electrical bill for former home

sethpe

a couple of months ago I started getting calls asking 'when I was going to pay my Ovo bill', at first I thought it was just a scam, this assumption was reinforced when I'd challenge the callers saying I dont have an Ovo account, or asking them for more information, or to explain why they were calling, whatever I asked they just simply hung up.

Then the phone calls stopped, I haven't had one for a while.

Then in my spam folder today, was a statement saying I was overdue to the tune of thousands for a property I haven't lived at for 7 going on 8 years.

I remember going through the process of closing my account when I moved out, I also remember getting one email from them shortly after saying 'latest statement,' which confused me so I rang them up and was told to ignore it. Then nothing for seven years.

It now appears that the person who moved in after me, has been having free electricity for seven years, Ovo never cut the electricity off and they're now chasing me for the money.

I have retained no details from any correspondence with them because it was seven years ago.

any advice you can give would be gratefully received.

YBR

Get in touch and tell them when you moved out. You may need to prove it.
If that doesn't sort it immediately then make a complaint.

Robin9

Have you got OVO's final bill by email  ?

sethpe

No, its seven years ago, everything has gone

QrizB

sethpe said:

No, its seven years ago, everything has gone

In which case, send them a "prove it" letter. They can't take any action against you without proof, and from the sounds of it they won't have any.

This is the link to the "Prove It" letter template and advice on what (and what not) to say:
https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2607247/letter-when-you-know-nothing-about-about-the-debt-aka-prove-it-letter

sethpe

thanks guys I thought I was screwed

To be clear its not a debt collector chasing its Ovo and the electricity appears still connected

Is the prove it letter to say I did tell them I'd moved out

QrizB

sethpe said:

Is the prove it letter to say I did tell them I'd moved out

The "prove it" letter doesn't tell them anything. It asks them to provide their evidence that you owe the money.

If you think that's too aggressive for now, you can instead write to them to remind them that you moved out and that you closed your account at the time.

Do you have any old bank statements etc. that might have your Ovo account number on them?

sethpe

the statement has an account number

however, should i be worried about giving them my new address? Aside from the thousands of pounds that i can't afford, my biggest concern is them putting a mark on my credit file and not being able to get a mortgage

the old address is no longer on my Experian file

QrizB

sethpe said:

however, should i be worried about giving them my new address? Aside from the thousands of pounds that i can't afford, my biggest concern is them putting a mark on my credit file and not being able to get a mortgage

the old address is no longer on my Experian file

That question is best asked on the "Debt-Free Wannabe" board, rather than here. You'll get better advice from them.

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/debt-free-wannabe

Alnat1

Can contact be through email rather than post, so no need to give your address for now?

Brie

So OVO has been sending bills to an address and the people living there have been ignoring them.  and not paying for any electricity either.  Astounding!

I suspect they may have wondered why they continued to get post addressed to you.

I wonder why OVO hasn't used the email address previously.  Of bothered to answer your questions when they rang.  They do seem to have made a mess of things.

I'd certainly be trying to track back to fix dates for when these calls were and see if you can document what happened, what they said, what you asked and how they responded.

All that said though - someone phoning up and saying you owe money to X and then hanging up when challenged sounds more like a scammer than a legit company.  I tend to get a call like a couple of times a month at least.