Smaller Provider delay tactics! Avro Energy

RNP

I'm sure that its becoming a common thread but there seems to be a trend of smaller providers delaying transfers to more cost effective providers.

Told Avro Energy on 2 June that I was moving to an alternative provider wef 19 June due to price and they sought my confirmation on 12 June that thius was the case.

On 18 June I received a notification from my new supplier that they had raised an objection and that the transfer could not proceed.

The "mystery objection" was that I needed to clear my remaining balance BUT AE did not tell me this at any point, not even as part of the confirmation exchange on 12 June!!

Service appalling in terms of trying to phone them to clarify.......impossible to get through because of "high call volumes due to their competitive pricing"!!!!

How can these companies get away with it despite sector regulation??

Frustrated consumer!!!

Biscuit_Tin

RNP wrote: »

I'm sure that its becoming a common thread but there seems to be a trend of smaller providers delaying transfers to more cost effective providers.

Told Avro Energy on 2 June that I was moving to an alternative provider wef 19 June due to price and they sought my confirmation on 12 June that thius was the case.

On 18 June I received a notification from my new supplier that they had raised an objection and that the transfer could not proceed.

The "mystery objection" was that I needed to clear my remaining balance BUT AE did not tell me this at any point, not even as part of the confirmation exchange on 12 June!!

Service appalling in terms of trying to phone them to clarify.......impossible to get through because of "high call volumes due to their competitive pricing"!!!!

How can these companies get away with it despite sector regulation??

Frustrated consumer!!!

Follow the suppliers compliant procedure if they object to you switching away, and you feel they have no right to do so.

e.g. they say you owe them money, but the supplier has not sent you a demand for payment at least 28 days previously.
If you pay by monthly direct debit, it's very rare indeed for a supplier to send you a demand for payment, as they will usually adjust your monthly payment amount instead.

If you are finding you are repeatedly unable to get through to customerr services on the phone, create a log of all the times you attempted to call, and the time you spent on hold, and then make a complaint.
You can presumably prove this by reference to your telephone billing. If calls were chargeable (with no free/cheaper option) then include in your complaint a claim for a refund of those charges.

Just to add a touch of reality to your post, in the first quarter of this year, Avro Energy received less than 500 complaints, 94% of which were resolved by the end of the next working day, and 99% resolved within 8 weeks (the time allowed for a supplier to resolve any complaint before the customer may elect to escalate the matter to the ombudsman)

JJ_Egan

(I'm sure that its becoming a common thread but there seems to be a trend of smaller providers delaying transfers to more cost effective providers


That is false.

Dobbibill

Did your online account not show that you were in debit prior to the switch (assuming you were providing readings). They were very good to update mine with Actual readings for the bills so when the switch time arrived, I knew that I was in credit prior to actioning a switch to another provider.

RNP

Sadly, they refuse to acknowledge any sort of responsibility for customer service and have accused me of blackmailing them by posting my concerns or advising that I intend to escalate.

I have now passed the whole sorry story on to the Ombudsman, but when I read other articles about this supplier, it does seem as they have just rolled out a cheap proposition without the supporting infrastructure for when the bigger guys fight back on cost.

Shame, but Avro Energy now seem one to avoid for me as they do not inspire trust or loyalty!

nigelbb

Dobbibill wrote: »

Did your online account not show that you were in debit prior to the switch (assuming you were providing readings). They were very good to update mine with Actual readings for the bills so when the switch time arrived, I knew that I was in credit prior to actioning a switch to another provider.

Just because a customer owes the supplier money is no reason to object to a switch. It would be ludicrous that a customer could only switch supplier when they were in credit. The normal practice should be that a final bill is sent after the switch occurs & then the customers settles up either paying what is owed or receiving any credit back. Unless there is a payment plan in place for arrears or similar merely being in debit should be no bar to a switch.

The OP is correct that it's a common practice for the smaller energy suppliers with precarious cashflow to object to a switch on the flimsiest pretext.

Dobbibill

nigelbb wrote: »

Just because a customer owes the supplier money is no reason to object to a switch. It would be ludicrous that a customer could only switch supplier when they were in credit. The normal practice should be that a final bill is sent after the switch occurs & then the customers settles up either paying what is owed or receiving any credit back. Unless there is a payment plan in place for arrears or similar merely being in debit should be no bar to a switch.

The OP is correct that it's a common practice for the smaller energy suppliers with precarious cashflow to object to a switch on the flimsiest pretext.

I agree but sometimes with the recent threads about this becoming more and more common it doesn't hurt to get one step ahead of them and pay a small amount to beat them at their own game. Almost a tactical payment if you like.

This is why I asked about the online account status. It can be used as a heads up tool

akesterton

RNP wrote: »

Service appalling in terms of trying to phone them to clarify.......impossible to get through because of "high call volumes due to their competitive pricing"!!!!

Frustrated consumer!!!

Just switching away from Avro, and also having problems getting through by phone. The menu system asks for 1 for new customers and 2 for existing customers - and loops back to the main menu if you choose option 2. (Just tried again and if you press 2 as soon as the voice menu starts, you go to the hold music).



Last week, I tried calling them twice - the menu worked, but gave up waiting after 10 mins.


Avro are responding to emails (1-2 days).


I was asked to pay off my Debit balance as "this may delay a switch" - funds transferred on 21 June, but the online account as still not been updated as of this morning. The funds transfer would have gone through immediately. There is currently no provision for online payments via the web site, and you are encouraged to phone in.


I get the impression (no additional info to back this up) that as a small supplier, they don't have the staff and systems to cope with the number of customers they have.



Apart from the above, Avro have been pretty trouble-free as a supplier.

PennineAcute

Unless you billed, you do not have a debt.

wild666

Two questions Were you in credit? And Would the credit cover the period to the move? If so then complain. When I moved from British gas my bill was £14 in debt and they didn't object they just took the amount after they produced the final bill.

thegremlinlives

I'm going through something similar. I'm transferring from Avro to another supplier SO Energy, and just received an email asking me to confirm the switch, so they can action it. It's a bit vague on how I'm supposed to confirm, but does include a contact email and phone number, which is different from the email it was sent from. 
Anyway I replied to the email, confirming I do want to switch and got an automated email back saying my email would be reviewed, and I'd be contacted in 3-5 days.
So I tried to phone them, and selected option 2 (for existing customers), and was simply told there are no representatives available and I should ring back later.
It does seem suspiciously like delaying tactics. If they really wanted me to confirm, they could have included a simple yes or no link in the email, or provided some other automated way to do confirm this.
Another thing that is bothering me is that although I have a direct debit with them, I'm probably slightly in debt with the latest readings. Of course normally I would simply expect any supplier to simply adjust the final payment...
Anyway, let's see how this go's. I'll report back on what happens.