Long running complaint, how to resolve? (Bulb/Octopus Energy)

ArbitraryRandom

Brokenlynx said:

QrizB said:

Dolor said:

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

.....

Provide them with manual meter readings and they should amend your bills using estimates for any tariff change dates.

This is the answer.

Log on to your Octopus account and give them your Actual readings for both meters.

https://octopus.energy/dashboard/meter-readings/

Ok coming back to this message after a while I guess I should provide the manual readings but having missed the whole summers worth of readings isn't there the issue that I'll basically be overcharged because a reading submitted now will be based on increased usage now the temperatures have dropped? 

I was under the impression that once the smart meter was installed I wouldn't need to submit readings again and according to the Octopus site the meter I've got should be capable of submitting readings to the provider. 

Now I can see a reading on the Gas smart meter it makes sense to submit it though I'm concerned it'll just be another complaint if the estimate based on my first submitted gas reading since May comes in too high.

That said I've taken a video of the in-home display (including meter serial numbers) that appears to have costs for Gas and Electric so we'll see.

I'm confused - you said you can see the readings on your IHD dating back to when the smart meter was installed in May... so can't you just take a picture of those readings and send them to your supplier? Then they can backdate them to the rates you were liable for at the time. 

If they can't use those readings for whatever reason then generally they average the usage out based on your home profile (size of property/number of occupants and seasonal trends). If you're not happy with the calculation, then you can dispute it, but you need to provide an alternative method and an argument for why your calculation is more accurate (such as you were away for 6 months in winter or based on your use prior to the smart meter being installed). 

Re your concern about the billing for your old meter - this is an example for something I'm helping someone else with - If you have monthly readings and the closing reading for the old meter then you could consider using a similar format to set out what your bill/direct debit 'should' have been vs what you actually paid as your DD: 

debitcardmayhem

ArbitraryRandom said:

Brokenlynx said:

QrizB said:

Dolor said:

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

.....

Provide them with manual meter readings and they should amend your bills using estimates for any tariff change dates.

This is the answer.

Log on to your Octopus account and give them your Actual readings for both meters.

https://octopus.energy/dashboard/meter-readings/

Ok coming back to this message after a while I guess I should provide the manual readings but having missed the whole summers worth of readings isn't there the issue that I'll basically be overcharged because a reading submitted now will be based on increased usage now the temperatures have dropped? 

I was under the impression that once the smart meter was installed I wouldn't need to submit readings again and according to the Octopus site the meter I've got should be capable of submitting readings to the provider. 

Now I can see a reading on the Gas smart meter it makes sense to submit it though I'm concerned it'll just be another complaint if the estimate based on my first submitted gas reading since May comes in too high.

That said I've taken a video of the in-home display (including meter serial numbers) that appears to have costs for Gas and Electric so we'll see.

I'm confused - you said you can see the readings on your IHD dating back to when the smart meter was installed in May... so can't you just take a picture of those readings and send them to your supplier? Then they can backdate them to the rates you were liable for at the time. 

If they can't use those readings for whatever reason then generally they average the usage out based on your home profile (size of property/number of occupants and seasonal trends). If you're not happy with the calculation, then you can dispute it, but you need to provide an alternative method and an argument for why your calculation is more accurate (such as you were away for 6 months in winter or based on your use prior to the smart meter being installed). 

Re your concern about the billing for your old meter - this is an example for something I'm helping someone else with - If you have monthly readings and the closing reading for the old meter then you could consider using a similar format to set out what your bill/direct debit 'should' have been vs what you actually paid as your DD: 

That spreadsheet doesn’t make sense….or I am missing something, e.g. cost of sc column

ArbitraryRandom

debitcardmayhem said:

ArbitraryRandom said:

Brokenlynx said:

QrizB said:

Dolor said:

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

.....

Provide them with manual meter readings and they should amend your bills using estimates for any tariff change dates.

This is the answer.

Log on to your Octopus account and give them your Actual readings for both meters.

https://octopus.energy/dashboard/meter-readings/

Ok coming back to this message after a while I guess I should provide the manual readings but having missed the whole summers worth of readings isn't there the issue that I'll basically be overcharged because a reading submitted now will be based on increased usage now the temperatures have dropped? 

I was under the impression that once the smart meter was installed I wouldn't need to submit readings again and according to the Octopus site the meter I've got should be capable of submitting readings to the provider. 

Now I can see a reading on the Gas smart meter it makes sense to submit it though I'm concerned it'll just be another complaint if the estimate based on my first submitted gas reading since May comes in too high.

