Surprise debt collection notice from Tonik - 18 months later

MWT

mjp89 said:

I'm really confused as the smart meters were installed four months before I left them.  I was paying a £42 monthly direct debit; I though the whole point was that smart meters enabled accurate billing!?

Even with smart meters and a DD you have to keep an eye on your account balance as while the smart meter will most often avoid the use of estimated readings, there is no guarantee that what you are paying each month will cover what you are using unless your provider offers a variable DD option that is set to take whatever is due in full each month.

You are entitled to get the final bill and a statement of your account. The statement should show how they reached the amount that they believe is outstanding.

joy222

I'm having the same issue and am not sure what to do.  Did anyone resolve this successfully?  If you do, can you please share what you did and if you have any tips and advice?  Thank you.

silverufcplayer

At the very least they must be able to provide you with a bill supporting the amount they claim they are owed, if they cannot do that then they have failed at the first hurdle and the debt collectors know that hence the suggestion you pay them first and argue about it later.

I also seen some weird cases when parents use internet filters for their children, I find a list of them and I find it is all very strange. 

mjp89

Hi all,
A bit of an update as others seem to have had the same experience.  I sent an email to UK Search explaining that I was submitting a formal subject access request to gain all information related to my case from Tonik.  I said that I would like to see a final bill, the final meter readings used to generate it and that I would be happy to settle any outstanding amount due on the presentation of supporting evidence.

UK Search replied quickly saying they'd pass it to Tonik, then about 30 days later I got a final bill from Tonik.  They've not provided my full history of payments and usage as requested but I do agree with their opening readings for the bill.  However the final readings are both higher than the initial readings provided by the supplier I moved to.  I've submitted the initial readings from the new supplier to UK search who have said they'll contact their client and that was the last I heard (around 3 weeks ago).

I'll post any further updates but I suspect that either Tonik will claim the difference is too small for them to adjust in which case I'll need to get advice on whether that's legal (can a supplier overcharge you because they're policy says they're not overcharging you by enough to justify changing it!?)or they'll send an amended final bill with the correct readings.

inspectorperez

Without wishing to state the obvious, both suppliers (old and new) should use the same reading which may not necessarily be the "correct" reading. Its a funny concept I know, but this seems to be the industry norm!!

MWT

mjp89 said:

I'll post any further updates but I suspect that either Tonik will claim the difference is too small for them to adjust in which case I'll need to get advice on whether that's legal (can a supplier overcharge you because they're policy says they're not overcharging you by enough to justify changing it!?)or they'll send an amended final bill with the correct readings.

Short answer is yes they can, and in fact under the current switching rules they actually have to use the estimated number even if they don't want to, but the good news is your new supplier has to use that same number as your opening reading on the new account.

Both gaining and losing suppliers have to abide by the judgement of the 3rd party that sits between them and passes judgement on the meter reading you supply.

Yes it is dumb, but no, as long as it is within tolerance, you can't insist on them using the actual reading.

mjp89

MWT said:

mjp89 said:

I'll post any further updates but I suspect that either Tonik will claim the difference is too small for them to adjust in which case I'll need to get advice on whether that's legal (can a supplier overcharge you because they're policy says they're not overcharging you by enough to justify changing it!?)or they'll send an amended final bill with the correct readings.

Short answer is yes they can, and in fact under the current switching rules they actually have to use the estimated number even if they don't want to, but the good news is your new supplier has to use that same number as your opening reading on the new account.

Both gaining and losing suppliers have to abide by the judgement of the 3rd party that sits between them and passes judgement on the meter reading you supply.

Yes it is dumb, but no, as long as it is within tolerance, you can't insist on them using the actual reading.

TThanks for this. In my case the new supplier used lower readings than the tonik final readings. I left that new supplier over 2 years ago and am fully settled with them. If theres a dispute over the readings at handover surely it's now on tonik to amend to match the initial readings with the new supplier given that it took tonik over 2 years to generate a final bill?!

Gerry1

mjp89 said:

I do agree with their opening readings for the bill.  However the final readings are both higher than the initial readings provided by the supplier I moved to.  I've submitted the initial readings from the new supplier to UK search who have said they'll contact their client and that was the last I heard (around 3 weeks ago).

I'll post any further updates but I suspect that either Tonik will claim the difference is too small for them to adjust in which case I'll need to get advice on whether that's legal (can a supplier overcharge you because they're policy says they're not overcharging you by enough to justify changing it!?)or they'll send an amended final bill with the correct readings.

Opening reading validation process

My opening reading is wrong

MWT

mjp89 said:

TThanks for this. In my case the new supplier used lower readings than the tonik final readings. I left that new supplier over 2 years ago and am fully settled with them. If theres a dispute over the readings at handover surely it's now on tonik to amend to match the initial readings with the new supplier given that it took tonik over 2 years to generate a final bill?!

If Tonik claim that they are using the correct figures from the intermediary and they are within tolerance then no, but you would have a claim against your previous supplier for not using the correct opening reading from that same intermediary...

How much of a difference are we talking about here (in kWh, or metered units for gas).

mjp89

MWT said:

mjp89 said:

TThanks for this. In my case the new supplier used lower readings than the tonik final readings. I left that new supplier over 2 years ago and am fully settled with them. If theres a dispute over the readings at handover surely it's now on tonik to amend to match the initial readings with the new supplier given that it took tonik over 2 years to generate a final bill?!

If Tonik claim that they are using the correct figures from the intermediary and they are within tolerance then no, but you would have a claim against your previous supplier for not using the correct opening reading from that same intermediary...

How much of a difference are we talking about here (in kWh, or metered units for gas).

It's not a huge amount in my case (about £20 off the top of my head) but it feels a matter of principle! I provided the initial readings to the new supplier. Tonik claimed that they never received initial  readings from my new supplier and are effectively blaming them for the 2 year delay to the final bill. Tonik then changed their tune and said their final readings are based on the smart meters... My new supplier says that they provided the initial readings to the intermediary.