United Utilities - Really confusing call with Affordability Team!

ChrisJJ

I was signposted by a United Utilities person to their Affordability Team. He said that there was a possibility I could have my water bill lowered. He obviously couldn't say by how much, and there was obviously no guarantee, but certainly no harm in trying.

I was told to make a list of all income and outgoings so they could do an accurate assessment.

I received the call yesterday from the Affordability Team and after 30 minutes of going through my budget, the lady told me that I did not qualify as my income was too high. No notice was taken of my outgoings at all, and when I asked her, according to her calculations how much I had left at the end of the month, she said £-26!

So, in actual fact, there was absolutely no point in going through my budget AT ALL as my ineligibility was solely down to my income. That is, the very first figure I had given her. I can't quite get my head around why she was unable to tell me this the moment I stated my Universal Credit income.

Then, today, I go to the IE Hub, which is the company/place that they run their calculations through, and am aghast to find that the budge credited to me bears ABSOLUTELY NO relation to the figures I provided her with. According to this, my income is over £700 greater, and I am left with over £600 per month!! If these are the figures she was looking at it's no wonder I was not eligible for assistance!

Except that, she herself told me that I was in the minus figures at the end of the budget.

Can anyone shed any light on this? Has anyone dealt with the Affordability Team at United Utilities and have had a similar experience?

Obviously I will be calling next week in an attempt to clarify where on earth the drew these figures from but in the meantime….I am so flummoxed and annoyed.