Price cap

rbailes

I would like clarification on the price cap and what this actually means. 2 years ago my energy provider went bust and the account was moved without my knowledge to another . They increased estimated readings to a much higher tariff and were trying to change me roughly 240 per month for energy which I cannot have used and I requested my old meter was removed and inspected for faults and a smart meter installed   

I now have been seeking legal advice. 

They refuse to tell me what happened to my old meter.

My questions are:
who owns my old meter which was installed in the fifties?

The press states that the price of energy was previously capped at 1700 per year. What does this mean? Does this mean this is the maximum amount you can be charged?

help appreciated ! Thanks 

QrizB

Welcome to the forum.

Your old meter belongs to the energy company.

If it really was installed in the 1950s it's well past it's life and was long overdue for replacement.

The price cap is *not* the maximum you can be charged. It is the maximum that can be charged on a variable tariff for an average user. See the link in my signature for a detailed explanation.

emmajones1976

You are asking what happened to a meter which is over 60 years old, and are talking legal advice?

Come on now.

MattMattMattUK

rbailes said:

I would like clarification on the price cap and what this actually means. 2 years ago my energy provider went bust and the account was moved without my knowledge to another . They increased estimated readings to a much higher tariff and were trying to change me roughly 240 per month for energy which I cannot have used and I requested my old meter was removed and inspected for faults and a smart meter installed   

If you were charged based on estimated readings that has nothing to do with the meter. Meters get independently tested for faults, if it was misreporting you would have been notified.

rbailes said:

I now have been seeking legal advice.

What, specifically, have you been seeking legal advice for?

rbailes said:

They refuse to tell me what happened to my old meter.

They will have recycled it into it's raw materials.

rbailes said:

My questions are:
who owns my old meter which was installed in the fifties? 

No one now as it will have been recycled, before that it will have been owned by the network provider. 

rbailes said:

The press states that the price of energy was previously capped at 1700 per year. What does this mean? Does this mean this is the maximum amount you can be charged?

No it is not a cap on the total you can be charged, it is nominally a cap on the unit rate, but expressed in "typical" usage, which very few people are on. The unit rates are available on the Ofgem website. The "price cap" has always been a poor choice of name, but more detail is based on unit rates, which can be used to estimate your bills, based on your previous usage, if you have those figures. 

rbailes

emmajones1976 said:

You are asking what happened to a meter which is over 60 years old, and are talking legal advice?

Come on now.

This is not what I said but maybe it was badly explained. 

I am disputing my bill which was based on estimated readings and no real proof of usage in 2019/20 when my energy company was switched. the meter was removed to inspect for faults as photo evidence of a couple of readings was supplied 

i am trying to fight a £2300 excess energy bill on top of an existing direct debit that was being paid out for which there is no proof of usage and does not reflect current smart meter usage - this is the reason for legal advice 

thanks 

QrizB

OK (and assuming your user name here is unrelated to your real name and so you can speak without prejudicing your coming legal battle) can you share with us the meter readings that you are disputing? And then explain why exactly you think they are incorrect?