E.ON I’M AT MY TETHER WITH LIES, DECEIVING AND I GUESS IT IS ALL RECORDED.

DWiper

Last week I rang my brother to help me with a bill from E.ON after receiving another letter demanding £55 for a visit and post through my letter box. I have mental health issues with a plate in my head from an accident as a child, I was ran over. I am on benefits and struggle to pay my bills, but I do pay them. My brother sent a letter to the CEO about these £55 letter drops for two of them. Then I was walking out the door yesterday when a woman who would only be named as Lauren from Field Debt Solutions. She said she was there to help me solves this matter though it was not going to charge me another £55 for the visit. I rang my brother again who attended my flat with his wife. My brother explained to Lauren that I had not received a letter from EON stating a debt collector was going to attend. After a few words and being informed she was a third party interloper who was acting in fraud and demanding money with menace she stood up and walked out trying to hand me or my brother a letter at which point my brother said not to except from her.
After she left I put my head into my hands and got upset and stressed out. I’m going to live in a tent in a field because I can’t cope with this I said to my brother in tears. His wife got on the phone to sort things out with EON who explained what was happening and my brother had no communication from EON about a debt collection agency being involved. My brother asked how much the bill was, which was £209.94p. My brother asked if he paid the bill, would an extra £55 be placed on the bill as this seem’s to be unlawful. The answer was no, and the bill was paid by my brother. Today I get a letter requesting £209.94p in the post. My brother said ring them up and explain the situation that the bill had been paid. So I rang them and they knew nothing about it and still demanded the money and also told me there was another £55 to pay. Yesterday they told my brother £55 was for up-to 3 visits, yet today they tell me I have to pay £55 for another visit. I’m confused and distraught by the way this company is dealing with this matter and I do believe they are demanding money with menace. My brother is talking about making a small claims court issue for the 3X £55 (two have already been paid). He had advised me to visit the Citizens Advise Bureau, take all my letters with me. He said the mess I was in was having a TORT created against me. He also believes EON are not allowed to act as debt collectors or if a debt collection agency is using a letter heading with EON on the letter is fraud. My brother has mentioned the harassment and communications act, the fraud act. Today I rang EON back and kept requesting the complaints department and they refused to put me through saying this problem does not warrant them to be involved. My brother is now on the case to help me with legal action no matter the cost against EON and their CEO in Nottingham.

Has anyone else suffered like this? Anyone got any advise? I’m really considering living in a tent in a field, I can’t take this any longer.

regards
DWiper

Gerry1

Welcome to the forum.

Are you on E.On's Priority Services Register?

Call them on 0345 052 0000.

DWiper

After 4X calls to EON I will not talk to them again. They have lied to me, my brother and his wife.
But thanks Gerry1

lindawiper

We were told repeatedly by Eon on the phone that you get 3 visit & only get charged one payment of £55, My brother in-law has had 3 visits now to the total of £165 of which he has paid £110, The visits are on the pretence of coming to help, absolute rubbish all that are there for is to put you further in dept, The dept collection rep wasnt there to help in any was, she was very condicending towards my brother in law, all she wanted was payment at any cost, My brother in-law is lucky he has his brother to help but what about the even more vulnerable, 

Norman_Castle

Provide proof that the £209 has been paid then they will have no reason to contact you again.

DWiper

The bill was settled yesterday after being told the visit yesterday would not be charged for, but now they are demanding another £55 for the third time. It is demanding money with menace. Since when has EON allowed a debt solution agency to bare their logo? This is going to be a court case my brother is dealing with.

DWiper

OfGem will be contact and then reported to ICO says my brother if this isn’t sorted out.

DWiper

OFT Guidelines for debt collection

This doc is well worth a read, sect 2 says in part:

2.1 In the OFT’s view, there are a number of overarching principles of consumer protection and fair business practice which apply to all debt recovery activities.

