Meter Registration Service ???!!!

fatlad1971

BusinessEnergyBroker wrote: »

Hi Guys,

Maybe I can tell you where you stand on this.

Firstly this "company" will tell you anything to get you to agree to a verbal contract. We have a number of recordings regarding this company (they even tried it with us when we moved offices). These are a set of rogues and I have mentioned them in previous posts of mine.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES PASS OVER YOUR BANK DETAILS TO THIS COMPANY.

Without them it is unlikely they can do anything. They only target businesses (I believe) and usually new ones at that. If you have recently moved premises or set up a new business this may ring true (post back and to let me know).

What can you do If you have agreed a verbal contract and passed over your bank details?

The first thing to do is contact your existing supplier (do not take the word of what Meter Registration Services said and who that supplier was) If you don't know for sure then contact your local MPAS service.

Speak with your supplier and inform them that you do not wish to transfer you supply, they can object or stop the supply transfering on your behalf (in most instances) if you request it.

The second thing to do is contact the (proposed)supplier that Meter Registration Services recommended to you and tell them that under no circumstances do you wish them to proceed with the recently agreed contract, due to it being obtained under false pretences. Ask the supplier to confirm that they will not commence with the contract (they may not even have received it yet) and take a name of the supplier advisor that you speak with along with a contact number. Ask if the call is being recorded and if you can have a copy of the recording sent to you.

In addition you need to complain to the (proprosed)supplier about the method of the sale and by the company Meter Registration Services (possibly known to the supplier as Benjamin Dexter Ltd).Try asking for the contact details for the Sme External sales manager / director to lodge an official complaint. Pass over the details of the individual agent that you agreed the contract with if you have them.

If the supplier that you agreed the contract with is the same supplier as you currently have, then breaking the contract will be difficult but not impossible. You will first of all need to get a copy of the call recording (this will only be the part of the conversation where the contratc was agreed to) and check to see that the offer you accepted is the one that supplier confirms they are going to proceed with. (quite often they arent and pricing mistakes are made which is the lever that you need)

Thirdly call back Meter Registration Services and ask them not to proceed with the contract. If you have a mobile phone that can record conversations then use that.

I am expecting the mobile contact details through for the head of Benjamin Dexter shortly so that MSE members can "voice opinions".

If the mods of this board would rather I didn't post it then tell me so now before its too late.

Maybe Fatlad will be on later to give his view and add any additional input.

BusinessEnergyBroker

I think you summed it up perfectly :T

These people target change of tenancy data and are attempting to to get
businesses to sign up to unsuitable tariffs
They are blatantly lying to people and using all sorts of highly deplorable and unethical tactics to get people to agree to these tariffs .

Avoid like the plague

fatlad1971

marybishop wrote: »

You can register your phone number with the Telephone Preference Service (TPS). They have a website and you just follow the instructions, it's very easy to do. It takes about 28 days to set up. Not sure it will help stop calls you're already getting but should prevent cold calls in the future.

Also wondering if it's worth reporting them to your local Trading Standards Dept or at least asking for advice. They may have heard of them and could already be investigating them.

Some brokers and consultants have collected evidence ( verbal recordings etc) of the tactics of this company

They have rung me on several occasions as i manage a number of large groups and if anyone rings these sites they give them my number
,I allow them to give me there spiel;)

several transcripts of these conversations have been sent to trading standards and i have the recordings to back it up

they will no doubt change there name in the next week or two

TTDN

OK, just to update you all.

I spoke to the guy that manages our current electricity account and he said that he'll phone them this morning to alert them of the fact that they may get a request from the a new energy provider to take over the service.

I also called the company that Commercial Meter Registrations signed me up with (they're called Opus Energy). Very helpful chap on the phone there said that CMR sound like a brokers), then checked his records and said that there had been no requests to set up an account for my business and that he'd alert his colleague (who deals with broker requests), to keep an eye out on the system.

I asked if they recorded calls but he said that they don't record incoming ones so he sent me an email as follows:

"Just to clarify I have spoken with my colleague who deal with business coming from brokers, and she has confirmed that as you are getting your electricity from the church which is already in contract with another supplier, the contract you agreed with the broker on our behalf will not be valid. She has said that she will keep an eye out for it coming in, and will make sure it doesn’t get processed."

Thanks for your help, BEB, I feel much better about the whole thing now.

Nick.

BusinessEnergyBroker

No problem glad someone benefited from the post.

