Wrong meter reading used for energy switch (OVO to E.ON)

CrispyUK

I've recently switched from OVO Energy to E.ON via MSE's Cheap Energy Club, the switch took place on 13th May.

When E.ON requested opening meter readings I spotted they had the wrong electricity meter serial number (the old meter, removed Oct 2019 when smart meter fitted). Phoned up, cross-metering team weren't available due to COVID-19 but the lady I spoke to told me to go ahead and submit my current readings as normal, she would put a note on the account so it could be resolved, she called back later and took further details including final reading from the old meter, new meter serial number and current readings.

Fast-forward to last weekend, E.ON requested latest readings, website rejected as they weren't as expected, electricity meter serial number was now correct but showing a previous reading of 00900 for the switch date, rather than 01072 that I provided. Live chat took original and new readings and said they had corrected.

Then chased OVO Energy who still hadn't sent a final electricity bill (received gas straight after switch) and were taking DD every month. Final bill now issued but it's using this mystery 00900 meter reading (even though the bill shows an actual/smart meter read of 01004 from eight days earlier so it's obviously wrong).

Checked E.ON site again, still showing the 00900 reading and no sign of the readings I provided last weekend, they haven't generated a bill for me yet so should I just wait and see what reading they start billing me from? If they bill from 00900 then I'll have paid for all my usage, just E.ON will have charged me for 172kWh that technically OVO supplied (this would be about 23p in my favour so neither here nor there from that perspective). If they do end up billing from 01072 then I can always contact OVO again and ask them to bill me for the missing usage from their bill.

Gerry1

https://help.so.energy/support/solutions/articles/7000046241

Just make sure that both companies use the same reading. It's a crazy system, but that's the way it is.

CrispyUK

Gerry1 said:

https://help.so.energy/support/solutions/articles/7000046241

Just make sure that both companies use the same reading. It's a crazy system, but that's the way it is.

Thanks for that Gerry, interesting article definitely a crazy system, especially given it is a SMETS2 smart meter so the DCC should have a record of exactly what the meter reading was at the point of switching. As I say it doesn't really make any odds to me financially who I pay for that 172kWh, although that's about 10% of my annual usage so it will skew my usage figures with E.ON and limits the usefulness of all the graphs and tools thrown at us to reduce our usage now we have smart meters

Talldave

It highlights just how pathetic the energy industry is. After millions spent (badly) specifying, developing,  producing and installing smart meters, they still fail to use them for exactly what they're good at - giving an accurate reading at a specific point in time - and blunder on with the inaccurate, not fit for purpose, old way of doing things. It beggars belief. 

jbuchanangb

At least both suppliers are now using the same value. I changed supplier In February and gave the new supplier my gas meter reading of 3773, which they used as the start reading. The old supplier interpreted this as 3733, i.e. 40m3 units low. Life is too short to get into an argument. Particularly when the error is in my favour.