2.2 In general terms, businesses 17 should:

*treat debtors fairly – debtors should not be subjected to aggressive practices, inappropriate coercion, or conduct which is deceitful, oppressive, unfair or improper, whether unlawful or not

• be transparent in their dealings with debtors and others – information provided should be clear and should not be confusing or misleading

 • exercise forbearance and consideration, in particular towards debtors experiencing difficulty – we would expect businesses to work with debtors with a view to providing them with reasonable time and opportunity to repay debts and, where appropriate, to signpost them to sources of free independent debt advice

• act proportionately when seeking to recover debts, taking into account debtors’ circumstances – actions taken in respect of

Sect 3 says:

3 UNFAIR OR IMPROPER BUSINESS PRACTICES

 3.1 This chapter identifies matters that the OFT considers to be unfair or improper business practices for the purposes of section 25(2A)(e) of the Act. These are set out under the following sub-headings:

 • Communication: businesses should communicate in a clear, accurate and transparent manner

 • False representation of authority and/or legal position: businesses should accurately and truthfully represent their authority/status and the correct legal position with regard to debts and the debt recovery process

• Physical/psychological harassment: businesses should not engage in physical or psychological harassment of debtors or relevant third parties

• Deceptive and/or unfair methods: businesses should be truthful and fair in their dealings with debtors and others

• Charging for debt recovery: charges should not be levied inappropriately or unfairly

• Debt collection visits: those visiting debtors must not act in a threatening or unclear manner

• Statute barred debt: businesses should not use unfair methods (including misrepresenting the legal position) if seeking to recover statute barred debt

• Data accuracy: businesses should have appropriate processes in place with a view to ensuring that customer data is accurate and take reasonable steps to ensure that it is adequate, with a view to only the actual debtor and valid debts being pursued for repayment.

They have failed on both sections 2 and 3. The OFT should therefore take appropriate action for your alleged creditor failing to provide information you have lawfully requested.

there is case law that in my opinion and that is all it is, my opinion, that would support you having cause for civil damages against them Ferguson v British Gas

Send then a Denial of Implied Right of access, found here:

 

Whilst the account is in dispute, OFT guidelines state they:

* may not demand any payment on the account, nor am I obliged to offer any payment to you.

* may not add further interest or any charges to the account.

* may not pass the account to a third party.

* may not register any information in respect of the account with any credit reference agency.

* may not issue a default notice related to the account.

* may not apply for a court order

I believe they cannot gain entry into your home except for health and safety reasons.

Gerry1

Well here's some positive advice.  Find a better deal, start with Citizens Advice and Switch with Which? because they show the whole of the market by default.  Also get separate quotations for gas and electricity as well as dual fuel.

If you have gas, consider a variable of fixed price tariff without exit fees because gas prices are expected to fall; don't use the immersion heater and don't use an instantaneous electric shower.

Make sure you send meter readings monthly and check that your DD payments are keeping up with your usage.

Talldave

DWiper said:

Talldave said:

If the bill had been paid on time none of this would have happened. As far as I can tell from your single paragraph rant, you don't dispute the bill?
The effort you're putting into ranting about the debt collection process you initiated could be better spent working out how to budget more effectively for future bills and perhaps how to reduce those bills (e.g don't use Eon?). For example, if your brother had paid the bill when it arrived, you'd have been several multiples of £55 better off.
Ranting about Eon's debt collection process will achieve nothing.

Does it feed you’re ego to be condescending fella?
The Bill is not disputed.
I’m on benefits and spread my money well. I have always paid my bill if and when I could.
My brother paid the debt without me asking him to.
2X £55 letter bills in approx 1 week is beyond me.
I will be leaving EON. Three times using the word rant or ranting is repeating yourself.
I’m in a mess, I have mental issues and you’re remarks are not positive re enforcement.

I'm not trying to be condescending, I'm trying to make you realise that getting angry with Eon for attempting to obtain money you owe them achieves nothing.  What exactly did you hope to achieve by posting on a moneysaving forum?

My advice was to work towards finding a way to be able to pay the bills without getting to debt collection, and a significant part of that is moving to a supplier that charges less than Eon.  But you chose to ignore that part of my reply. Stating that you've made 4 phone calls to Eon and are not going to call them again sets you on a path to confrontation, which will get you nowhere.

Another part of of money saving would be to look at your consumption and see if the amount of energy you're using could be reduced.  There are plenty of posters on here who could advise on help and support that may be available - but they won't be attracted to a single paragraph angry thread where you also get angry with people who take the time to reply.

