Electricity Meter Nightmare

jambokaos87

Thanks for your help everyone.

I'm going to write to npower and send a letter of complaint via recorded delivery next week and take it from there.

spiro

Houbara wrote: »

Don t do that (pull the main fuse to each flat ), but please label your meter with the correct matching flat number for both yours and the other crossed meters.Meter readers and the caretaker can then keep getting the correct flat for the correct meter.
Its not uncommon to have crossed meters in banks of meters in meter rooms.
Personally I think the occupiers should take enough care to check who s meter is whos. The management company will just be taking the flat numbers supplied by the builders who all use plot numbers to begin with.
Might be worth putting a note up to ask other tenants to do a "kettle test " on their meters.Also make the code well known to other tenants.You can t rely on some caretaker to take proper readings

The OP mentioned turning off the isolator, if there is an isolator on each meter then the best way to resolved quicker is to turn this off for each meter in turn. Giving the supplier the answer will get it resolved quicker as you have provided proof there is an issue.

Skools_Out

jambokaos87 wrote: »

After a lengthy phone call to the manco, I've now got the code to enter the room. This was after speaking to 3 different prats.

Do you think it would be beneficial getting the Energy Ombudsman involved?

No.

Probably best (in this order)
a) now you have access, verifying the suspicions you have regarding the metering
b) if verified, contacting your supplier, who you can now grant access to
if required so that they can verify and arrange correction.

[Deleted User]

It is really nothing to do with the supplier if the labelling of meters is incorrect to each flat. That is an issue caused by the builders/owners and it is up to them to pay private electricians to get it sorted.
The supplier has been supplied with false data with meter serial numbers which do not correspond to the correct flat. Getting the correct meter serial numbers to each flat is all the supplier needs. They can change their details easily enough from the wrong ones. Then its vital to remove all other numbers /label stuck on meter and clearly label the new one
I work in the business and we are strictly told never to cut electricity supply from an outside meter without the occupier being aware at the time. Its highly unlikely I know but someone may be on an oxygen machine or similar vital medical equipment.
Unless the management have a single supplier agreement there could be 20 different suppliers involved.
I have seen this situation in a block of flats where nearly all the meters were switched from plot numbers to flat numbers and half of them are mixed up 15 years ago when the blocks were built .Some are still mixed now but until the management employ people to sort it out it stays like that unless an occupier does it for them and do a kettle/gas fire test to reach the correct meter. Its difficult to get hold of all flat occupiers, some only use them as accommodation addresses if they are council owned..
Flat occupiers come and go at great speed so nothing gets done for many of them

jambokaos87

Houbara wrote: »

It is really nothing to do with the supplier if the labelling of meters is incorrect to each flat. That is an issue caused by the builders/owners and it is up to them to pay private electricians to get it sorted.
The supplier has been supplied with false data with meter serial numbers which do not correspond to the correct flat. Getting the correct meter serial numbers to each flat is all the supplier needs. They can change their details easily enough from the wrong ones. Then its vital to remove all other numbers /label stuck on meter and clearly label the new one
I work in the business and we are strictly told never to cut electricity supply from an outside meter without the occupier being aware at the time. Its highly unlikely I know but someone may be on an oxygen machine or similar vital medical equipment.
Unless the management have a single supplier agreement there could be 20 different suppliers involved.
I have seen this situation in a block of flats where nearly all the meters were switched from plot numbers to flat numbers and half of them are mixed up 15 years ago when the blocks were built .Some are still mixed now but until the management employ people to sort it out it stays like that unless an occupier does it for them and do a kettle/gas fire test to reach the correct meter. Its difficult to get hold of all flat occupiers, some only use them as accommodation addresses if they are council owned..
Flat occupiers come and go at great speed so nothing gets done for many of them

It's not just the labelling. It is the physical tails that are wrong as well as the labelling.

