scottish power missed 8 appointments; am I being greedy?

snuff2pay

Yes with hindsight I should just have invested in solar panels and waited for global warming to do the rest. It would have been quicker, cheaper and alot less hassle!

Smodlet

It is not SP's fault you have to travel so far to get to this second property you own, that is your choice. From their reply, it would seem they have done everything they are required to do and £150 compo? I thought I was good!

If there really is no reason you needed to be at the property for them to access the meter then you may have a point...How does that work, can anyone just swing by and read/tamper with your meter? If it was damaged and is accessible from the outside, I wonder who is responsible for the damage?

snuff2pay

It may well be that attendance was necessary to turn off the electricity inside, and I fully appreciate that the engineer's safety is of the utmost importance. Likewise, it is not Scottish Power's fault that we need to travel to the property, and for that reason one or two missed appointments would have been taken in our stride. However, when they make 8 appointments and miss them then there is something seriously wrong and I don't believe that we should be out of pocket because of their poor customer service.

When I am paying for my electricity I also expect that they will add money to the price of the raw material which will go towards infrastructure costs and customer service. They have taken money from me however and not provided the customer service I should be able to expect. If I hadn't received the electricity then it would be very apparent. Why should good customer service not be provided when I (like everybody else) have already paid for it?

Sorry, its coming across as a rant and I don't intend it to be. Just reflecting on the stance of large corporations in relation to their customers.

[Deleted User]

It looks like Scottish power could nt complete the work because you did not inform them of the damaged backboard.Hidden away in the Terms and Conditions you will find a clause where you are supposed to inform the supplier of any damage to the meter or its attachments , the cut out and the backboard are included in this.
I dont think that the Ombudsman will find in your favour.I d accept what SP have paid you

Cardew

Much as I sympathise with you over SP's ineptitude, all companies use a standard 'tariff' for missed appointments.

I don't think any company would pay expenses for the owner to travel to an unoccupied property they own - what if you lived in, say the USA?
Similarly people could claim for loss of income at several hundred pounds a day. To pay such claims would set a precedent.

You can try the Ombudsman now you have got a deadlock letter and you might get a little more compensation given the number of missed appointments.

[Deleted User]

Cardew wrote: »

Much as I sympathise with you over SP's ineptitude, all companies use a standard 'tariff' for missed appointments.

I don't think any company would pay expenses for the owner to travel to an unoccupied property they own - what if you lived in, say the USA?
Similarly people could claim for loss of income at several hundred pounds a day. To pay such claims would set a precedent.

You can try the Ombudsman now you have got a deadlock letter and you might get a little more compensation given the number of missed appointments.

That is 100% correct, I remember a customer for BG who thought I was the bloke who never turned up the day before to change his meter. He said he lost £200 in wages !! when he learnt I was a humble meter reader he did nt punch me lol !
No way will any supplier bow down to pay expenses which may or not be real.Usually the rate is around £25 for failed appointment. Meter fitters usually will work evenings or Saturdays when we are not at work..Mine did ! he came on Saturday morning

Eric_Disley

buglawton wrote: »

Scottish Power obviously believe that paying compensation is more profitable than keeping appointments. They need to be taught otherwise. In your shoes I'd gamble high and keep escalating this.

Totally agree. If I'd travelled 150 miles, only for Scottish Power to not bother turning up, I would be furious. If they did it twice I would go ballistic. I can't imagine how angry I'd be if it happened 7 times.

It's not their fault that you live 150 miles away from the property. What is their fault is that they're making appointments and not attending them. Time after time. Even if you lived at the property it'd still be totally unacceptable to treat you like that,

I don't think you're being greedy or unreasonable in the slightest. Scottish Power have repeatedly failed to attend these appointments and it's cost you a fortune in petrol and days off work. You're entitled to be properly compensated for this. £30 isn't, in my opinion, adequate compensation for missing an appointment. Maybe the first time. But fifth, sixth, seventh time?

Having said all that ... realistically, I can't see you getting anything more out of the Ombudsman. I had a dispute with Scottish Power which went on for months and months, caused me huge inconvenience, had me on the phone to them for 20+ hours, and never got properly resolved because Scottish Power just ignored the Ombudsman. I ended up with a "goodwill gesture" of about £25.

Personally, I would be considering small claims court if you don't get a satisfactory ruling from the Ombudsman.

Cardew

Eric_Disley wrote: »

Having said all that ... realistically, I can't see you getting anything more out of the Ombudsman. ----

Personally, I would be considering small claims court if you don't get a satisfactory ruling from the Ombudsman.

Whilst I agree with your sentiments, the Ombudsman is set up by Parliamentary Act, as is the level of compensation for missed appointments. If 'he' has ruled the compensation offered is reasonable and fair then the small claims court IMO would be unlikely to overrule that decision.

However serving court papers on SP might persuade them to increase the goodwill payment offer to prevent the bad publicity.

zaax

As MCOL is only £35 it's (up to £300) worth a punt.

https://www.moneyclaim.gov.uk

snuff2pay

A couple of points.

We were not aware that the backboard was damaged as it was hidden by the meter. It was possibly the result of weathering as every time they missed an appointment we opened the meter cupboard to look in disbelief and to check they hadn't been and replaced it without us being aware. Such repeated exposure to the elements over such a long period of time may well have been the issue!

With regards to the ombusman, this is the Reply we received when we immediately informed them that we had a deadlock letter.

"Thank you for your email about Scottish Power which we received on 11 August 2016.

We are unable to accept your complaint for investigation as the information you have sent shows that you first raised your complaint with Scottish Power more than nine months ago. We are only able to accept complaints that are brought to us within nine months of the issue being raised to Scottish Power. We would only be able to look into the matter further if there were exceptional circumstances that prevented you from approaching us sooner.

If you feel that there were exceptional circumstances that meant you could not bring the complaint to us sooner then please let us know, providing a timeline of events and we will consider whether we are able to accept the complaint for investigation."

It seems that every direction we turn we are met with misinformation and obstacles.