Small Business Being Overcharged for Electricity - Please help!

macman

You never 'inherit' a contract from the previous tenant. If you fail to pick a tariff, you'll be placed on the most expensive in a deemed contract, which you accept as soon as you first switch the lights on. 
You've then compounded it by failing to submit any meter read in 8 months. Rookie mistake, all too common unfortunately

leahrhickey

Hi all - thank you for your responses so far. Everything is still up in the air at the moment (unfortunately) as I've been unable to get a reading for this month. The meter is located in a separate part of the building that only our caretaker has access to and he is unfortunately off sick for the duration of this week. This is the first time I've encountered this kind of problem, as with our previous smaller unit in the building our electricity meter was actually inside the unit so we could track our usage - we would buy cards to top up the meter whenever we were running low.

As previously stated, I have no frame of reference for this as no friends or family have experienced this issue and foolishly assumed that E-On would have our best interests at heart and not overcharge us. The only readings I have are:

107890 (August 2020), 109017 (March 2021) and 109028 (May 2021).

I will admit that the bills startled me a little and I think that both of us assumed that as we didn't sign any documentation with E-On directly, that we'd have enough time to shop around for a better rate and pay off the bill at a later time. From what I've gathered, we currently have to wait for the caretaker to take a new reading for the end of the month, contact E-On to settle the bill (most likely in instalments) and request to cancel our contract (which, from what some of you have stated may take three months to leave).

I've since received an additional threatening letter from E-On regarding debt collection and I'm not sure how to proceed. I can wholeheartedly pay this off (which I now wish I'd done in the beginning to save the headache) but I just don't want to pay them that amount if we're being charged double.

Robin9

You know your typical consumption for the August to May -  simply pro rata it for May to June - say 30 days at 4 kWh per day.

Give them a reading of 109028 + 120 = 109148

btr30

leahrhickey said:

Hi all - thank you for your responses so far. Everything is still up in the air at the moment (unfortunately) as I've been unable to get a reading for this month. The meter is located in a separate part of the building that only our caretaker has access to and he is unfortunately off sick for the duration of this week. This is the first time I've encountered this kind of problem, as with our previous smaller unit in the building our electricity meter was actually inside the unit so we could track our usage - we would buy cards to top up the meter whenever we were running low.

As previously stated, I have no frame of reference for this as no friends or family have experienced this issue and foolishly assumed that E-On would have our best interests at heart and not overcharge us. The only readings I have are:

107890 (August 2020), 109017 (March 2021) and 109028 (May 2021).

I will admit that the bills startled me a little and I think that both of us assumed that as we didn't sign any documentation with E-On directly, that we'd have enough time to shop around for a better rate and pay off the bill at a later time. From what I've gathered, we currently have to wait for the caretaker to take a new reading for the end of the month, contact E-On to settle the bill (most likely in instalments) and request to cancel our contract (which, from what some of you have stated may take three months to leave).

I've since received an additional threatening letter from E-On regarding debt collection and I'm not sure how to proceed. I can wholeheartedly pay this off (which I now wish I'd done in the beginning to save the headache) but I just don't want to pay them that amount if we're being charged double.

Phone Eon and submit the readings you have. They will issue a new account based on your actual needs
I calculate that you will be due just under £500 from Sep 20 - May 21
1138 KWh @ 22.2p = £252
270 days SC @ 79p//day = £213
5% VAT on above = £23

Total £488

Also ask about contract rates going forward to get yourself on cheaper rates

leahrhickey

Could I ask, how did you work out the rate that we should be paying? Would it be more appropriate for us to call E-On directly or contact them via email so that we have a record of the conversation / who we've spoken to? I just don't want to get caught in a trap when explaining this to them.

I'd like to contact them today so I'm just trying to revise what to say i. e. 'based on [rate] X [usage] we owe [amount]... I'd like to settle this bill and close our account immediately.'

Are E-On likely to have cancellation fees?

Robin9

@leahrhickey  I think you are trying to make this too complicated. 

The real figures you need will be on Eon's bill  and the only way to do that is to give them a reading, that will generate a new bill.

Details of any cancellation charges will be on Eon's bill.  

Get that up to date bill and then you can move forward.


PS Have you got access to the online account - enter the meter read online and save wasted time trying to contact customers services who may not understand the issue.

PPS Don't be in too much of a hurry to run away from Eon - they may be the cheapest supplier.

jbuchanangb

Could I ask, how did you work out the rate that we should be paying?

The rate you should be paying is the rate shown on the bills which you uploaded. However unpleasantly expensive that is, it is the reality and needs paying. Then negotiate for a better deal.

btr30

Your actual consumption is around 4kWh per day based on your current usage.
if you want to equate as an estimated annual consumption (EAC) that will be 1,600 kWh
You should adjust your annual rate to project your predicted future use of the property, eg if you are likely to use it twice as often set your EAC to 3,200 KWh per annum
Eon should then be able to give you a quote for a fixed term period going forward.
Your current rates are 22.2p/KWh and 79 p/day for comparison.
Because you are an exceptionally low user you may find that rates are not much different from now, but you can contact other business suppliers to check what they can offer for your EAC.

However, your historic consumption still needs paying and I would suggest stage 1 is updating Eon with meter readings and settling this account before debt recovery gets involved.

leahrhickey

Just called E-On to advise of everything here and I've been given a total figure of £435.64! Such a relief, thank you so much everyone! Easiest phone call in the world!

QrizB

Great news, that's a lot more reasonable!