Monthly DD rip off?

matelodave

That's why you need to check your bills , statements & bank account regularly - at least once a month and then hopefully, you should never have more than a months worth to sort out.

I always suggest that you download your statements regularly as well and save them so if the onliine account account goes awry (which it does more often than you might expect) you will always have a record yourself.

Never ever accept an estimated reading - get it corrected as soon as possible by sending in readings.

backfoot

specialboy wrote: »

Yes it's incredible isn't it. I entered a fixed tariff paying £130 per month and put it to the back of my mind. Fiprst I realised I was paying so much was when I checked a bank statement (yes I don't check them often enough) I've since found that I have been paying £194 since October and in Sept they took ??£296 from my account. I will be sitting down and sorting it out on Thursday morn when I'm next free for a few hours.

specialboy wrote: »

Update. Have been on to Extra Energy and it seems that they have miscalculated by a long chalk. The reading for my electric meter on my online account dated October 15 is followed by an A meaning actual but when I read it myself it's actually still nearly a thousand units less 3 months later. Thus means that any money I have paid for electric since October 31st (on Nov 4th £294 was taken from my bank to bring the account up to date) is owed back to me plus the money I have paid already for the extra 1000 units. That's what I can gather anyway, just waiting for the revamped calculation from them via email.

I don't understand the explanation. Your quotes contain some fundamental inconsistencies.

An error of a 1000 units is worth about £100. It looks like they actually recovered the supposed arrears fully in November, but also reset the DD at £64 per month higher. !:eek:

When did this contract start?

Are your meter boxes inside or out?

How do you heat your house?

Was a gas reading also recorded and does part of the increase relate to reassessment of the gas account?

What annual consumption for each fuel do you use?

molerat

So now ExtraEnergy come into the equation.


A law unto themselves. "A" does not necessarily mean that someone has read the meter as I have found before. Someone somewhere will make it up, whether that is EE or the meter reader who knows.


Don't hold your breath for an updated bill or a refund.


Take monthly reads and submit them on the website, whilst there check your account standing. 5 minutes a month saves a lot of grief.

specialboy

backfoot wrote: »

I don't understand the explanation. Your quotes contain some fundamental inconsistencies.

An error of a 1000 units is worth about £100. It looks like they actually recovered the supposed arrears fully in November, but also reset the DD at £64 per month higher. !:eek:

When did this contract start?

Are your meter boxes inside or out?

How do you heat your house?

Was a gas reading also recorded and does part of the increase relate to reassessment of the gas account?

What annual consumption for each fuel do you use?

1000 units is worth about £85, the discrepensy arises when you realise that since October I have been playing for energy that I have already paid for. I was charged £294 to catch up with my arrears, arrears that didn't exist.

backfoot

specialboy wrote: »

1000 units is worth about £85, the discrepensy arises when you realise that since October I have been playing for energy that I have already paid for. I was charged £294 to catch up with my arrears, arrears that didn't exist.

What tariff is this ? Incredibly low VAT inclusive price per unit !?

If it is £85 then the point I don't understand is that they have charged you £294 - £130 = £164. The two figures do not match up.

Even more difficult to understand would be an ongoing monthly increase of £64.

I fully understand that an incorrect reading could have been submitted but the resultant DD adjustments do not tally up.

In my view, either EE's systems are completely broken or there is something else behind the problem.My other questions were designed to try and unravel the issue but you seem to have missed the point.

If you are happy with EE's response and all is well, just say so and we can close the thread.

specialboy

We can close the thread...are you the boss around here or something?
You don't seem to understand what I'm saying, in October I was charged a fee of £294 to keep my account up to date, for the next few months I was charged £194. Now if you had read my previous posts you will see that by paying £294 I was actually putting myself in credit by a fair amount and then to cap it off I was billed £194 for two months as well.

poppellerant

You should try to find a few minutes each month to take meter readings and enter them into Extra Energy's website - this will help both you and your supplier keep track of your usage and possibly alert you to any discrepancies.

Without wanting to seem to insult you, this thread is a good example why smart meter are being rolled out.

backfoot

specialboy wrote: »

You don't seem to understand what I'm saying, in October I was charged a fee of £294 to keep my account up to date, for the next few months I was charged £194. Now if you had read my previous posts you will see that by paying £294 I was actually putting myself in credit by a fair amount and then to cap it off I was billed £194 for two months as well.

I had carefully read your posts and highlighted the inconsistencies in red. First of all, you said you were charged £296 in September. That was before the bogus meter reading. Then you said on Nov 4th you paid £294.

You also said in your update post that EE had explained that the 1000 false units had resulted in the collection of the arrears and DD recalculation.

As I said, the two things don't fully equate as the arrears of a 1000 units according to you is worth £85. Yet EE charged you a much greater amount.

I have tried to help but you seem unable to grasp the issue that these 1000 units error cannot be full story.

Perhaps EE are indeed ripping you off or there is something else not yet discovered.What value have they adjusted your DD back to ? How much for Gas and how much for electricity?

backfoot

It's very interesting that the OP didn't answer any questions of fact throughout this thread. Other posters explained that they couldn't help/comment without more information.

What is the annual consumption for the property (Kwh) for gas and electricity ?

What was the date of commencement and end date of the contract?

Exactly what tariff with EE is this?

When the revisions to the Direct Debits were done (either Sept, Oct, Nov (depending on different posts), what were the DD's for gas and electricity?

Was a gas reading taken at the same time as the October 15th electricity reading? Was this in line with consumption with the assumptions used in setting the original DD?

What have Extra Energy said in their e mail about the reasons for the DD revisions? A half hearted explanation that an incorrect meter reading causing arrears of £85 has resulted in revisions upwards of (£164 +64 +64) = £292.

Have EE now reduced the DD's back and refunded the overcharges?

Does the OP (specialboy) want advice about how to tackle EE going forward or was it, as suspected by the title,just a moan to blame someone else for their own failings?

JohnM5206

To be fair to OP, he deos make the point about the 1000 units, not that it was an overread of 1000 but:
"The reading for my electric meter on my online account dated October 15 is followed by an A meaning actual but when I read it myself it's actually still nearly a thousand units less 3 months later"
That means to me that he has been charged 3 months consumption plus 1000 units and the amount of £294 has been charged to balance the account. The DD for months after the balancing charge has been adjusted upwards to take account of annual consumption of 125% + 1000 units. Without annual consumption that figure cannot be quantified but could well be a DD based on 150% of actual consumption - which would tally with £130 per month becoming £194.
Not disagreeing with the benefits of regular checking but trying to understand the numbers in this case.