Unauthorised Scottish Power Bill - £1.3k

cazdee

When I moved into my home in 2010, I set up a Dual Fuel account with Scottish Power and set up direct debits for this - they were quite consistent but then they went up and down for a bit.  It was £98  pcm in 2021, then it went to £125 for 2 months, to  £88 for a few months and then £53 in October for 6 months until it went back to £88pcm in April 2022 where it has stayed.  So nothing crazy like it being halfed or anything overly noticeable; i accounted that this was seasonal fluctuations.  I have continued to pay this and submit relevant meter readings (with pictures) and sometimes another company comes out and takes the meter readings too.

 On 8th march I received a text to say that there was a bill due for £1,338.51 which was due by 22nd March.  I believed this to be an error and called the support team to speak to someone.  I was then told that there was a second account under my name; I noted that this couldn’t be possible as I had never authorised a second account to be opened.  It was noted that this account was unpaid since it started in August 2021 and I "had used the energy so I needed to pay for it".  I have continued to pay all my direct debits and supply all meter readings so there is nothing I haven't paid for.  Additionally, I have allowed access to my premises to allow meter readings to be taken by a 3rd party, therefore there was absolutely no indication that my bills were incorrect.  They said I had a second meter (which I have always had since the account was opened) and this was the reason.  I argued the point that it had always been there, but no answers were given.

 The representative from Scottish Power said I could pay this up and offered £10 a month, however this means I am stuck with Scottish Power for over 11 years.  I was told they could switch this back to 1 account, but they had never seen this before and couldn’t guarantee it will happen again.  I was told they would call me at 11am on Monday for me to submit updated meter readings, but no-one called me.

 I don’t know what to do next?  It’s obviously worrying because it is so much and they've just sent me another text telling me to pay it.

thanks

theoretica

What do the bills for both accounts look like?  Does the one you have been paying have gas on it?  Do the readings on the new bill match your meters?

HampshireH

£88 does seem incredibly low per month for duel fuel since the prices rose. What is your second meter for or do you mean one gas and one electric?

Jyana

So, it looks like you maybe used to pay for both your electricity and gas under one direct debit, at around £125, up until August 2021. Then, SP dropped your payments to £88 for two months, and then down to £53 in October 2021, which is the month the say that this new account was opened.

But, it also sounds like you maybe haven't been giving readings from both meters in your house? This is a little bit confusing from your opening post, so can you confirm if you have or haven't been doing so please as it will help before going any further with this.

Ectophile

Is it one of the old electric heating supplies, with one meter for heating and another for everything else?

Two avenues to consider:

• OFGEM's back billing rule.  If you have supplied all the readings, and never done anything to prevent them from sending you correct bills, then they should not bill you for anything over one year ago.
• The Limitation Act 1980, which generally means that nobody can enforce a debt over 6 years old (but the rules are different in Scotland).  They can claim that you owe the money, but the courts won't care.

The "unauthorised" bit is a red herring.  Under the Electricity Act and the Gas Act, the moment you move into a property and start using electricity or gas, then you automatically become a customer of the existing supplier at that address.  It makes no difference if you have opened an account or not.

EssexHebridean

The limitation period in Scotland is 5 years I believe.