Scottish Power - problems with complaints

Pembers50

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help, I'm on a fixed rate tariff so can't move yet but I am reaching the end of my tether.

1. I ordered smart meters in January and they only fitted an electricity one.  Despite many many contacts, and lots of prompts on their website encouraging the ordering of smart meters, they have told me that they cannot supply a gas smart meter - has anyone had one fitted from Scottish Power?
2. We had solar panels fitted in June and I applied for the Smart Export Guarantee on 5 July.  After an initial acknowledgement saying that I would be contacted within 15 working days - I chased in August and got an acknowledgement and within that a list of the requirements.  I entered all the documents online but can't see what I uploaded so I emailed back and asked how I could check that I'd uploaded the correct documents, that was now 2 months ago and I've not heard anything else.
3. I have reduced my payments but I'm still over £600 in credit - I've tried to call (8 times +, email and use the chat - I'm currently on my third attempt by chat and have been in a queue since 9.30 this morning (currently 4 hours so far). I've event tried ranting on twitter but I'm not getting anywhere - I can't even get a complaint number for the smart export guarantee so looking like I'm going to the ombudsman but that's not simple either... 

Any suggestions please?

ariarnia

someone else had a problem with SP complaints this morning but it looks like there thread was deleted (i think they made allegations of criminality which the forum are a bit careful about possibly getting sued) but they will hopefully post their experience. 

i prefer emails myself as they're a bit faster normally and its easier to prove what was sent and what was said (and that it was actually sent). the email address i've found is contactus@scottishpower.com

but if you are having problems with their normal contact routes then you could always try an old fashioned letter. no immediate response but more official. just make sure you keep copies and get proof of postage.  

googling gives me ScottishPower, Customer Services, Freepost SCO5388, 320 St Vincent Street, Glasgow G2 5AD

one important thing though is have you put in bold letters at the top COMPLAINT? 

once you have done that (and you can prove you have done that) then if they dont respond you can escalate it to the ombudsman in 8 weeks. 

Pembers50

Thanks, I have tried the email route but got no responses other than one acknowledgment with a 10-15 day response promise - what a joke!  I haven't tried old fashioned pen and paper so perhaps a letter will be next - with a signature required to prove receipt... 

Ironically, I just got a response on the chat, I responded to say I was still here and that was 15 minutes ago - no further contact!

ariarnia

you don't really need a response. as long as you can prove it was sent to the right email address and you put 'complaint' clearly. no response or resolution in 8 weeks and you can escalate it to the ombudsman. who will respond.  

so we know (and prepare for any case) what exactly is your complaint. 

re the smart meter. if they have no engineer available or no meters available then they can't fit a meter. someone will conform but as long as they base your bills on the minimum least one accurate reading a year they are not required to give you a smart meter. so i don't think that would be upheld by the ombudsman. but if they said they would then didn't turn up then you would be able to complain about that and get compensation (i think 30). so the detail matters if you see what i mean. 

the solar panels i don't know enough about. it definitely sounds like bad customer service but i don't know what your entitlement would be (it could be they would have to compensate you for the loss from when they should have set up to now or it could be that the guarentee isnt in place so they don't owe you anything). there's a sub forum at the top of the page with lots of discussion about solar panels so they might help if it gets that far. 

and about your credit balance. 600 at the start of winter isn't a hugely unreasonable amount to be in credit... that could be used up in your next two bills. can i ask what you are actually asking for and what you are basing the request on? the best way to succeed with requests for refunds is to have a good handle on your actual usage and be able to prove that your normal winter usage is X so X amount would cover it. DD is at Y so a refund of Z credit would mean your account was balanced in spring. assuming you can actually get someone to respond to you have you/are you in a position to set out your request like that?

[Deleted User]

Hi, just wanted to acknowledge this thread.  Sorry to hear of your ongoing problems Pembers50 and to say I’m in the same predicament.  Constantly banging my head against a brick wall, and the lack of help from this company is unbelievable.  

*ariarni, thank you for your help in my thread that was pulled.  As you can see, I had to change my username.

Sorry for the piggy back on your thread OP but I sincerely acknowledge your problems.

[Deleted User]

Also OP, be prepared to wait on their chat for 5 hours or more - been there, done that and it will resolve nothing. I just don’t want you wasting your time, as I did. Write a full letter of complaint and send it recorded delivery as I intend to do.  

They really are disgustingly rude and incompetent and it’s just not acceptable. 

Pembers50

UPDATE     
After 5 hours on the chat I managed to get my refund.  I understand the comment about it being good to have a credit with the winter coming but after having the solar panels installed our energy usage has reduced significantly, we also had a new boiler fitted which has increased the efficiency, insulated the walls and loft and had new windows fitted - we also have a new wood burner that will heat the whole downstairs so we have spent a huge amount preparing our house to make it as energy efficient as possible.  I pay around £300 pm and that should not only pay for the energy used but still build up a bit of a surplus.

I have arranged a refund now which is great - but 5 hours on the chatbox is not good enough.

The smart meter is just irritating - it feels like they are pushing them at every turn on their website but they've told me that they are not fitting any gas smart meters at present as they don't work!  I wanted one as with all the improvements I've made I wanted to be able to monitor our usage, but I'm giving up on that one for a bit.

The smart export guarantee is in relation to the solar energy we pump back into the grid - they are supposed to pay us for this every 6 months.  As there are no solar batteries to store excess solar energy generated in the country (so it seems) at the moment, all our excess solar energy is going back to Scottish Power and in order to receive the payments, I have to register.  The paperwork is huge as you have to evidence it's your house etc. etc. so I get that it can take a while.  However, we had the panels installed at the beginning of June, submitted our application when we had the paperwork through from the solar panel suppliers and we're not getting anywhere with it.  The turnaround time is advertised as 15 working days and so far it's been nearly 4 months.  I don't want to lose the money as it is in excess of £300 (according to our app) as the summer was so sunny!

Thanks for the comments everyone

ariarnia

good to here the positive outcomes for at least one problem. 

these people might be able to help more with your feed in issue as theres a lot of solar talk that way: 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/categories/lpg-heating-oil-solid-other-fuels