Former_E.ON_Company_Representative:_Malc

DWiper said:

Last week I rang my brother to help me with a bill from E.ON after receiving another letter demanding £55 for a visit and post through my letter box. I have mental health issues with a plate in my head from an accident as a child, I was ran over. I am on benefits and struggle to pay my bills, but I do pay them. My brother sent a letter to the CEO about these £55 letter drops for two of them. Then I was walking out the door yesterday when a woman who would only be named as Lauren from Field Debt Solutions. She said she was there to help me solves this matter though it was not going to charge me another £55 for the visit. I rang my brother again who attended my flat with his wife. My brother explained to Lauren that I had not received a letter from EON stating a debt collector was going to attend. After a few words and being informed she was a third party interloper who was acting in fraud and demanding money with menace she stood up and walked out trying to hand me or my brother a letter at which point my brother said not to except from her.
After she left I put my head into my hands and got upset and stressed out. I’m going to live in a tent in a field because I can’t cope with this I said to my brother in tears. His wife got on the phone to sort things out with EON who explained what was happening and my brother had no communication from EON about a debt collection agency being involved. My brother asked how much the bill was, which was £209.94p. My brother asked if he paid the bill, would an extra £55 be placed on the bill as this seem’s to be unlawful. The answer was no, and the bill was paid by my brother. Today I get a letter requesting £209.94p in the post. My brother said ring them up and explain the situation that the bill had been paid. So I rang them and they knew nothing about it and still demanded the money and also told me there was another £55 to pay. Yesterday they told my brother £55 was for up-to 3 visits, yet today they tell me I have to pay £55 for another visit. I’m confused and distraught by the way this company is dealing with this matter and I do believe they are demanding money with menace. My brother is talking about making a small claims court issue for the 3X £55 (two have already been paid). He had advised me to visit the Citizens Advise Bureau, take all my letters with me. He said the mess I was in was having a TORT created against me. He also believes EON are not allowed to act as debt collectors or if a debt collection agency is using a letter heading with EON on the letter is fraud. My brother has mentioned the harassment and communications act, the fraud act. Today I rang EON back and kept requesting the complaints department and they refused to put me through saying this problem does not warrant them to be involved. My brother is now on the case to help me with legal action no matter the cost against EON and their CEO in Nottingham.

Has anyone else suffered like this? Anyone got any advise? I’m really considering living in a tent in a field, I can’t take this any longer.

regards
DWiper

DWiper said:

The bill was settled yesterday after being told the visit yesterday would not be charged for, but now they are demanding another £55 for the third time. It is demanding money with menace. Since when has EON allowed a debt solution agency to bare their logo? This is going to be a court case my brother is dealing with.

Hello DWiper  and welcome to the Forums.

When accounts fall into debt, we sometimes need to visit to see if we can set up an arrangement to clear the outstanding balance. This is a Debt Resolution Visit and it's done by one of our Field Advisors. I suspect this was Lauren. There's a £55 fee to cover the cost of the visit. It doesn't matter how many times the rep visits, provided these are within a 28 day period, the fee is only charged once. Visits outside of this timeframe may result in additional charges.

It takes a fairly long time to reach this point and comes after a series of attempts to make contact by phone, letter, text or email. This includes advising a visit might be needed and the costs involved. On each communication, we let customers know about different ways to pay including setting up an arrangement to spread the debt over a more manageable period.

I'm sorry to hear you've health issues and struggle with your bills. As Gerry1 says, make sure you're on our Priority Services Register. This is a record of any vulnerabilities in the household similar to those you describe. It lets us provide extra support and advice to those most in need of it.

There are other ways we can help too. For instance, Warm Home Discount (worth £140) is still open and can be applied for online through our website. There's also the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) to help with insulating the property and replacing broken boilers. Additionally, there's the E.ON Energy Fund to help our most vulnerable residential customers pay energy bill debts and buy replacement white goods. There's more about all of these things, including eligibility, on our website.

Many thanks for settling the bill yesterday. It sounds like the letter you received today was already in the pipeline and it was too late to stop it. As this balance has now been paid, please ignore the letter.

I'm sorry, too, you weren't put through to a Complaint Manager. This should've been done as soon as you had explained your feelings. I'd recommend using the Live Chat service on our website. Advisors are online from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and between 8am and 6pm Saturdays. They'll start the ball rolling so all the points you've raised can be investigated and you can keep a transcript of the chat.

Hope this points you in the right direction DWiper.

Malc