That said I've taken a video of the in-home display (including meter serial numbers) that appears to have costs for Gas and Electric so we'll see.

I'm confused - you said you can see the readings on your IHD dating back to when the smart meter was installed in May... so can't you just take a picture of those readings and send them to your supplier? Then they can backdate them to the rates you were liable for at the time. 

If they can't use those readings for whatever reason then generally they average the usage out based on your home profile (size of property/number of occupants and seasonal trends). If you're not happy with the calculation, then you can dispute it, but you need to provide an alternative method and an argument for why your calculation is more accurate (such as you were away for 6 months in winter or based on your use prior to the smart meter being installed). 

Re your concern about the billing for your old meter - this is an example for something I'm helping someone else with - If you have monthly readings and the closing reading for the old meter then you could consider using a similar format to set out what your bill/direct debit 'should' have been vs what you actually paid as your DD: 

That spreadsheet doesn’t make sense….or I am missing something, e.g. cost of sc column

Not sure what you mean?

Cost of standing charge (h) is 'Rate of standing charge' times 'Days since last reading' (b * d)

It's not the most elegant way to do it, but was made to be a rough and dirty way to sense check some numbers. I'm not recommending anyone copy it exactly (if nothing else, this was for electricity rather than gas) - I was just giving an example of how the Op can check for themselves the credit they should have had on their account when the old meter was taken based on the readings they said they took. 

Edit: Is your issue the numbers are in pence with two decimal places (they're not converted to pounds until column L)? 

QrizB

Brokenlynx said:

QrizB said:

Dolor said:

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

.....

Provide them with manual meter readings and they should amend your bills using estimates for any tariff change dates.

This is the answer.

Log on to your Octopus account and give them your Actual readings for both meters.

https://octopus.energy/dashboard/meter-readings/

Ok coming back to this message after a while I guess I should provide the manual readings but having missed the whole summers worth of readings isn't there the issue that I'll basically be overcharged because a reading submitted now will be based on increased usage now the temperatures have dropped?

No.

When you submit your reading, Octopus will use it to estimate monthly consumption figures back to the last actual reading (which could be zero, when the meter was installed).

You will only be charged for the gas you have used.

Brokenlynx said:

I was under the impression that once the smart meter was installed I wouldn't need to submit readings again and according to the Octopus site the meter I've got should be capable of submitting readings to the provider.

Yes, it should, and Octopus still need to sort it out. However, until they do, I would suggest submitting regular manual meter readings. Once a month will be enough. This will prompt Octopus"s system to generate a gas bill.

bagand96

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

Looking at the in-home display I can see amounts recorded for both electricity and Gas all the way back to May when the smart meters were installed. 

I feel like this is a strong suggestion to me that up until the smart meters were installed I've been overpaying massively for Gas and Electricity given that since May recorded £300 of charges on the smart meters (roughly 2 to 1 electricity to gas) but have paid a £160/mth direct debit between December to May. 

Does anyone know of any procedure for reconciling my real usage over this period so I can go back to Octopus and ask them to recalculate my bills for that period when I wasn't on a smart meter?

What do your bills say?

If you have the meter readings from when you purchased the flat, and the meter readings from when the meters were changed then it should be very easy to check against your bills that those readings were used.

Remember your direct debit isn't your "bill" it's just a monthly payment onto the account.

Once you've checked those bills you should be able to do the same for the time since the smart meters were installed. If octopus have used estimates the you just need to provide them with actual readings and they'll adjust the bills 

HampshireH

bagand96 said:

Brokenlynx said:

Ok so having pressed the A button on the Gas Smart meter I can see a reading on it.

Looking at the in-home display I can see amounts recorded for both electricity and Gas all the way back to May when the smart meters were installed. 

I feel like this is a strong suggestion to me that up until the smart meters were installed I've been overpaying massively for Gas and Electricity given that since May recorded £300 of charges on the smart meters (roughly 2 to 1 electricity to gas) but have paid a £160/mth direct debit between December to May. 

Does anyone know of any procedure for reconciling my real usage over this period so I can go back to Octopus and ask them to recalculate my bills for that period when I wasn't on a smart meter?

What do your bills say?

If you have the meter readings from when you purchased the flat, and the meter readings from when the meters were changed then it should be very easy to check against your bills that those readings were used.

Remember your direct debit isn't your "bill" it's just a monthly payment onto the account.

Once you've checked those bills you should be able to do the same for the time since the smart meters were installed. If octopus have used estimates the you just need to provide them with actual readings and they'll adjust the bills 

This. If you have three readings then you have the start middle and now. What would they be estimating.

Does the app show definitely no readings being sent to octopus?