Beware EDF Energy driving you in debt

mforrester

Well, I seem to have the reverse going on with EDF Energy right now, instead of hicking the Direct Debits, they are driving up my debt!

My previous supplier went bust so was moved to the and after they finally migrated me and sorted my first bill I was £600 in debit so they doubled my Direct Debit, however since the energy price hikes my DD has remained the same.

It transpires that their platform is so bad when you submit real meter readings they do not generate a new bill they just bill you every 6 months, so after switching to monthly pay what I've used in full rather than spreading, it seems I have a bill of £1200 to pay. This is a disgrace in the current climate and some people will be facing even bigger Direct Debit bills and be locked into suppliers as you need a clear balance to move suppliers.

To add insult to injury the bill that was generated last night is incorrect, I provided readings via the live chat to change the billing to monthly full and their system generated an estimated bill, which was 295 units over on electric and 164 units over on gas so remember to check that bill and submit regular readings. Obviously, more time was wasted calling them to resolve the issue and it dropped by over £200. 

Don't get me wrong if I've used it and I will pay for it but other will find this situation very painful when they complete the next round of billing. I used other suppliers and their systems generate a new bill on meter reading so you can track where you are at but not EDF so beware you have no way until that bill is generated to know what situation you are in!! 

Be interested in what they say if Martin challenged them on this behavior.

mforrester

So EDF has just come back and stated that you can request an interim bill if you call up, why can't we just do it in their online portal?

They said they have taken on a lot of new colleagues and I may have had a new starter who did not know this.

The other thing that is not made clear is that the spreading of payments has an up to 6% discount on tariff rates but the pay for what you use monthly doesn't, another key bit of information that was not passed on to the customer.

So after all that I have cleared my debt, I'm back on Direct Debit spreading payments to take advantage of any discount and my monthly charge has increased by just over £100.

Should EDF really make it this hard and system be so woeful?

si_74

I would definitely agree that the 6 month billing is not a great system, it does build some nasty surprises if the direct debit is not high enough. Not really sure why they do it that way. It prompted me to learn how energy bills work so that I could track my own usage and bills and change my direct debit accordingly. On the one hand this shouldn't have been necessary, but on the other it has educated me a lot so that I am able to work it all out for myself. So on balance that has worked for me.

Having been with them for a number of years now I have had my issues, but then I have had with a number of energy companies but......

They are not the worst, and actually I have always found their live chat staff pretty helpful and responsive. It also shouldn't be forgotten that over the last couple of months they have consistently been amongst the best fixed rate options around (for existing customers only).

Mobtr

You’ve been told wrong info again. EDF give the direct debit rates on all direct debit methods whether it is fixed paying the same every month or variable, paying monthly/quarterly for what you’ve used 

pochase

You said you changed to exact whole amount monthly.

This form of payment means that everything that you owe will be debited every month. So of course if you are in debt that will also be debited in the first variable direct debit.

What did you expect to happen when you asked them to bill you every month for the full amount you owe and debit this amount?

When I changed to whole amount monthly I was asked for a meter reading so they could create a bill and and debit everything I owed to this date.

The whole amount direct debit gets the same 6% discount as the fixed amount direct debit, you don't get it if you pay by standing order or cheque. I have just now checked by bill and I get the same unit rates I had when I was on fixed direct debit.

mforrester

pochase said:

You said you changed to exact whole amount monthly.

This form of payment means that everything that you owe will be debited every month. So of course if you are in debt that will also be debited in the first variable direct debit.

I think you missed the point, EDF said this was the only way to get a bill out of the cycle, my issue is there is no easy way to see how you are trading against your direct debit as it is only reviewed 1/2 yearly, the only way to do this regularly is the pay in full monthly method.

On other portals, you supply a meter reading and get an almost instant bill so you can manage expectations and understand exactly how much debt you're in.

Put simply their system was not aligning the DD value in line with usage and balance even though meter readings were submitted and as a customer, you're blind to the debt that is mounting.

Astria

I know it's not the point, but considering the price hikes around the corner, I'd be very happy with my provider over-estimating my usage, and in fact I would encourage them to estimate more readings and only tell them correct figures after they increase my tariff

QrizB

mforrester said:

The other thing that is not made clear is that the spreading of payments has an up to 6% discount on tariff rates but the pay for what you use monthly doesn't, another key bit of information that was not passed on to the customer.

I can confirm that this statement is not correct. I was with EDF earleir this year, switched from budget DD to exact monthly DD and my tariff did not change.

Mobtr

EDF send out emails stating due to the price increase it may be a good idea to increase your payments, think it also mentions it when you log onto your online account. If you choose not to expect to go into debt 

mforrester

Mobtr said:

EDF send out emails stating due to the price increase it may be a good idea to increase your payments, think it also mentions it when you log onto your online account. If you choose not to expect to go into debt 

Wow just wow, my original message was a warning I was not complaining I've paid up and have no debt, just stating that others may not be able to do the same.

This forum seems to want to knock rather than as Martin would, guide and warn people. People will rely on EDF to provide realistic DD to cover increases and debt, in my case, it was way off, that's the warning.

The fact that they send emails or prompts on login (which I've never seen) is that really good enough? The ability to see exact balances by submitting readings and understanding if you do need to increase and budget for it which EDF does not provide, yet it comes as standard with other suppliers.

wild666

If I was with a company that billed every 6 months I would be taking regular readings, at least once per week, then if they produced an estimated bill and said they were increasing the DD I would read the meters and contact them that day with the readings. If it was winter and they refused to do anything but say I pay that bill I would go to resolver and complain then after 8 weeks go to the ombudsman if it wasn't resolved.

Thankfully my supplier, Octopus, bills monthly, 26th of the month, on my smart electric meter but not the gas so I put in gas readings on the 1st of every month which they take as the reading from the last day of the previous month.