Direct debit not coming down

michael1234

So I've always been on direct debit but somehow managed to accrue a debt of £1700 (!) Due then to a mistake on my part not understanding the effect of the energy cap (I thought I could save a lot by transferring) I paid that debt off.

Meanwhile around 5 months prior, Eon ramped up my direct debit to £600 per month (!). They said it was to pay off my debt (caused by them not setting the DD amount correctly over a long period as I've never missed a payment). It was set when the cap was much higher than now and when I had my £1700 debt. So I naively thought they would reduce the DD once I'd paid off the balance on the account.

I went to my latest bill from them and simply took their figures of estimated annual usage and divided by 12. That gave around £380 per month. Thus I proposed a repayment DD of £390 which they refused. Didn't reduce it by a penny.

So I'm thinking now of switching just so I can get a more sensible direct debit and possibly better CS. I've heard some good things about Octopus but are there any others? Or anything else I should do?

[Deleted User]

Sorry but your post doesn’t make a lot of sense: 

a debt of £1700 (!) ……….. I paid that debt off.

Followed by: 

Eon ramped up my direct debit to £600 per month (!). They said it was to pay off my debt

Do you have a debt or not? If there is no debt, then what is your present debit/credit balance? Is this credit/debit balance based on an actual meter reading - with the date. What is your estimated consumption in kWh/year for gas and electricity? How does the estimated annual usage on your statement compare with real life. I normally look at my meter readings today and at a bill a year ago to determine my past usage and then add 10% for a cold Winter.

Armed with information above, someone will be able to calculate what is a reasonable monthly DD.

Yes, you can switch and I can recommend Octopus. However if you do switch, then any old supplier debit balance becomes payable in full. If there is any remaining debt, the switch will likely be blocked.

Scot_39

If your disciplined(*), good at estimating annual bill or can simply just  cope with low summer high winter bills - you could try monthly variable direct debit - no credit debit cycles - you pay what you use - based on monthly manual or smart readings.

(*) e.g. stick the money above ave in the bank over summer draw it to pay over winter etc.

At EOn Next or any other supplier.

IIRC think I saw a post that Octopus allow a very wide range of DD levels as long as it plus any needed (I assume via card online but would have to try to find the post it was a while back) top up covers monthly billing

oldernonethewiser

I too am confused by the paid off and then £600 D/D to pay it off.

I know people on Octopus and they like it.

kaysdee

I read it as there was a debt and the direct debit was increased to reclaim it.
Debt was subsequently settled as an additional payment but the direct debit wasn’t reduced to reflect this?

Brie

kaysdee said:

I read it as there was a debt and the direct debit was increased to reclaim it.
Debt was subsequently settled as an additional payment but the direct debit wasn’t reduced to reflect this?

That's how I read it too. Granted it took a second read to get there!!

My concern however is that the OP seems to be happy to be paying based on estimates rather than actual readings.  That's a major mistake.  (assuming I haven't misunderstood)

MultiFuelBurner

Yep agree with the OP probably time to move to another supplier now you are debt free.

Fresh start and all that but might be time to look at your usage and cut down a bit.

MultiFuelBurner

Of course if you are good at money management you could opt for a pay for what you use direct debit and bank the excess money in a high interest account for when needed.

michael1234

Yes apologies. I agree it was confusing. Most people surmised correctly but to be clear the sequence was:

6 months ago: Debt of around £1700 due to DD being set by the supplier too low in months/years prior.
6 months ago: DD increased by Eon to £600 ish.
a month ago: Repaid £1700 to bring balance to zero.
currently: Balance is around £400 in credit
currently: Eon refuse to lower DD.

Thanks for the Octupus suggestions and also I hadn't realised was an option to simply have my bill paid by direct direct every month. That is probably preferable. However, it might be easier to do that with a supplier with better customer service as to do it with Eon would likely be a pain.

Robin9

£400 is "only" one month of your average monthly bill -  not much as we prepare for a winter which may be colder than what we've had for some years.

michael1234

Robin9 said:

£400 is "only" one month of your average monthly bill -  not much as we prepare for a winter which may be colder than what we've had for some years.

I thought the average would take both winter and summer into account. Should I leave more credit with them - how many months ?