EDF Shocker

Nicolakated

So slightly disgusted this evening with the level of service I have received from EDF, suddenly developed a very odd noise from the electricity box in the house the metre itself was flashing red a warm so called our electrician who heard the noise over the phone and said he would be right over. Once he got here he was alarmed and said he felt it was a problem with the supply into the house so we called our supplier EDF. 
After speaking to the electrician the call agent said she had spoken to her team manager and they felt it wasn't an emergency so I was to call them back tomorrow, should overnight it smoke or set on fire I should call them back.....Erm no I will call the fire brigade firstly then EDF. 
I find this absolutely appalling service, I foster and I have a special needs child so it's important I keep the children safe clearly EDF do not think they have a duty of care towards customers. 
Tomorrow they will be getting a call, I will also be asking for the £1000 they have of my money which I am in credit, I will be buggered if they are going to earn interest off me whilst they clearly think so little of me or the children in my care as their customers.

MattMattMattUK

Nicolakated said:

So slightly disgusted this evening with the level of service I have received from EDF, suddenly developed a very odd noise from the electricity box in the house the metre itself was flashing red a warm so called our electrician who heard the noise over the phone and said he would be right over. Once he got here he was alarmed and said he felt it was a problem with the supply into the house so we called our supplier EDF. 

What does the electrician think is the problem? Surely an electrician would now a problem with the supply is the responsibility of the DNO, not EDF. Does he think there was a voltage spike, consistent overvoltage?

Nicolakated said:

After speaking to the electrician the call agent said she had spoken to her team manager and they felt it wasn't an emergency so I was to call them back tomorrow, should overnight it smoke or set on fire I should call them back.....Erm no I will call the fire brigade firstly then EDF. 

If you think it is dangerous then you should turn the supply off overnight.

Nicolakated said:

I find this absolutely appalling service, I foster and I have a special needs child so it's important I keep the children safe clearly EDF do not think they have a duty of care towards customers. 

No-one wants their house to burn down, whoever they have in their house is not relevant. Safety of supply is down to the DNO, not EDF.

Nicolakated said:

Tomorrow they will be getting a call, I will also be asking for the £1000 they have of my money which I am in credit, I will be buggered if they are going to earn interest off me whilst they clearly think so little of me or the children in my care as their customers.

You can ask, they will only allow a refund of credit if it meets the billing criteria. They do not make interest from the credit they hold.

macman

What do you mean by the 'electricity box'? The meter, the CU, the service fuse? 
If there is a fault on the supply side (i.e. upstream of the meter) then it is the responsibility of the DNO, not the supplier, so you call the emergency service. If the fault is downstream of the meter (CU or beyond, then it's the householder's responsibility.
EDF are not psychic, they do not have a clue whether you are fostering or not. Are you on the Priority Services Register, if appropriate for your child?

ariarnia

i think if the supply into your home is faulty or looks dangerous then you are supposed to phone 105. 

but if your electrician friend thought your supply looked dangerous then they should have turned it off then and there. 

your supplier sells you electric units using the cables that run to your house but isnt responsible for the actual physical connection to your house (like tesco can sell you a grocery delivery but isnt responsible for the road) 

macman

Thinking about it, the only criticism here of EDF is that they should have instructed the OP to call the DNO's emergency number, and it should be their decision as to whether an emergency callout was justified.
First tier call centre staff should not be giving this sort of advice, because they are totally unqualified to assess the risk. And it was supposedly escalated to a manager who still didn't advise the OP to just call the DNO?
And why did the supposedly qualified sparky not just call the DNO himself? 
Is it possible that the sparky actually called the DNO, but the OP didn't understand the difference, and thought she was talking to EDF?
Hopefully the OP will come back and update us shortly.

MattMattMattUK

macman said:

Thinking about it, the only criticism here of EDF is that they should have instructed the OP to call the DNO's emergency number, and it should be their decision as to whether an emergency callout was justified.
First tier call centre staff should not be giving this sort of advice, because they are totally unqualified to assess the risk. And it was supposedly escalated to a manager who still didn't advise the OP to just call the DNO?
And why did the supposedly qualified sparky not just call the DNO himself? 
Is it possible that the sparky actually called the DNO, but the OP didn't understand the difference, and thought she was talking to EDF?

Probably the most important part though, I very much doubt that the OP's described "our electrician" is a qualified and accredited electrician otherwise they would not have been confused by what was going on, would have known exactly who to call if the responsibility was external, and would have turned the power off themselves.