First Utility haven't kept me aware my energy debt exposure, can i take action?

willis01

I have been with First Utility for 32 months and i have just left my rented property into a new house. i have been paying by direct debit for all that time and other than the emails asking for meter readings every month i have had very little contact as i chose paperless billing.

my problem is that now i have come to settle my bill i have been made aware that i have been underpaying for some considerable time without any emails to make me aware.

i was put on an automatic electric meter some 22 months ago and at same time put on their variable rate, a fact that i was also NOT made aware of.

i complained and was told that there was no admission of cuplabiltiy in their procedures and that a member of their debt team would be in touch to discuss repayments. however 2 days later i received an email saying that they were now willing to discount £110 because they admitted they had't been in touch to discuss a direct debit review in 22 months.

the figure owed is over £800 and i would have adjusted my payments accordingly if i had known i was in debt so i hold them accountable for a damn site more than £110 and knowing that they also are backing down a bit i need advice on how to take this further or what ombudsman i can contact or draft letters i can access to take this further.

thank you

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

You can try taking it further. They may decide to back down just to save the hassle. I've known more than one energy company do that.

But can you abdicate all responsibility to them from a legal perspective? No. You used the energy, it's down to you to pay for it.

Nada666

In nearly three years you never once bothered to see how much you were spending and never once compared that with how much you had paid. And you think other First Utility customers should pick up the balance of the tab because... ?

willis01

22 months actually, and my responsibility for paying what I've used isn't in question. its that they didn't review my payments and report by email any underpayment (which is usually done every 6 months with other suppliers) and i would have gladly upped payments and/or moved elsewhere. they've already admitted they should have informed me, I'm just trying soften the blow.

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

willis01 wrote: »

22 months actually, and my responsibility for paying what I've used isn't in question.

Then pay it then? All the rest is at best a lessons learned exercise (for both parties) for next time, and at worst just waffle. As stated, the buck stops with you.

naedanger

willis01 wrote: »

I have been with First Utility for 32 months and i have just left my rented property into a new house. i have been paying by direct debit for all that time and other than the emails asking for meter readings every month i have had very little contact as i chose paperless billing.

my problem is that now i have come to settle my bill i have been made aware that i have been underpaying for some considerable time without any emails to make me aware.

i was put on an automatic electric meter some 22 months ago and at same time put on their variable rate, a fact that i was also NOT made aware of.

i complained and was told that there was no admission of cuplabiltiy in their procedures and that a member of their debt team would be in touch to discuss repayments. however 2 days later i received an email saying that they were now willing to discount £110 because they admitted they had't been in touch to discuss a direct debit review in 22 months.

the figure owed is over £800 and i would have adjusted my payments accordingly if i had known i was in debt so i hold them accountable for a damn site more than £110 and knowing that they also are backing down a bit i need advice on how to take this further or what ombudsman i can contact or draft letters i can access to take this further.

thank you

If you submitted meter readings previously, and FU did not use those readings in the paperless bills it issued to you (possibly via an online account), then you may have a case for demanding the debt in respect of energy used more than 12 months ago be waived. See the examples on pages 10 and 11 of the following document:

https://www.energy-uk.org.uk/files/docs/Industry%20codes/Code%20of%20Practice%20for%20accurate%20bills/code_of_practice_for_accurate_bills_-_back_billing_for_domestic_customers.pdf

To take the matter further send FU a written complaint e.g. by email. Be sure to make it clear that it is a formal complaint. Then if after 8 weeks they have not resolved the matter to your satisfaction then you can take your complaint to the Ombudsman.

Peter333

Can't advise much, but I know of 4 or 5 people I know who switched to First Utility, and they had nothing but problems with them.

One friend of mine switched when he and his wife moved house in October 2013, and they have not had a bill yet or any money taken out by direct debit.

They want to change to BG but can't because FU won't sort their account out. They are going to have a rollicking bill when they eventually sort this. The final bill is likely to be well into four figures.

modsandmockers

Peter333 wrote: »

Can't advise much, but I know of 4 or 5 people I know who switched to First Utility, and they had nothing but problems with them.

One friend of mine switched when he and his wife moved house in October 2013, and they have not had a bill yet or any money taken out by direct debit.

They want to change to BG but can't because FU won't sort their account out. They are going to have a rollicking bill when they eventually sort this. The final bill is likely to be well into four figures.

Energy costs are as easy to calculate as any other - all you need to do is read the meter and work it out for yourself.

Energy suppliers are there to supply you with energy - there is no requirement for them to offer free budgeting advice as well - I hope your friends have had the good sense to put money aside. Do they know what prices they were paying when they switched to First Utility? Do they know what prices they are paying now? Do they know what prices they would be paying if they were to succeed in switching to British Gas?

naedanger

Peter333 wrote: »

Can't advise much, but I know of 4 or 5 people I know who switched to First Utility, and they had nothing but problems with them.

One friend of mine switched when he and his wife moved house in October 2013, and they have not had a bill yet or any money taken out by direct debit.

They want to change to BG but can't because FU won't sort their account out. They are going to have a rollicking bill when they eventually sort this. The final bill is likely to be well into four figures.

If it is FU's fault that your friends have not been billed then they should "only" need to pay for the last 12 months of energy from when they do actually receive a bill.

" where the suppliers are at fault in not billing a domestic customer, they will not send a bill which includes unbilled energy consumed more than 1 year previous to the bill being issued"

See the link in my above post for more details.

modsandmockers

naedanger wrote: »

If it is FU's fault that your friends have not been billed then they should "only" need to pay for the last 12 months of energy from when they do actually receive a bill.

" where the suppliers are at fault in not billing a domestic customer, they will not send a bill which includes unbilled energy consumed more than 1 year previous to the bill being issued"

See the link in my above post for more details.

Arguably, the bigger question is why do energy suppliers sometimes fail to bill their customers and take no direct debit payments over periods of longer than a year? Does it not adversely affect their cashflow/profit situation?

And why do their customers so often fail to notice the omission until they are suddenly faced with an unexpected and unaffordable bill?

modsandmockers

modsandmockers wrote: »

Arguably, the bigger question is why do energy suppliers sometimes fail to bill their customers and take no direct debit payments over periods of longer than a year? Does it not adversely affect their cashflow/profit situation?

And why do their customers so often fail to notice the omission until they are suddenly faced with an unexpected and unaffordable bill?

ps - paperless billing doesn't mean that you get no bills, it means that you have to go online in order to read them and print them.

(quote from the original post "i have had very little contact as i chose paperless billing")