Switching: Being charged for same units of energy twice

Joe9090

badmemory said:

I was under the impression that even if you have a smart meter the losing supplier immediately loses access to it as soon as you switch away.  Unless they are doing 30 minute readings the situation will not be changed.

And If the gaining supplier has access as soon as the switch takes place there should be no problem.
The trouble is the smart meter roll out is dumb, in more ways than one!

badmemory

Also if a smart meter is in place there should be no need at all for the ARD to interfere but they seem to be still.  The only good thing about us all having smart meters is that it should put them out of business!

brewerdave

badmemory said:

Also if a smart meter is in place there should be no need at all for the ARD to interfere but they seem to be still.  The only good thing about us all having smart meters is that it should put them out of business!

I suspect that there will be a role for them into the distant future, as being a big cynic, I think a significant number of households will never be connected to the SMART " grid" as the Utility industry will decide that cost/technical difficulties are insurmountable.

moogl3s

Sorry to jump in on this thread, but I'm having the exact same problem but with different suppliers.

In my case I switched from Bulb to Igloo (through the Cheap Energy Club as well!) and 5 days before I switched, I submitted a reading to Igloo (as they requested). They agreed this reading with the data collector or this independant regulator/verifier (DC) and used it as my opening read 5 days later.

However Bulb ended my final bill on an estimated read, and they said they can't use the opening read I supplied to Igloo as a closing read for Bulb, because they received a reading 1 day before I switched from my smart meter which is higher (as expected).

I've been banging my head with both of them trying to explain the opening and closing reads should never overlap, and trying to figure out why it is and neither of them wish to amend the reads.

Having just spoken to Igloo they said they're using the independant verifiers' reading so I should ask Bulb to do so too which I've just done. As another poster has mentioned here it does seem a nightmare, that they charge you extra for switching and make it a hassle to get it back.

A clear cut process switching is not..

Talldave

moogl3s said:

A clear cut process switching is not..

And it so easily could be.  The problem is that all the incompetence resides within the energy industry and you have absolutely no influence over any of it.  Your case is an interesting one, because of the smart meter.  But it's not exactly a scenario that the "experts" running the independent meter reading mangling organisation (IMRMO)  couldn't have predicted and, now that it's happening, get off their lazy backsides and lay down some rules for coping with it.

I often wonder if energy company employees live on this planet?  They must suffer this rubbish when trying to switch?  What better way to spot that something's wrong that THEY need to sort out.

I'd say Bulb are in the wrong, as the energy industry have decided that IMRMO override everything, including eyeballs and smart meters.  Therefore, Bulb should comply.  If you're out of pocket I would invoice them for the loss and put them through the small claims court when they ignore you.  The energy companies need to wake up to the fact that IMRMO (or whatever they like to call it) is not fit for purpose.

moogl3s

Talldave said:

I'd say Bulb are in the wrong, as the energy industry have decided that IMRMO override everything, including eyeballs and smart meters.  Therefore, Bulb should comply.  If you're out of pocket I would invoice them for the loss and put them through the small claims court when they ignore you.  The energy companies need to wake up to the fact that IMRMO (or whatever they like to call it) is not fit for purpose.

They finally gave in after my last email (about using the IMRMO agreed reading), and have re-issued my final bill, 4 months after I left. It's not a huge amount to refund (5-6 days of use) but it's the principle.

I can see why customers may be against smart meters now! I thought that a simple check that closing and opening reads can never overlap, and have to be the same for closing and opening reads.

I've learnt my lesson, never to trust an industry process until I'm confident in the system. Hopefully the information posted helps anyone else in a similar situation

moogl3s

I've come back to highlight this issue after seeing MSE's recent article about Bulb overcharging. https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/news/2020/08/bulb-to-pay-p1-8-million-after-overcharging-customers-and-preven/
They were good at the start but YMMV. I've now switched to Octopus on their Agile tarriff and it seems to be going well. Fingers crossed they seem like a good company.