Scottish Power lost the records and simply made up the bill. Advice...

Mark_and_Cath

Long story short.  Back in early 2018 we moved into our new home and it had a SP prepayment meter.  We rang to get it changed for a standard meter and were told that it was their meter but it wasn't installed at our property and so they couldn't swap it, a quite bizarre set of conversations later they agreed to send an engineer to check.  After the visit, they agreed that it was an error on their database and they would get it changed for a standard meter, which they did.  I rang them back a couple of weeks later and asked what tariffs I could go on and was told that I had to get my prepayment meter swapped over first - patience is a virtue.  Fast forward a few months and I noticed DD's going out to SP, it turns out for a different property, and I assumed that my wife had sorted something and thought nothing more of it.

I started to get emails offering to swap out prepayment meter for a smart meter and it turns out that the meter change was never recorded.  Now SP have finally caught up that they did change the meter I have a bill for over £8,000 because they say the new meter started at zero.  We know it did not and wife has records which she took top check our usage, SP obviously have no records and are just guessing.

I am happy to argue this out but I am not staying their customer at either property so I rang a couple of suppliers off a comparison site and was told that they couldn't swap me because I was on a prepayment meter.  I gave them the Electricity Supply Number of the SP bill, a bill that clearly correct meter serial number, and they confirmed that it was a prepayment meter on the system so they couldn't proceed.  SP have made a right royal mess of a simple meter change, there is no way I am paying them £8,000 because they lost the records and invented numbers.  They are closed at the moment but I would value suggestions on how to deal with these people.

D_M_E

Stay off the phone and instead go to their website and find their postal address.

Send a letter headed COMPLAINT in big bold letters and detail your saga, pointing out that they still, from what you have written, not assigned the correct meter to your property - why are they trying to bill you for a completely different address - and have not recorded the meter change.

When the meter was changed, whoever fitted the old one should have left a card - probably yellow in colour - somewhere in the meter box or tucked behind the meter with the reading showing on the old meter and the start reading on the replacement.
If you can find this card, photo it and add it to your letter for reference.

Also note what tariff you expected and probably should have been on as it's most likely you are still on their most expensive standard tariff.

Also go on the ceoemail website and find the email for their CEO and send your complaint there as an email as well as writing.
Just remember phoning gets you nothing but grief and a sore ear so stay off the phone.

treatment

Scottish Power are not very good.

As an aside, they have been texting and emailing me for the past 2 years asking me to submit readings or I will get estimated bills. I have not had any services with them for 4 years and in that time I have moved address.

I have advised them on numerous occasions of their error, was promised it would stop, yet here I am in receipt of a text yesterday and therefore typing this. 

I may bring an harrassment charge against them.

MWT

Mark_and_Cath said:

... Fast forward a few months and I noticed DD's going out to SP, it turns out for a different property, and I assumed that my wife had sorted something and thought nothing more of it....

Just so this point is clear, do you own other properties and was this a valid payment for one of those, or was this an incorrect payment for something you don't own?

Mark_and_Cath

MWT said:

Mark_and_Cath said:

... Fast forward a few months and I noticed DD's going out to SP, it turns out for a different property, and I assumed that my wife had sorted something and thought nothing more of it....

Just so this point is clear, do you own other properties and was this a valid payment for one of those, or was this an incorrect payment for something you don't own?

I own other properties and this was a valid payment to SP for the Gas/Electricity at the other address.