive debt collection letters again but i have had no correspondence from Scottish Power. When i rang to discuss this i was told the debt stands and a bill would be sent out again.

Im yet to receive what i feel is a legitimate reason for the bill on a prepay meter which was regularly topped up, had no debt on it and was left in credit. Although the bill isn’t huge I’m reluctant to pay it. Where do i stand with this?

Any help/advice appreciated.

Consumerist

dpc036 wrote: »

. . . Unfortunately when we left the property i never took a final reading for that meter. . .

And therein lies the problem.

What you need to know is how they have arrived at the alleged debt figure and then use past bills/statements, over a similar time of year, to check that the bill is reasonable.

Unfortunately, without those final meter readings as evidence, you may have some difficulty proving the bill is incorrect.

dpc036

Thanks for the reply.

Consumerist

dpc036 wrote: »

. . . When i received the original bill i queried it because, as i understood it, we could only use what we had prepaid onto the meter. . .

Just to clarify, it is probable that the price of your tariff had been increased but it can take months for suppliers to manually update meters to the new price. For this reason you could have been accumulating debt without being aware of it. Added to this, because you didn't take final meter readings, you could even be paying for consumption by the new occupier until they submitted a reading.

I'm sorry that none of this helps but I hope you can, at least, see how it could have happened.

Unfortunately, your best bet is probably to settle the bill and chalk it up to experience.

xHannahx

Consumerist wrote: »

Just to clarify, it is probable that the price of your tariff had been increased but it can take months for suppliers to manually update meters to the new price. For this reason you could have been accumulating debt without being aware of it. Added to this, because you didn't take final meter readings, you could even be paying for consumption by the new occupier until they submitted a reading.

I'm sorry that none of this helps but I hope you can, at least, see how it could have happened.

Unfortunately, your best bet is probably to settle the bill and chalk it up to experience.

When price changes have occurred, it's always been updated on ours through the key when top up at the machine. The only way to avoid it is putting a massive credit on just before a price increase.