Any chance of being excused from high electricity bill?

ollybmse

I recently moved into a property and took an initial meter reading.

On trying to switch energy provider after 34 days I went to give a final meter reading and settle up with current provider.

To my horror this was a staggering £750 after 34 days. 

long story short turns out my boiler has an emergency electrical power switch (6kw/h) which was turned on which I wasn’t aware of in the first few weeks of living in the property.

Energy provider (octopus) wants the bill settled and best they have offered is a debt payment plan over 12 months.

Is there anyone who knows if I could be excused or have a reduction in this bill based on it being so large and a total mistake in how the boiler works. I know ignorance isn’t an excuse but am desperate to see if there is any possibility of a way to reduce this?

At least my gas bill is low and I spotted it within a month of moving in! 

Thanks in advance. 

MattMattMattUK

ollybmse said:

I recently moved into a property and took an initial meter reading.

On trying to switch energy provider after 34 days I went to give a final meter reading and settle up with current provider.

To my horror this was a staggering £750 after 34 days. 

long story short turns out my boiler has an emergency electrical power switch (6kw/h) which was turned on which I wasn’t aware of in the first few weeks of living in the property.

Energy provider (octopus) wants the bill settled and best they have offered is a debt payment plan over 12 months.

Is there anyone who knows if I could be excused or have a reduction in this bill based on it being so large and a total mistake in how the boiler works. I know ignorance isn’t an excuse but am desperate to see if there is any possibility of a way to reduce this?

At least my gas bill is low and I spotted it within a month of moving in! 

Thanks in advance. 

I suspect your chances are zero, but you can always ask.

Out of interest why are you trying to move suppliers? Pretty much all prices are the same apart from E7 and EV tariffs and Octopus offer the best EV tariffs and have the best billing and customer service at the moment. 

Astria

The only people who can really answer this is Octopus themselves, there's no legal requirement for them to do so. I suspect they'll want payment in full and the best you'll get is a repayment plan.

Why are you trying to move away from them?

Gerry1

Welcome to the forum.

For whatever reason, the energy has been used and must be paid for in full.

It wouldn't be fair to expect other customers to subsidise you; many are likely to be having even more difficulty paying than you.  The 12 month interest-free payment plan is a reasonable compromise.

[Deleted User]

Hi,

ollybmse said:

I recently moved into a property and took an initial meter reading.

On trying to switch energy provider after 34 days I went to give a final meter reading and settle up with current provider.

To my horror this was a staggering £750 after 34 days. 

did you contact Octopus and supply initial reading?

Have you checked to see if that is reading used for the bill or are you perhaps paying for previous occupier?

Aylesbury_Duck

As you say, at least you noticed reasonably promptly.  Presumably your gas bill was pretty minimal other than the standing charge, so although it's a painful situation, had you known about the switch from the outset your bill for the 34 days would still be quite high, especially if it covered the recent cold spell.

I think the payment plan is your only option.  I can't see Octopus waiving the charge, there must be hundreds or maybe even thousands of people around the country unaware that their immersions are on, for example, and will only realise something's amiss now that we're in the era of high energy prices.  Utility companies can't start assessing cases for genuineness. 

dunstonh

Is there anyone who knows if I could be excused or have a reduction in this bill based on it being so large and a total mistake in how the boiler works. I know ignorance isn’t an excuse but am desperate to see if there is any possibility of a way to reduce this?

Pretty much none whatsoever.  You are asking them to cross subsidence your ignorance of your devices.    Frustrating for you but why should others cross subsidise that?  

We had something broadly similar when we moved in.  Every single bulb in the house was either halogen at 64w or 100w incandescent bulbs.     I had to cover the cost of energy until they were replaced.

EssexHebridean

Is this a bought, or a rented, property? If rented, I'd be talking to the letting agent or landlord, personally. 

macman

I don't see how a bill for £750 could possibly accrue from a 6kW immersion in 34 days? That's about £22 per day, or 63kWh. So it would need to be on for 10 hours a day. Unless you are continually drawing off large amounts of hot water, 2 or 3 hours a day power should be sufficient to heat the whole tank. Once up to temp, the 'stat will switch off the immersion, and a properly lagged tank will stay warm for hours.

[Deleted User]

What an expensive lesson to have to learn the hard way? I agree with others, you cannot reasonably expect the supplier to write off your mistake. Remember that any debit balance immediately becomes payable in full if you switch suppliers. 

macman

They won't let you switch with a debt over £500. Repayment over 12m is a reasonable offer.