The management company do not want anything to do with this mess. Also the flats were built in 2005/2006, so it is long past any sort of warranty period with the people who were contracted to build the flats. That's even if the company still exists.

Carrot007

jambokaos87 wrote: »

It's not just the labelling. It is the physical tails that are wrong as well as the labelling.

The management company do not want anything to do with this mess. Also the flats were built in 2005/2006, so it is long past any sort of warranty period with the people who were contracted to build the flats. That's even if the company still exists.

How can the tails be wrong?


You rmpan should it be correct for you address need the right meter for your flat putting on it. It is then up to the other supplier of the other mpans to sort out theres. They will not be changing the address's of the mpan with the right meter to yours. it does not work that way.


This is not you suppliers fault. It will be based on information supplied by builders whwen the flats were built. I have known for major issues to go on for 15 yerars after building.


Since you have the code now, get your supplier to come out and do a meter check to determine your meter. They can then fix your supply.


Since everyone has changed suppliers it will not be easy to sort out and gettign a refund will be near impossible. Just fix it going forward.


Remember the one at fault here is the builder doing things on the cheap.

jambokaos87

Carrot007 wrote: »

How can the tails be wrong?


You rmpan should it be correct for you address need the right meter for your flat putting on it. It is then up to the other supplier of the other mpans to sort out theres. They will not be changing the address's of the mpan with the right meter to yours. it does not work that way.


This is not you suppliers fault. It will be based on information supplied by builders whwen the flats were built. I have known for major issues to go on for 15 yerars after building.


Since you have the code now, get your supplier to come out and do a meter check to determine your meter. They can then fix your supply.


Since everyone has changed suppliers it will not be easy to sort out and gettign a refund will be near impossible. Just fix it going forward.


Remember the one at fault here is the builder doing things on the cheap.

Two nPower engineers have been out both have seen the issue. The first was a total waste of time. The second proved my issue yet did nothing about it.

Even though my meter that I had been reading from for 15+ months, is labelled and registered to my address, it is actually hooked up to flat 149. That's the problem, meaning that the physical tails are obviously wrong.

Carrot007

jambokaos87 wrote: »

Two nPower engineers have been out both have seen the issue. The first was a total waste of time. The second proved my issue yet did nothing about it.

Even though my meter that I had been reading from for 15+ months, is labelled and registered to my address, it is actually hooked up to flat 149. That's the problem, meaning that the physical tails are obviously wrong.

The tails are in t he meter for the glat they are in, forget about that. Noone is going to be moving the tails to fix this.


However reading your info, then maybe you have reason to moan. The web based teams often get results.


What should have occured it.


They come out and assess which meter is yours.


This goes back to the meter operator (who sent the person out, not your supplier). Then meter operator does a "meter change" tyo the best of their ability to get the correct meter on yourt mpan. Note for messy cases such as this it will probably be the date of the vist unless someone can find anything better.


Again... DO NOT RING THEM. Contact the web relations team that has more experience sorting things out and realise this is a problem beyond your supplier and needs many depantments and companies to sort out (even without dealing with other flats). And do be nice, it's not any of these people's faults. Again it is the fault of the builders. However they can not sort this out.

jambokaos87

Thanks Carrot007 I will give that a try. Do you have their contact information to hand?


I will let you know how I get on

Carrot007

jambokaos87 wrote: »

Two nPower engineers have been out

Additional....


Meter plus I assume, as in from the mop. But I think they do wear npower branded uniforms these days, it's hard to keep up!


Anyway. They are probahly getting fixated on the labeling. Maybe you led them this way? They need to know the meter for your flat. It will be easier if you find out this first as they will be reluctant to turn of someone else's supple to test.


You can find out by having eveyone else out or not using much and putting on some serious useage and looking for the fast moving one. (Say boil the kettle, put on a portable heater and turn on an iron!). You could of course get together with the other flats and work everything out if possible. You are in a better position to do this than the companies involved. You might not want to be. But it is what it is.