Backbilling problems - EDF

SAFCTEMP

Hoping someone has got some advice for this...

We've been with EDF for just over 2 years now. In August we got a random £400+ payment back into our account in credit. It turned out our smart meter was bust and they said they'd come and have a look at it. We paid the money back so we weren't hit with a bill later on.

Anyway no one ended up turning up and we've had endless chew with EDF since. Recently they said they'd identified the issue had started in May 2018, and looking at overall usage on the gas meter since then, they have now worked out that allegedly we owe them £400 aa our direct debit hasn't been enough.

Suffice to say I'm furious but I checked Ofgem's website and it says that for backbilling, energy companies can't go back further than 12 months. In this case it's 18 months and if this applies, how are they to know whether the extra electric/gas was used in the initial 6 months of that period and outside the 12 month backbilling limit.

Really appreciate anyone's advice or any similar experience.

matelodave

Had you been checking your meter or your bills you would have noticed that something was going awry (assuming that it did) and you could have sorted it all out at the time rather than just letting it drift on.

You cannot absolve yourself from checking bills and stuff just becasue you've got a smart meter

SAFCTEMP

Thanks for that. It appears EDF had been using estimates of our usage rather than the smart meter reading to create our bill, so payment remained the same.

I am clearly overestimating the systems in place, but I would think if a company has been used to receiving smart meter readings, then reverts to estimates for 16 months, there would be a flag/alert for them or for us.

matelodave

The flag is for you to be checking your bills - you would have then seen that something wasn't right.

Do you not bother to check your bank statements either, just to check that no one is having a dip and that your salary is going in or would you just wait for the bank to let you know if summat was wrong.

I really cannot understand or have any sympathy with people who cant be bothered to check their bills and statements and then expect someone else to not only take the blame, then to let them off and if given a chance give them some compensation as well.

Who do you think should pay for your idleness, you, the company or all those who get on with it and check their accounts and makes sure their bills are paid

Cardew

The back-billing provision only applies where the company are at fault.

Assuming the company were at fault, the calculation for the initial 6 months would be by the audited algorithm that is used for all estimated bills.

However you have a problem. The above would apply had you not paid anything for 18 months. So if your outstanding bill was, say, £600 the computer would estimate how much was due in the first 6 months, and that amount would be written off.

You have been paying by direct debit - albeit an insufficient amount - for the 19 month period. Thus all monies paid are fully credited to your account from May 2018 - not pro-rata as you seem to assume. Thus with those DD payments credited to your account by December 2018(i.e. 12 months ago) your account was probably in credit and the shortfall has occurred in the last 12 months, and thus back-billing does not apply.

As an example let us assume that you should have been paying £50 a month from May 2018, but were only paying £30. By December 2019 you would have paid in 19 x £30 = £570. Thus in December 2018 you should have paid 7 x £50 = £350. That £350 is deducted from the £570 you have paid and you were £220 in credit on that date. From Dec 2018 to Dec 2019 you should have paid £600(12 x £50) and are now £380 in debit. (£600-£220)

badmemory

And to be fair we are all ignoring the elephant in the room. The advertising saying have a smart meter fitted & you will never have to read a meter again.


Whilst we all know this is a pile of cow manure most people who don't normally read these threads may very well make the mistake of believing it. After all why buy a dog & bark yourself & these are very expensive dogs we are all having to pay for!

dogshome

It's not uncommon for suppliers to somehow lose the plot on Dual Fuel accounts, and only charge for one fuel - A large Credit Repayment is a classic symptom that this has happened, and it happens even though the billing has been correct previously..


Check the details on the bills from the start of the account - ( If you don't have them, ask for copies )
It's likely that at some point the bills only listed charges for one fuel, not both - Depending on the date on that bill, your possibility of claiming Back-billing stands or falls.