OVO and the Phantom Meter

sea_slipper

I have neither the time or the will to recount this in full, it has been over a year since this began.

Although tinged with an exhausted humour, my situation raises some real concerns over OVO's business practises and if this is in fact breaching any guidelines or indeed laws.

In summary (as summarised a it can be):

We bought a new house in September 2022. It was one of two reached houses built on the site of an old bungalow by a private developer. The bungalow was demolished and with a few stops and starts over lockdown/covid, the project was completed and we moved in. 

The address of the old bungalow was '1A'. There being a '1' and a '1B,C,D and E' adjacent to the site our houses were 'named' instead as there were now two properties where there used to be one. In some documents 1A remained referenced but this address is now deleted from most databases (sounds like a weird nerdy detail but stick with me and in fact the land registry shows a complex plot where the neighbour is an 'annex' of our original deed! ).

We set up our energy immediately (electric only as we have no gas) with British Gas and our neighbours with Octopus. 

Soon, we received letters addressed to the occupier of '1A', from SSE asking for £1000's in energy costs. I resolved this in a few weeks and proved that the 'meter' which these bills were generated was removed along the the bungalow. We or our new neighbours were not liable at all and not had new meters and supplies. 

Happily closed and enjoying our new home we were unaware that OVO and SSE got together.

Soon another letter arrived from OVO. 

The occupier of 1A - you owe us £1000s. 

I called, chatted and again proved that this was not us. The matter was closed. Or so I thought.

'Mr My Name' (my actual name) at 1A - you owe us £1000s. Now occupier had been replaced by my real name. On the account had my name and DOB on it, but other details.

Again, I complained, proved that this was nothing to do with me, that the 1A they sought was dust. I was assured this would be resolved. I would receive a letter closing the account.

I did.

It said 'Sorry to see you leave, you owe us £600'. 

I fumed. I called again. 

They said it would be resolved. 

I received another letter threatening to pass the debt to collectors.

I called and complained again. They said they would close this. I am still waiting for this.

In the meantime...

My neighbour texts me - 'I got a letter to the occupier saying I owe OVO money, is this yours?' I tell him one day over wine I'll tell him the tale for now sit tight.

Yesterday.

'My Wife's Name' (her actual name) at 1A - you owe us money for energy used from July to September this year'.

I'm sorry, what now?. Fuming escalates.

This takes us to today. I am stunned at how this company is firing off letters with actual 'accounts' (my account and my wife's new account both have different IDs), set up in our names asking for money and threatening to take our property via debt collectors.

They have hammered me over the course of a year and now I fear they are starting on my wife and neighbour.

Needless to say I am exploring every avenue with them to shut this down with them, but in my opinion something is terribly wrong with their processes. In spite of a number of helpful people on their team trying to fix this the Phantom Meter is proving a huge challenge.

May question is - is it really legal to take my name and DOB (no idea where they get this data), set me up and account (I was never with them before), and then chase me for charges for a meter that isn't here? And then, do the same to my wife in the same way? She never authorised anything. I never authorised anything. 

I am appalled that they have now switched to my wife as the target. That is an awful, sinister and hypocritical twist that says something about their internal processes. How is logically or morally justified. However much they are saying they care, this last action goes far to undermine that proposition.

In conclusion, this case is cut and dry. The house was demolished. We are where it was, but everything, including the meter has gone. How can you say you've been supplying us, and charge us for energy consumed in the past year? True madness.

Thanks for reading this far, this has been a vent as much as a question. I do hope no one else goes though this, as much as I try to make light of this, it's been a slog. 


All the best good people. 

 

EssexHebridean

Sounds suspiciously as though the previous owner of the property never got around to correctly closing their account, and that the meter may not have been removed via the correct channels... 

sea_slipper

@EssexHebridean
 
Thanks for reading. I believe the lady who owned the party passed away. Not sure of the circumstances but it would not be a surprise that things were not closed properly, if at all. It sat empty for a while, then was demolished over a year or so. This was not a speedy project. 

Thanks! 

Alnat1

Does google street maps have pics of the old property and the 2 new ones? If so, could you copy them and send them to OVO, with the hope that a visual explanation will finally make them realise what has happened?

ArbitraryRandom

It might not be as simple as Ovo not realising - As I understand it, when the old meter was removed, the MOP is supposed to notify the supplier, DC, DNO and ECOES. If this hasn't happened then it could be the fault of the developer or engineer who carried out the disconnection. 

The OP might need to contact the DNO, as owner of the phantom meter, and ask them to arrange an inspection to confirm the meter was removed (that it's not currently in use in one of the two properties/garage etc) and update the database? I'm thinking basically arrange a disconnection to get someone out and they won't find a meter on site to disconnect... which would hopefully prompt the notifications needed to get the issue resolved. 

Chris_b2z

An energy provider must have been involved prior to demolition of the bungalow. The developers would not have sent in the bulldozers until it was confirmed safe to do so. Surely, that process would have included the decomissioning and return of the original meter(s).

There must be an audit trail somewhere ... but that shouldn't be your problem. Log a complaint with the Energy Ombudsman and leave it for them to resolve.