Avro energy are keeping my credit balance having falsely estimated usage as justification

CathWat

Has anyone had difficulty with Avro?  They tell me they are allowed to keep 1.5 times my direct debit amount as a credit on my account.  Based on November readings I calculated they should refund me £50 over and above this amount (although I had wanted more refunded initially).  They countered by estimating my usage higher than my submitted readings, to ensure the credit was reduced to the 1.5 times.  They are ignoring my emails.  Any advice please?  I am three weeks short of going to the ombudsman and I need this money to help my family.

leonj

Cancel the direct debit and initiate switch to a supplier that doesn't charge you up front

rjmachin

How much is your account in credit by and what do your bills range from (summer to winter)?
Have you been submitting monthly meter readings to get accurate bills?

For example, I am £180 in credit on my account, and I pay £118 per month.  My bills range from £90 in the summer to £150 in the winter.  Due to this, I know that I need the credit I have built up to cover the underpayments in the winter month, so by March/April next year, I will be down to £0 or in a bit of debt.

MWT

If your DD is 1/12th of your annual cost then what they are saying is not unreasonable going into winter with the coldest months still to come...

I know that many people are struggling right now, but refunding the cushion you have built up to carry you through the winter at this point is likely to just end up with you being in debt before you get to Spring.

Don't just cancel the DD though as with most suppliers that will cause them to move you to an expensive tariff.

You can switch but it will take a while and it will be hard to find a supplier that is low cost and yet doesn't require you to keep a positive balance on your account...