EDF denying credit on my bill

Teasedale

EDF sent me a statement showing a £17.86 credit when my prepayment meter was changed for a credit meter. Six weeks later they sent a final account after I switched, but it didn't show the credit.

I phoned them and they said the statement was "only for information" and that their accounting system showed no balance on the prepayment account.

I did not accept this brush-off and was transferred to another agent who told me that at most they might owe me £4 which was unused credit on the old prepayment meter. I didn't accept this either and they agreed to refund the disputed amount by cheque.

I suspect that many people would either have yeilded to EDF's bullying or just got bored with the process and allowed EDF to win. I wonder how much money EDF make/save every year by bluffing in this way?

footyguy

Teasedale wrote: »

EDF sent me a statement showing a £17.86 credit when my prepayment meter was changed for a credit meter. Six weeks later they sent a final account after I switched, but it didn't show the credit.

I phoned them and they said the statement was "only for information" and that their accounting system showed no balance on the prepayment account.

I did not accept this brush-off and was transferred to another agent who told me that at most they might owe me £4 which was unused credit on the old prepayment meter. I didn't accept this either and they agreed to refund the disputed amount by cheque.

I suspect that many people would either have yeilded to EDF's bullying or just got bored with the process and allowed EDF to win. I wonder how much money EDF make/save every year by bluffing in this way?

In your instance, where you have remained with the same supplier but simply changed from a PPM to a credit meter, I'm surprised the supplier did not credit your new credit account with the outstanding credit.
However, now you have demanded its return, they obviously won't do that.

According to Ofgem, energy companies hold an estimated total of £97m of customers money (accrued credit) that is owed to the customer following the closure of their account (presumably because they have either switched supplier, or have moved property)
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/utilities/reclaim-energy-bill-refunds


Edit: It seems you also thought they would carry the credit over, rather than refund, when you posted a couple of months back

Teasedale wrote: »

...I have already asked them to "wind the clock back" when calculating the balance to be carried over from my prepayment meter....

Teasedale

footyguy wrote: »

It seems you also thought they would carry the credit over, rather than refund, when you posted a couple of months back

I decided to kiick EDF into touch, despite the prospect of a reasonably priced fixed term contract after the meter exchange, when for the third time they failed to keep an appointment to change the meter. This, incidentally, meant that I missed out on the rate I wanted as the rates increased before another appointment could be offered.

So I signed with Flow through this site's promotion, and after all the hype, got a solid 9% reduction in KWH electricity costs, but that's 9% less than EDF's current standard variable tariff. Still, it's worth about £80 a year I reckon.

Teasedale

What nonsense it is to send a customer an account showing a credit then deny that they owe that customer that amount!

I suspect that EDF may have a culture of bluffing and bullying customers who leave them into leaving a bit of their money behind, too. I say culture not policy as the latter would be next thing to fraud! Can't prove it and I could be wrong. footy's Ofgem statistics tend to support my view, unless people who switch are just amazingly generous to their former suppliers.

Autumnella

What was the credit on the display on your meter when it was changed? With prepayment you pay for energy as you use it so any credit showing on your final statement is incorrect, usually due to estimated reads used for change of tenancies/price changes when not having actual reads at these times. If the charges on the bill were more than your top ups would you have paid them? I doubt it. They probably only paid to shut you up.

Teasedale

Autumnella wrote: »

If the charges on the bill were more than your top ups would you have paid them? I doubt it.

Can't you be nice Autumnella?

BarnetGirl

I have suffered similarly, and again by persistance and logic (and posting a thread on this forum - one I read out the title to EDF before the end of a 50+ minute call) I yesterday received a promise of a cheque for just over £107 that their bill showed I was in credit by.

@Autumnella. If the meter reading is showing a disparency with the amount of credit and/or gas used then it is up to EDF to cheque the meter and not just assume that an error occured at changeover. Even if an error occured at changeover then it will mean that EDF knowing this would have to refund the previous supplier at the very least.

As it is EDF rely on meters that do two things. 1) They read the amount of credit inserted into them, and 2) read the amount of gas used. If the actual amount of gas used is less than that read when deducting the gas used from the credit (thereby reducing balance) it would actually indidcate that the cost rate set per unit of gas has a) been set incorrectly, or b) the meter is incorrectly calculating the equation of gas usage against cost. Both of these remain the responsibilty of EDF as the supplier, it is their meter, they are responsible for it. Credits shown on final accounts must be paid to the customer, after all, it is the EDF meter that is saying it.