Electricity Switch - New supplier refuses to send correct meter readings to old supplier.

danielson81

Hi,

I wonder if you can help, basically I have switched suppliers from Ebico to Symbio.
I gave Symbio my opening reading of 49272 on the 4th June and the switch was complete.
My old supplier has billed me based on an estimated reading of 49487.

I told Symbio to re-send Ebico the 49272 reading for my final bill, but they basically said "tolerance is allowed":

 We would like to inform you that for a reading dispute to be possible, there needs to be a big enough gap between the reading used and the reading you gave. This is called
‘tolerance’. If the gap is too small, it’s known as being ‘within tolerance’.  The variance units between your correct meter reading and the industry validated reading is about 215 units. The tolerance for an electricity reading is 250 kWh or more.

We have received a validation for your opening meter readings 49487.2 from our regulator and this has been shared with your previous supplier as your final meter reading. We understand that your previous supplier has closed your account with a final bill considering the final meter reading as Day: 49487.2 however we have 49272.00 as your actual meter reading and we have this on our system as your opening meter reading. With this arrangement we can confirm that you will not be paying twice for the same usage.

So basically are they saying "tough" , the extra 215 units I will have to pay Ebico regardless? Its about £30 worth of electricity. It seems unfair I will have to pay Ebico for electric I have not used.  Plus Symbio say they have 49272 as my opening reading, so presumably they will bill from that for my next bill?

Edit - I sent Ebico and Symbio a photo of my meter on the 4th June, unsurprisingly Ebico said it's up to Symbio to sort etc.

MWT

They are correct, the allowed tolerance is  250 kWh for electricity, but both losing and gaining supplier will use the same reading so you only pay for the electricity once.

This is the nonsense that results from having an independent body between the two providers passing judgement on what the meter reading should be based on previous history.

You can argue about it but only if it is outside the 250 tolerance.

So just check your first bill from the new supplier and make sure it uses 49487.2 as the opening reading.

danielson81

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

Gerry1

We have Ofgem to thank for this madness.

ElephantBoy57

danielson81 said:

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

They always add on to the reading, because if the reading was taken at the beginning of the month, your transfer could go through at the end of the month, so you will have used some more energy.

Talldave

ElephantBoy57 said:

danielson81 said:

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

They always add on to the reading, because if the reading was taken at the beginning of the month, your transfer could go through at the end of the month, so you will have used some more energy.

That's irrelevant, they ask for a reading on switch day and then ignore it because the energy industry thinks it knows better. It's a pathetic state of affairs and we can't do anything about it.

[Deleted User]

danielson81 said:

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

Hi,

but it's only the difference in unit price, not the £30 you quoted in earlier post.

What is the difference in unit price?

bristolleedsfan

Talldave said:

ElephantBoy57 said:

danielson81 said:

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

They always add on to the reading, because if the reading was taken at the beginning of the month, your transfer could go through at the end of the month, so you will have used some more energy.

That's irrelevant, they ask for a reading on switch day and then ignore it because the energy industry thinks it knows better. It's a pathetic state of affairs and we can't do anything about it.

Reason for Meter Validation system is due to "MoneySavers"  once upon a time when switching purposely giving a much lower than true reading so as to pay for xxx units at lower rate with new supplier, inconvenience suffered by some now is due to that practice.

Talldave

bristolleedsfan said:

Talldave said:

ElephantBoy57 said:

danielson81 said:

Thanks, I thought that was the case. Shame I am paying the extra 215kw at old suppliers higher rates

They always add on to the reading, because if the reading was taken at the beginning of the month, your transfer could go through at the end of the month, so you will have used some more energy.

That's irrelevant, they ask for a reading on switch day and then ignore it because the energy industry thinks it knows better. It's a pathetic state of affairs and we can't do anything about it.

Reason for Meter Validation system is due to "MoneySavers"  once upon a time when switching purposely giving a much lower than true reading so as to pay for xxx units at lower rate with new supplier, inconvenience suffered by some now is due to that practice.

Apparently this "body" knows better than photographs and, as per a recent thread, smart meters. It's pathetic. 

Gerry1

The answer is simple.  If the variance from the expected value exceeds the threshold, send the customer an 'Are You Sure?' communication.  If the customer confirms the reading, then trigger a visit from a meter reader.

Petriix

Regardless of how ludicrous it is, you will likely only be a couple of pounds down. Depending on your hourly rate (hypothetically for your new self employed role as energy switch correction consultant) you've almost certainly wasted more money's worth of time in disputing it than the actual cost of the anomaly. However, you could request that your new supplier credit the difference to your account; I've had that on more than one previous switch.