Economy 7 electric readings reversed

PrinceGaz

It might seem obvious what to do if you move into a flat where you discover the Economy 7 electric meter is being billed the wrong way around (day as night, and vice-versa) -- tell the company about the problem. But what if it has been going on for a long time from a previous electric supplier, and you've now been in the flat several months?

Potentially I could save a lot of money as my major electric usage during warm months is my computer which I need to leave running 24x7 (don't ask why) and which averages around 250W. Apart from that my fridge uses some electricity throughout the day, a lot less than the computer and there isn't much I can do about that. I use low-energy light-bulbs and only have them on while needed.

However electricity is also needed for heating during colder months and I've just realised now that I'm being charged wrongly. The meter is correct, but the previous supplier must have had the wrong info about what was day and what was night electricity and that has carried forwards with my new supplier for many months. That means I've received a big bill for the storage heater I've ran for the last three months alledgedly on "daytime" electricity, with no increase in "nighttime" electricity usage, which must seem odd.

What are the risks in my ignoring this known over-billing and instead stopping using my storage-heater from now on, and using a fan-heater as needed during the day (at nighttime rates) along with the computer and fridge and everything else getting 17 hours of cheap electricity every day?

If found out, could I be back-billed despite the fact I could claim I was unaware of the problem before I moved in and had quite reasonably assumed the readings I got on a notice from the previous supplier were correct? I'm on a very limited income but any potential future savings will outweigh the overcharging so far as it will all average out over time on the DD I'm billed (I may be on a low income but I know prepayment meters are a con regardless of how little money you have).

I know that it is morally wrong not to inform the company, but they should have a duty of care to check for incorrect meter readings and strange bills and to inform customers, so it's swings and stones really. What do you great guys on these forums advise, especially those with legal knowledge on liability for incorrect bills?

Terrylw1

So just your readings on the bill are transposed? The meter is correct in it's recording then and your timeswitches are functioning at the correct times?

Your Supplier can replace your bills back to the start of your supply period with them.

All meters are sent to Suppliers when your register to them. They also receive data that tells them which way around they should bill you. So, it sounds like they are ignoring this and getting it wrong.

Your old Supplier is not linked to your new Supplier and they get the data from the Meter Operator (an independant source) so they have either a) both been doing it wrong or b) the Meter Operator has sent them incorrect data about how to use your readings.

There is another possibility. If you are in the old Yorkshire Electric region and your meter begins PK or you have an AMPY meter, it could be that you are reading it wrong. Consumers are not aware of this but the meters readers have to transpose the readings from the meter. It confuses customers and Suppliers alike.

If your timeswitch is faulty, it's a different issue e.g. if you would be disadvantaged because it had all recorded on the night rate, the Supplier should just correct it going forward. If it had all been billed against the day rate, they would work out your % night usage and spread your bill to make it cheaper in correcting it. Thats just with faulty timeswitches though.

PrinceGaz

It is actually an AMPY meter (I looked up the model make and number online so I was sure what everything displayed on it meant), is that relevant. I'm not reading it wrong though, I checked the flashing rate (1 day, 4 night) which was flashing, and turned on the boiler to use more electricity and it was registered on the flashing rate.

I've decided now my head is clear that 10 hours of cheaper electricity per day (17 hours vs 7 hours at night-rate) is not worth potential future problems, as it would only amount to about £40 a year-- and my over-billing already from being charged the wrong-way is about £76.

I called EDF this evening and they've frozen my account when I explained what is going on, and I'd explained my storage-heater usage in the last three months shouldn't have resulted in a massive increase in daytime units whilst night usage was unaffected. I know I could have potentially milked this to my advantage in the long run (if it were 3 years or more), but I'd rather not have the possibility of the meter-readings being found wrong by someone else, not to mention my own moral-code which includes honesty highly, which I felt I was compromising.

Apparently EDF will have to contact the previous provider to check if they also had it wrong as well when they provided the info to EDF, so it is likely to take a little time. One thing for sure is I'll dig out the old nPower bills for the first few months I was here while waiting to switch to see if they overcharged me too, as if they had the readings reversed also, I probably was, and by a lot more given their exorbitant rates

country_sport

This happen to a friend of mine a number of years ago. He got away with it for 3 years but did not want to push his luck so when he changed suppliers he gave them the correct readings. His old supplier never found out.

Terrylw1

That makes sense now. AMPY's have been causing these problems for while. The meter readers have to transpose them prior to pasing them to the Supplier (daft!) and this is what can happen when they don't.

Your Supplier just needs to confirm which way to bill you by checking their data provided by the Meter Operator at your point of CoS. They can then sort your bills.

If you went through change of supply over 12 months ago, they can do this without speaking to the previous Supplier. They are doing that because your change of supply reading may be incorrect and they want to agree a change with Npower.

Just check you Npower bills to see if they have been billed the same way.

Eitherway, the Suppliers can check which way you should be billed - it's simple to them as they get that notice when you change Suppliers.

PrinceGaz

I only moved into this flat in April 2007, and switched ASAP to get off nPower's much more expensive rate (the previous tenant had never switched and I was shocked by how much more it was). As that is all less than 12 months ago, I guess that is why they're going to contact the previous supplier as part of correcting the bills.

The nPower bill must have been the wrong way around too as the two readings were then about 3000 units different so there is no way they could have got swapped over accidentally at any point in the process without resulting in an enormous negative usage for one of the readings, which would have flagged a warning on their computer systems (I'd hope).

Thanks for the info you've all provided, I now know a lot more about E7 meter reading problems. It's a shame I didn't know until recently I had reversed readings as I could have used that to my advantage, but I'd always have had that nagging guilt as well as fear it was noticed at some point hanging over me so I do feel better overall by getting it sorted. Hell I've saved as much already as I would on the electric in a year, by not going out to the pub a couple of nights.

Terrylw1

Hi,

Yes, it would have flagged as a negative reading and they probably would have investigated as they most likely couldn't just rebill on it.

Where it happens within 12 months the new Supplier disputes the opening reading with the old Supplier and they get it changed. Once thats done you should get a new bill from both.

Hope it gets sorted soon for you. Disputed reading issues can take 4-8 weeks to sort out as they have to involve their agents as well to amend your readings and energy histories against your supply number, thats if it effected your change of supply reading that is.

PrinceGaz

That explains why my account has been frozen then, all the other parties which it has to go through in order to be verified and corrected. It would all be so much simpler (and probably a lot cheaper) if there was just one nationalised company handling everything to do with energy supply.