All business owners need to be aware of this company in case they get caught out by them. The info that I posted can come in usefull for others as well if needed and I expect almost all contracts agreed with Meter Registration Services can be cancelled (or not enforced) if dealt with quickly enough and the suggestions that I made are followed.

TTDN

You're a top man; it's people like you that make this world a better place.

BusinessEnergyBroker

By the way,

We warned Opus' Directors of the pratices of Meter Registration Service and they just buried their heads in the sand and couldn't give a monkeys because of the amount of business the receive from MRS.

I would wager that 90% of it is obtained by deception. Its no wonder that Opus have a shocking reputation in the industry. Not only are they about the most expensive Business supplier (based on broker prices) they also have the worst billing (in my opinion) in the industry.

TTDN You were recomended Opus because of the high level of commission MRS make from the sale. There can be no other reason.Any genuine broker will agree with this.

TTDN

Interesting, MRS told me that they recommended Opus for the fact that they offered the best value as Opus fix their charges for four years (whereas others may increase). They quoted me 20.49 standing charge and 15.09p per kW/h, not sure how that compares to others but I thought I'd let you know.

To be honest, I don't even know what the standing charge is - it was very silly of me to agree to it all but I've had a lot on my plate lately, it's my first time in business, and it all happened so quickly.

All that said, the guy at Opus seemed very helpful. I'll keep an eye on my bank account for the next couple of months though.

BusinessEnergyBroker

Most other business suppliers offer fixed prices (although a clause in the contracts does allow for this to change). I have not experianced any clients being subject to price change while under contract. All suppliers can change prices (with ofgem approval) for distribution costs, which will be added to the standing charges, however not all suppliers pass on the costs to the customer.

Opus do though nearly every year, so the last thing they have on offer is a "fixed price"

The "other suppliers can increase prices and Opus will not" is one of MRS's classic lines of misrepresentation.

I dont know which region you are in but I can tell you that you would have got closer to 10p per kwh with EDF Energy.

KangaR

Nick - I was also taken in yesterday by what I think were the same people. But they again described themselves as Commercial Meter Registration rather than Meter Registration Service, and later denied they had anything to do with Benjamin Dexter Ltd. And they explicitly said we couldn't cancel. I have told Opus we're with another provider, which we are but only just, and I haven't yet tried saying that to CMR.

Sounds like exactly the same thing - we've just moved offices. CMR said we'd be tied into the four year fixed price contract till we moved, ceased to trade or paid the Opus "standard termination fee". I only realised it was dodgy after I'd put the phone down and went to the Opus website to check the amount of the standard termination fee which CMR said was "clearly displayed" there (I feel such an idiot for not checking it out while still on the phone - they get you because you're stressed and busy). Not finding it, I phoned Opus and was assured by 3 different people that they don't offer any standard termination deal.

Today Opus said they might offer a termination fee in special circumstances, and CMR claimed that Opus offered £250 or 10% of estimated total usage - whichever is the greater - as a termination fee. In the hidden terms and conditions on the Opus website (http://www.opusenergy.com/business-customers/customer-focused-care/faqs/faq-customer-service.cfm#Where_can_I_find_the_Terms_and_Conditions_of_my_electricity_contract) they say £350 or 15%!

Incidentally, on the FAQs page Opus say:
"The price that you pay for your commodity is fixed at the start of your contract and this will not change throughout the duration of your contract. This gives you reassurance that whatever happens to commodity wholesale prices during the term of your contract, your business will be protected from the market’s volatility."

And by contrast, in the small print terms and conditions they say: "8.2 The Supplier reserves the right to increase the Charges at any time if, due to circumstances beyond the control of the Supplier, it becomes uneconomic for the Supplier to make the supply of electricity to the Customer at the rate(s) set out on the front sheet(s) of the Contract and shall give notice to the Customer of its proposed increase.", just as BusinessEnergyBroker describes.

Thanks so much for posts - am going through BEB's steps as advised, and will let you know if I have any luck.

fatlad1971

BusinessEnergyBroker wrote: »

By the way,

We warned Opus' Directors of the pratices of Meter Registration Service and they just buried their heads in the sand and couldn't give a monkeys because of the amount of business the receive from MRS.

I would wager that 90% of it is obtained by deception. Its no wonder that Opus have a shocking reputation in the industry. Not only are they about the most expensive Business supplier (based on broker prices) they also have the worst billing (in my opinion) in the industry.

TTDN You were recomended Opus because of the high level of commission MRS make from the sale. There can be no other reason.Any genuine broker will agree with this.

Totally agree again

Becoming a habit