Spark Energy..

ADaffodil184 · 20 August 2018 at 10:13AM

Hi All!

I've rented my property since May this year, and have been with Spark Energy. Previously I paid on receipt of the bill each month, and given the mild weather have been lucky and only paid between £25 and £35 pcm (Dual fuel), as I'm rarely there.

Last month I agreed to have a smart meter installed, as their billing date sometimes clashes with me being away, so I'm not able to give them a reading on time. This is yet to be installed, but I was put on a direct debit - their starting price was £45 pcm until they got the readings from the meter.

As I am still waiting for this to be installed, I was assuming I'd pay the £45 until set up. However I received an email saying my DD was changing. It was being increased to £105 pcm to enable me to clear my arrears!!!

A) What arrears??!!

£105 pcm for a single person who spends approx 8 nights/month at the property?! Yeah right!

Needless to say I have cancelled the DD with my bank and will be calling Spark today, too - but is there anything I should know? I'm considering switching to an alternative supplier, given the huge price hike. I give them meter readings every month so there is no way I'm in arrears, and the only thing running 24/7 is the fridge! I have a Nest thermostat for the heating, which shows I've used no gas in the last month, and the boiler is a combi, so no hot water heating up when I'm not there..

Bloody thieves!!!

D_M_E · 20 August 2018 at 1:59PM

Have you been supplying meter readings? - No, not really, so the bills must be based on estimated usage

Were the bills which you received based on estimates? Yes, not many actual readings supplied.

Did they supply an actual bill based on actual readings when you gave them, or did they just carry on with their estimates?

Agree that an electric bill, including standing charges for both gas and electric, with basically only a fridge running should not be more than around £30 monthly

You need to check the meter reading before it gets swapped out and, if you still have it, work out what your bill should have been in total between the latest actual reading and the previous reading and see if it comes to anywhere near what you have actually paid for the period.

Skools_Out · 20 August 2018 at 5:37PM

ADaffodil184 wrote: »

Hi All!

I've rented my property since May this year, and have been with Spark Energy. Previously I paid on receipt of the bill each month, and given the mild weather have been lucky and only paid between £25 and £35 pcm (Dual fuel), as I'm rarely there.

Last month I agreed to have a smart meter installed, as their billing date sometimes clashes with me being away, so I'm not able to give them a reading on time. This is yet to be installed, but I was put on a direct debit - their starting price was £45 pcm until they got the readings from the meter.

As I am still waiting for this to be installed, I was assuming I'd pay the £45 until set up. However I received an email saying my DD was changing. It was being increased to £105 pcm to enable me to clear my arrears!!!

A) What arrears??!!
£105 pcm for a single person who spends approx 8 nights/month at the property?! Yeah right!

Needless to say I have cancelled the DD with my bank and will be calling Spark today, too - but is there anything I should know? I'm considering switching to an alternative supplier, given the huge price hike. I give them meter readings every month so there is no way I'm in arrears, and the only thing running 24/7 is the fridge! I have a Nest thermostat for the heating, which shows I've used no gas in the last month, and the boiler is a combi, so no hot water heating up when I'm not there..

Bloody thieves!!!

I suggest you collect up all your recent bills and take these along to the local CAB who will enlighten you as to why you are (a) in arrears and (b) have seemilngly been paying far too little beforehand.

Much easier than asking you to post legible images of those bills here so that someone can explain them to you.

That's assuming you have already tried to contact the supplier for an explanation without success.

Without sight of the bills, any advice is simply guessing at an explanation

ADaffodil184 · 21 August 2018 at 2:54PM

Thank you both.

I have provided meter readings each month, and have received bills based on this. Even if I am a few days late, they adjust the bill and I get an updated one.

I called them yesterday, and was given some flannel about the wrong communications being sent out, he was quite surprised when I said my online account showed the updated DD cost, especially as my account is in credit following last month's DD!

Anyway, I have cancelled the DD, and the smart meter installation, and am going to pay on receipt of the bill as I originally did.

Given the over payment from my DD and my usage, my bill this month is £10.38 (perhaps they just put the '.' in the wrong place!!)

Spark Energy..

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