Ovo Energy - demands for payment for previous occupier. I am an Octopus customer

elstree324

On 29 December 2025 I sent an Official Complaint under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 to Ovo Energy stating that I have never been a customer of Ovo Energy and that they must stop sending threatening letters and demands to the "Occupier" at my new address.  Ovo, in an auto reply, said that they would respond to my complaint "in no later than 2 working days". Ovo has never replied.

I then posted a complaint on trustpilot and Ovo replied on 9 January 2026 saying:

I'm really sorry to hear about the ongoing issues you're having and any inconvenience caused on our part. Just so you know, as the bills are addressed to 'The Occupier' you wouldn't be expected to pay this. I'd advise speaking with your Landlord or Lettings Agency so that they can trace the final bill back to the previous tenant and then the letters addressed to 'The Occupier' will stop being sent to your property. 

I replied to Ovo the same day and told them that Ovo already had all the information regarding The Lettings Agency as I had sent the details in November 2025.

I have today, 24 January 2026, received a letter addressed once again to "The Occupier" from a company called LCS from Leeds, saying Ovo has instructed them "in relation to an outstanding financial matter".

I cannot make a complaint to the Energy Ombudsman as I am not a customer of Ovo! What are my options now?

Thank you.

Ildhund

This isn't an uncommon scenario, and OVO is not the only supplier involved. Here's an article written by a former victim primarily for OVO customers, but most of the suggestions it contains apply equally to anyone in a similar situation: How to respond to, and successfully deal with, letters from Debt Collection Agents. | The OVO Forum  

elstree324

Thank you for the reply.

If I give my name to LCS is there a possibility they will then just address their future correspondence to me personally? 

tim_p

Does this situation stem from moving to a new property and not signing up with the incumbent supplier??

elstree324

tim_p said:

Does this situation stem from moving to a new property and not signing up with the incumbent supplier??

Yes. I moved to a ground floor apartment in  the same apartment block, same postcode, and took Octopus with me. I have been with Octopus for years. The previous tenant unfortunately had dementia and was only here for 3 weeks, so the energy used I presume was the responsibility of both previous tenant briefly and then the Landlord, until I moved in. 

WiserMiser

elstree324 said:

tim_p said:

Does this situation stem from moving to a new property and not signing up with the incumbent supplier??

Yes. I moved to a ground floor apartment in  the same apartment block, same postcode, and took Octopus with me.

Strictly speaking, you can't take an energy supplier with you.  You have to give notice to the supplier at the old property, send the closing reading and pay the final bill.

At the new property you have to identify the incumbent supplier, register with them and send the opening reading.  You can then switch to Octopus and then pay the incumbent the standing charge and kWh used during your time on supply.

Some companies seek to retain customers by offering to do all this for you to make things easier.

Perhaps this procedure didn't fully complete, e.g. if you just told them your new address but someone didn't spot it was a move and treated it as no more than a correction of the flat number?

QrizB

WiserMiser said:

Perhaps this procedure didn't fully complete, e.g. if you just told them your new address but someone didn't spot it was a move and treated it as no more than a correction of the flat number?

I'd suggest that the problem may even have occurred before the OP moved in. It sounds as though the previous tenant (the one with dementia) may never have registered their account with OVO, so OVO are now chasing the OP for those three weeks of energy use.

elstree324

I emailed Ovo energy with the meter reading when I moved in on 12 November 2025. Octopus started supplying me on the same day. I never was a customer of Ovo Energy. I did not know the name,  nor the forwarding address of the previous occupier, but recently a letter came addressed to her. I have told Ovo what her name is. 

t0rt0ise

elstree324 said:

On 29 December 2025 I sent an Official Complaint under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 to Ovo Energy stating that I have never been a customer of Ovo Energy and that they must stop sending threatening letters and demands to the "Occupier" at my new address.  Ovo, in an auto reply, said that they would respond to my complaint "in no later than 2 working days". Ovo has never replied.

I then posted a complaint on trustpilot and Ovo replied on 9 January 2026 saying:

I'm really sorry to hear about the ongoing issues you're having and any inconvenience caused on our part. Just so you know, as the bills are addressed to 'The Occupier' you wouldn't be expected to pay this. I'd advise speaking with your Landlord or Lettings Agency so that they can trace the final bill back to the previous tenant and then the letters addressed to 'The Occupier' will stop being sent to your property. 

I replied to Ovo the same day and told them that Ovo already had all the information regarding The Lettings Agency as I had sent the details in November 2025.

I have today, 24 January 2026, received a letter addressed once again to "The Occupier" from a company called LCS from Leeds, saying Ovo has instructed them "in relation to an outstanding financial matter".

I cannot make a complaint to the Energy Ombudsman as I am not a customer of Ovo! What are my options now?

Thank you.

You can use the Energy Ombudsman. I have an open case with them in similar (ish) circumstances. When it asks if you are the account holder, you say "yes" because Ovo think you are. I called the ombudsman and that's what they said.

elstree324

t0rt0ise said:

elstree324 said:

On 29 December 2025 I sent an Official Complaint under the Protection from Harassment Act 1997 to Ovo Energy stating that I have never been a customer of Ovo Energy and that they must stop sending threatening letters and demands to the "Occupier" at my new address.  Ovo, in an auto reply, said that they would respond to my complaint "in no later than 2 working days". Ovo has never replied.

I then posted a complaint on trustpilot and Ovo replied on 9 January 2026 saying:

I'm really sorry to hear about the ongoing issues you're having and any inconvenience caused on our part. Just so you know, as the bills are addressed to 'The Occupier' you wouldn't be expected to pay this. I'd advise speaking with your Landlord or Lettings Agency so that they can trace the final bill back to the previous tenant and then the letters addressed to 'The Occupier' will stop being sent to your property. 

I replied to Ovo the same day and told them that Ovo already had all the information regarding The Lettings Agency as I had sent the details in November 2025.

I have today, 24 January 2026, received a letter addressed once again to "The Occupier" from a company called LCS from Leeds, saying Ovo has instructed them "in relation to an outstanding financial matter".

I cannot make a complaint to the Energy Ombudsman as I am not a customer of Ovo! What are my options now?

Thank you.

You can use the Energy Ombudsman. I have an open case with them in similar (ish) circumstances. When it asks if you are the account holder, you say "yes" because Ovo think you are. I called the ombudsman and that's what they said.

Thank you! Much appreciated. 

HillStreetBlues

WiserMiser said:

elstree324 said:

tim_p said:

Does this situation stem from moving to a new property and not signing up with the incumbent supplier??

Yes. I moved to a ground floor apartment in  the same apartment block, same postcode, and took Octopus with me.

Strictly speaking, you can't take an energy supplier with you.  You have to give notice to the supplier at the old property, send the closing reading and pay the final bill.

At the new property you have to identify the incumbent supplier, register with them and send the opening reading.  You can then switch to Octopus and then pay the incumbent the standing charge and kWh used during your time on supply.

Some companies seek to retain customers by offering to do all this for you to make things easier.

Perhaps this procedure didn't fully complete, e.g. if you just told them your new address but someone didn't spot it was a move and treated it as no more than a correction of the flat number?

That doesn't seem right to me. On the day you move in (as long as that date is when you first become responsible for the bill) you have a deemed contract with that supplier so you are in your rights to switch on that date as you're a current customer. You should then give a reading to your new supplier, and then that is given to the old supplier to generate final bill. In saying that, if the reading is done straight away there shouldn't be anything to bill.