SoEnergy shambles - meter replaced due to its age

WestQuay54

No smart meter by choice (elderly parent with dementia couldn't cope with this as would have put it away in a drawer) but I have religiously submit monthly readings to So Energy and take photos as evidence. National Grid wrote with a date of 14/10/22 to have Gas meter replaced due to its age. They advised me So Energy would have had access to this information via National Grid within 48 hrs via their app. I didn't need to do anything. I was in credit £656 at this point. The next Gas readings (end Oct & end Nov) I could not submit due to wrong serial number still showing on Gas account. Emailed them explaining the situation (photographic evidence sent) yet without any warning was sent a bill for over £15,000 that I apparently owed in early November. It seems I've now been escalated to their specialist team and nothing further heard since 14 December. I asked for the CEO email address and was told 'we can't provide that information' and that anything I sent would only be passed back to the customer service team. This is so stressful, I am moving to a new home this week, am a pensioner living alone (very low monthly usage) recovering from illness and despite knowing this they really couldn't care less. The bottom line is their metering team have a backlog, so their customer service agent said. I then started getting 'we haven't received payment from you' emails. Laurence in Customer Services last month said he would put a stop to those emails and acknowledged it was quite obvious where the error was. The old meter reading was 20,000 and the replacement meter showed 34,000 and the hike is because they have not changed the meter serial number over on my account.  However, he is unable to do any more until their metering team get their act together.  The result for me is that over the winter I have been unable to calculate the cost of my monthly gas and electric usage, as well as still getting monthly bills showing I owe £15,209.  For any of you who need to have a meter replaced I do hope your experience is better than mine.

ariarnia

that sounds horrible. i hope you have put in a formal 'complaint' at some point during this hole thing?

i know that might sound like a waste of time but it means in 8 weeks after your complaint if its not all sorted you can escalate it to the ombudsman who will read all about whats happened and make a ruling saying what So need to do to sort it out for you (which should at the very least involve an apology and some gesture for the stress and time this has taken you).  

i also hope your move to your new home goes well and that you are happy there. moving is horrible but fresh starts can be wonderful

EssexHebridean

What did the card left with the new meter say the reading was on it on installation?

Apologies, but it’s not quite clear what you are looking for from the forum here.

The new meter is a traditional (“dumb”) meter I assume from your opening statement (although FYI the device you refer to “being out away in a drawer” is simply the IHD (in house display) - you don’t have to have this plugged in with a smart meter, and not having it plugged in wouldn’t have affected the way the meter worked at all).  From the opening reading you mention it sounds like they fitted a refurbed one - does that sound right to you? If so it is probably as simple as someone has assumed that the opening meter is new, with a starting read of 00000. If the card is correct, then sending them a photograph of this should get you rebilled correctly.

edited to add - you can calculate your use from he date the meter was fitted by taking a manual reading now, and working it out from how many units you have used since the new meter was installed. You will simply need to do the calculation to convert m3 > kWh - although if all you want is a rough guideline then multiplying by 11.2 should get you close enough I believe! Remember to add on vat and standing charge too.

diystarter7

Hi OP

I am sorry about what is happening to you guys. Thanks for sharing. I'm sure others will advise what else you could do but I guess you are fed up and jjust want it resolved and hopefully someone that got things sorted quickly may be able to help. Not sure how long a complaint to the ombudsman takes

Have you considered getting your MP involved?

EssexHebridean

Good point from ariarnia about the formal complaint - if you haven’t already do it in writing (an email is fine) and as they say that starts the clock ticking if needed for an ombudsman escalation. 

Mstty

Take some time to gather all the key dates and correspondence and create a time line and include all important information such as end reading for the old meter and start reading for the new. Take all emotion out of this and email it to

complaints@so.energy

If you do not have a satisfactory result you can then take all that information you have put together and raise a case with the ombudsman service.

https://www.ombudsman-services.org/energy.html

diystarter7

diystarter7 said:

Hi OP

I am sorry about what is happening to you guys. Thanks for sharing. I'm sure others will advise what else you could do but I guess you are fed up and jjust want it resolved and hopefully someone that got things sorted quickly may be able to help. Not sure how long a complaint to the ombudsman takes

Have you considered getting your MP involved?

Hi again OP

As I've read quite threads about problems when the meter changed, I was looking up Google



You might not want to but do contact MP as imo they will help in your situation

I was not sure re Ofgem but when I looked at Goolge, came up with this

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers/energy-advice-households/making-complaint-about-your-energy-supplier-or-network-operator

Good luck

WestQuay54

Thanks for replies, it was really a story of how something so apparently straight forward has been messed up.  They offered a smart meter which I refused as mum would unplug it and put it away, sadly dementia has taken hold, but I do prefer to submit monthly readings anyway so it was my choice not to have one. 
The old gas meter outside was installed when the bungalow was built in 1984 (reading on 14/10/22 was 20,000 and the replacement meter had the reading of 34,400 on it.  The Engineer wrote down on the National Grid appointment card both old and new serial numbers and meter readings which he then entered on the National Grid app.  SoEnergy received my photographic evidence of the appointment card, photos of the old and new meters (as at 14/10/22) and my request to put the correct serial number on my gas account.  They did not do that but they did register the reading of 34,400 hence the massive bill!
I will follow this up compliant-wise when the house move is completed.
I will also try to calculate the cost when I have a spare 20 mins and large cup of black coffee!
Thanks again

ariarnia

sounds like your on it!  

i really hope the move goes well and if you need any help with the complaint or ombudsman case (if it gets that far) or even just to vent at how frustrating everything can be some times then you no where we are  

diystarter7

WestQuay54 said:

I'm never a compo chasing guyThanks for replies, it was really a story of how something so apparently straight forward has been messed up.  They offered a smart meter which I refused as mum would unplug it and put it away, sadly dementia has taken hold, but I do prefer to submit monthly readings anyway so it was my choice not to have one. 
The old gas meter outside was installed when the bungalow was built in 1984 (reading on 14/10/22 was 20,000 and the replacement meter had the reading of 34,400 on it.  The Engineer wrote down on the National Grid appointment card both old and new serial numbers and meter readings which he then entered on the National Grid app.  SoEnergy received my photographic evidence of the appointment card, photos of the old and new meters (as at 14/10/22) and my request to put the correct serial number on my gas account.  They did not do that but they did register the reading of 34,400 hence the massive bill!
I will follow this up compliant-wise when the house move is completed.
I will also try to calculate the cost when I have a spare 20 mins and large cup of black coffee!
Thanks again

Hiya
Many thanks for the follow u during the stressful time

As I said, you are not alone and its problems like your fmaily is facing ha t I and many dread.

I'm sure you will agree that mistakes are made, probs arise whenn changes take place and that applies to everything

However, its the way people are treated like your example. It takes time and effort and we are all busy.and this should not be happening

I'm not one for seeking compo but IMHO you should demand it for the waste of time/effort and stress.

Good luck

WestQuay54

Actually to get all this information out of my head I did keep a timeline diary so will get that over to the Complaints email address mentioned above and depending on their response will follow up with MP contact.
It's been so frustrating  -  but I do appreciate all your comments!