OVO - pls can someone tell me how it works - internal records

Gettingcold92

Hello, can anyone help please. We are in a dispute with OVO and it looks like over a period of 5 years they have been overcharged us more than £15,000. I know we can't get it all back, and we've sorted it going forward with new provider and fixed the meters, but we are disputing OVO's recent invoices. It now looks as though there was an error with our meter, so OVO ignored the readings, and we did have some lengthy calls with OVO about how to take a reading on our meter as it is pretty old! Problem is we didn't document the calls and OVO has now provided us with a communications list, and loads of our conversations are missing.  We thought it might be because we were passed to another team.  Can anyone help us understand why these conversations aren't showing up?

Thank you!

QrizB

Welcome to the forum.

I know nothing about OVOs internal processes and I doubt anyone else on the forum does either.

However, the basics:

• OVO can only charge you for the energy you've used at the tariff in force at that time.
• "Energy you've used" is normally based on meter readings.

You've mentioned (without any detail) that someone has "fixed the meters". Was there a fault? Was that fault confirmed?

What records do you have of your meter readings? In what way were they were wrong? How exactly have OVO overcharged you?

Have you raised a complaint with OVO? Has that complaint been ongoing for long enough that you can refer your case to the Energy Ombudsman?

Gettingcold92

Thank you - and sorry - I sound pretty stupid now a I don't know the answers to all of this...

What records do you have of your meter readings? In what way were they were wrong? How exactly have OVO overcharged you? "Energy you've used" is normally based on meter readings. so we spoke to OVO on the phone and gave readings but stupidly didn't do anything to document it and it doesn't look like OVO recorded the readings so we can't prove it.  I'm not sure why the readings were wrong, but at one point, OVO even talked us through trying to get the meter readings because we thought maybe we were doing it wrong - and we asked for someone to visit but nobody did. We only properly understood that the readings were wrong when we switched to Octopus, sent readings and they ignored them (because they were wrong) and instead installed a smart meter. Octopus were more responsive and on one call, Octopus suggested to me that the meter weren't registering usage properly, but I think their attitude was to charge us what were pretty fair bills, then replace the meter.  The calls with OVO are not showing on their records and I don't know how else to prove we called them.  It doesn't look like we can prove they overcharged us, but when the readings were taken accurately, we went from £750 per year to 16k in the final year.

Have you raised a complaint with OVO? Has that complaint been ongoing for long enough that you can refer your case to the Energy Ombudsman?  We complained to OVO and asked them to respond, come read the meter and/or call us to discuss.   They do have records for two of these requests, but they did not reply and then issued legal proceedings for the unpaid final invoice before we could go to the Ombudsman.   

debitcardmayhem

Have you been to the ombudsman after the proceedngs were issued?

Scot_39

This is so full of problems.

Including what sounds like a failure to maintain your own or a copy even of their disputed records despite being in clear dispute with a supplier over a meter / billing problem.

Your £750 per year payment - sounds pretty low- assuming this covers the peak of the crisis - c2022 /:23 - when even with Truss era EPG  capped rates so that at median TDCV reached £2500 - over 3x that figure - and even assuming youngotbebss £400 z nearly 3x higher £2100 - and even now the cap at median tdcv £1720  - over twice that figure.

How big is your house / style or is it a flat ? how many people, and how is it heated (gas, electric, if electric hesting type and tariff type) and to what sort of temperature - e.g. 18, 21, 21+ if elderly/disabled/frail etc,as advised by nhs, age UK etc. ?

I heat my compact modern mid terrace 2 bed to 16/17 living room, 14/15 elsewhere and my bills are over that £750 now, and went well over £100pm to near double that in recent past but thats in part as Im all electric - gas hesting can of course be much cheaper.   And my neighbours either side use twice as much electric as I do. 

How high are your bills now on your new meter - if the bills in dispute include heating - has it been in place long enough to provide base line summer and winter consumption readings ?

And the whole situation aggravated by not getting it resolved before switching and then removed the meter - the potential evidence of fault driving disputed drmand - with another supplier.

You think you had a faulty meter - do you know that for sure - was it ever tested  ?
As you clearly admit to having trouble reading it ?

When you switched supplier you must have given Octopus readings - but these you might be surprised or not to learn often get replaced by third party validated readings - which sadly could most likely would have been based on your estimated readings and consumption on Ovos records.

Do you have those recorded - do Octopus ?

Didnt you query their first bill with them as well if there was a significant the mismatch if their was one ?

How do Ovos final bill inc 16k demand readings compare to those you provided to Octopus

Why did Occtopus reject your subsequent readings - the series of differences - or all based on the first- tge validated swap over set ?

Did you whether at Ovo for those c5 years or Octopus since ever request, or as your entitled to demand a meter accuracy test ?


If Ovo failed to get an accurate reading - if thry consistently rejected yours - they must have good reason. If they were aware you were having difficulty reading then arguably they should have sent a professional meter reader.  Failing to do so might constitute them breaching their license requirement to obtain accurate readings once every 12 months - certainly over such a long time.


What reason did Ovo give for rejecting your readings ?

I assume you were being billed the using estimated readings.  Did you keep all of those bills ? 


Estimated bills are never real and should ideally be challenged immediately, by providing real readings and asking for a re issued bill.  Theres 1 user here whos signature includes the line - Never pay an estimated bill - itsca little OTT perhaps - but there for good reason. 

And every one kept as a history of potentially false billing, along with readings.

But many including my elderly mum - on the psr due to failing mobility and eyesight - who ended up with 2.5 yrs of ignored readings - including 2 by their contracted meter readers --can and do trust their suppliers far too much. I ASKED and got all 5 sets back when complained without a dsar.

You might be able to do a formal DSAR to get a full billing history and a full record of meter measurements.  But they don't afaik have to release that much legally, as itsca gdpr protection for personal data route..

Given its debt scenario - a pseudo prove it demand as part of formal complajnt letter to them and if this has gotten as far as any third party debt company requesting a more detailed breakdown of their demand and their billing against your submitted readings.

Do you have acccess to your bills and any readings at Octopus since swap.  

And of course the bill with readings at the time of meter swap.

And you should be able to go to your meter cabinet and get the meter engineers meter readings from the meter change tag - they normally have to record them if they can.


Try to get some some basic info together - between yourself and Octopus data since swapped to them if getting nowhere quickly with Ovo.

Initial readings you provided / date
Initial readings they agreed with third party and Ovo / date
Any subsequent reading you provided Octopus / date
FINAL old meter readings at swap / date
New meter readings at swap / date (normally / often  but not always zero) 
Current consumption on new meter / date

The latter might give us a clue to likely true usage on new meter if been in for a while. 

Even if only summer it might shed sone light on tge matter. 

But your declared £750/12 = £62 pm - given SC levels these days -  less than half current cap level at median tdcv - would barely cover most folks summer usage, let alone winter heating costs.

Ofgem £1720 is based on median  11500 kWh gas, 2700kWh electric.  Mefian so 50% of homes above , 50% below.

They also have a low use profile,  7500kWh gas, 1800 kWh electric, which would lower that to closer to £1250.  That's based on 25% homes below, 75% homes above.
Your old £750 is really low by comparison, especially given the higher £2500 epg, £2100 even with ebss 6m £400 rebate - peak period your dispute with Ovo may cover.