Incurring Standing Charges while the house is disconnected from grid

Singlespeeder

Seems simple enough to me....
My father owned a rental property which unbeknownst to him was being illegally used as a cannabis grow house. 
Dad died in June and we, his kids ( kids ! I'm the youngest in my mid 50's !) went round and discovered the cannabis .  We immediately called the police and they in turn called National Grid  who physically cut the electric supply to the house.
So the house is technically 'off-grid' from the 16th June 2023.
We eventually pay the whopping £2700 reconnection fee and have a new feed dug and connected on the 6th November.

Octopus are trying to bill me for the standing charges from June, some £200. I'm refusing to pay as the house was off grid.

I'm happy (ish (I don't agree with standing charges)) to pay since reconnection but not for the 5 months prior.

As Octopus presumably don't get the standing charge, it's hard to see why they're being so stickly over it.

Can I go to NG and get them to clear this up?

MultiFuelBurner

I'm guessing you agreed for National Grid to cut the supply?

Keep_pedalling

What is the story behind the new feed that needs to be supplied? Surely NG just pulled some fuses rather than remove the whole original infrastructure, or had the tenants tapped into the power line to bypass the meter.

Is the meter still in the house? 

Singlespeeder

We were never asked if we agreed, the police called NG it make the house safe.
They physically cut the old supply as they 'couldn't be certain the growers hadn't overloaded the cables"
There were 5 rooms each with at least 10x 600W transformers for the lights/heat.
So we had to pay for a new feed to be dug and fitted.
In between time the house was off grid.

Eldi_Dos

Was the new feed connected to the existing meter.
It may be no new meter which is influencing the standing charge being sought.

Keep_pedalling

NG would not have needed permission to carry out a disconnection for safety reasons. My understanding is that the only way to get standing charges removed is to have the meter removed, so I am afraid the estate does owe this money. Meter removal and reinstatement involves significant charges.

Eldi_Dos

Singlespeeder said:

We eventually pay the whopping £2700 reconnection fee and have a new feed dug and connected on the 6th November.

Would landlords insurance not cover this.

Reed_Richards

You don't own your meters, in effect you rent them and the standing charge is the rental payment.  If you rented a car then got cut off by a flood for some days and could not drive anywhere, you would still be liable for the rental.  It's the same with your electricity meter, you're still liable for the rental even when the meter could not be used. 

mmmmikey

Unfortunately (to put it mildly!) you have been the victim of the crime. Apologies for asking something that may be obvious to you, but do you have any insurance that will cover you for the theft of electricity? I'm guessing the answer is no and you've already checked but asking just in case it's something you overlooked?

As far as the standing charges are concerned I suspect that Octopus are within their rights to ask for them, but they are also renowned for their customer service. So you may well find that they will be prepared to make some sort of goodwill gesture if you ask them nicely (or a "shut up and go away" payment if you give them a hard time).

What a nightmare, hope you get it sorted :-)

Singlespeeder

Eldi_Dos said:

Was the new feed connected to the existing meter.
It may be no new meter which is influencing the standing charge being sought.

New physical meter fitted in different location. Still has the same MPAN  though.

Singlespeeder

NG removed the feed to the meter and the standing charge goes to NG doesn't it? and the meters belong to the supplier not NG don't they?