Scottish Power increases bill after Ombudsman complaint

ArcticRoll · 6 August 2018 at 7:39PM

Brief background: Scottish Power installed a credit meter in January this year (I was an existing pre-payment/key meter customer) but they never allowed me to pick when I was billed or what tariff I was on and they would never, ever accept meter readings from me despite trying online and over the phone, where I'd either get an error message or an adviser telling me to call back another time. I had had enough and left Scottish Power in April/May of this year.

I took my complaint to the Ombudsman when they sent me a bill for £319 covering the period before I moved suppliers. The Ombudsman service recommended that they adjust my bill from the £319 to what it would be if I was on the lowest tariff for the period, and provide me goodwill gesture deduction. I agreed to that suggested remedy as it seemed perfectly reasonable. Scottish Power accepted it as well.

However I then received a bill telling me that after applying a £60 goodwill gesture and a £25.07 'tariff adjustment deduction', my new final bill came to £585, or £670 without the adjustments. How is it possible to owe them £319 before I complained to the Ombudsman services and owe them £670 (or £585 with adjustments) after for exactly the same period?

Scottish Power have reconfirmed this week that this is their final decision. I hope I've done the right thing by batting this back into the Ombudsman's hands. It seems as if they're trying to use financial intimidation to prevent people from seeking fair remedy. "Your bill was only £319 before you decided to be a smart Alec and tell on us to the Ombudsman, now it's £670, for some reason"

In context Scottish Power, under their new revised bill, are trying to claim that my per-day energy usage for the period is £6.91, in contrast to my latest bill from my new supplier (British Gas) of £1.17 a day. I know usage fluctuates between the seasons but £6.91 a day but that's taking the biscuit isn't it? Unless I have several families living in an annex to my one bedroom flat that I've not come across yet. :rotfl:

In all seriousness this is pretty extraordinary behaviour from them isn't it? I just need reassurance that I've not done the wrong thing by complaining to the Ombudsman in the first place which seems to have resulted in a heavy financial penalty, or complaining to them again. If Scottish Power employs the same tactic and whacks on another penalty fee in retaliation for making the complaint then I'm in serious financial trouble:(

D_M_E · 6 August 2018 at 8:37PM

Is the new, revised bill based on actual readings or estimated readings?

Have you demanded an accurate, itemised bill, and have they sent you one?

Unt5il you have a detailed, itemised bill based on actual meter readings then you should not pay.

Carrot007 · 6 August 2018 at 8:43PM

ArcticRoll wrote: »

In context Scottish Power, under their new revised bill, are trying to claim that my per-day energy usage for the period is £6.91, in contrast to my latest bill from my new supplier (British Gas) of £1.17 a day.

£1.17 is ridiculously low. I doubt it cover usage even at this time of the year. (and remmeber fridges/freezers cost more to use currently).

And £6.91 is high.

Are you being billed on actual reads. Preferable provided by yourself monthy. Maybe you should get a smart meter if you are not into that.

Your nerw supplier will have taken your usage estimate as gospel and your old supplier maybe correct if they eventually got an actual, and the cost is including catch up.

ArcticRoll · 6 August 2018 at 8:52PM

My British Gas bills are based on actual meter readings that I'm supplying. Scottish Power never, ever acknowledged a meter reading from me. In fact when the guy installed it he thought he was putting in a prepayment meter. It was only when I corrected him and he just happened to have one in the van that he did. It took SP more than 2 months to even acknowledge I didn't have a prepayment meter any more despite multiple efforts to tell them

Anthorn · 7 August 2018 at 8:50AM

Well, that's Scottish Power for you. I'd love to say that Scottish Power is up the wall but in my case they are up and down the proverbial wall like the proverbial yo-yo: In my case I had smart meters installed in April but they were still asking for meter readings from the old meters until August. But Hoorah early in August 2018 the got the smart readings and then produced a bill with the old closing meter readings and the new smart readings. But the hoorah was short-lived: Now they cannot access the smart readings.

Overall though, I've found that the speediest way of getting things done is to post on their community forums.

Beartricks · 11 August 2018 at 12:12PM

I've been through the Ombudsman recently. E.On essentially made a complete mess of my account and treated me like scum who doesn't want to pay his bills despite the fact that I continually asserted that I'd pay once I got an accurate bill, based on meter readings, in my own name, which they refused to provide for the best part of a year. During this time they continually increased my bill and whacked charges on it even though it was their fault that I was unable to pay it. They also broke data protection and have ignored my subject access requests twice.

The ombudsman has been useless. My issue isn't with paying the bill, my issue is being stuck with EOn due to their refusal to bill me then blocking my request to switch suppliers as I owed them money. This is on top of the incredible amount of stress they've caused.

The ombudsman had no balls, and basically upheld EOn's measly offer of compensation. I'm happy to accept this so I don't have to deal with this awful company again, but as soon as the findings were published EOn stuck an additional charge on my account which wipes out most of the compensation I've been offered. This charge is for a home visit from their field debt recovery team, during a time when they are fully aware that I am at work and cannot be contacted via phone. If they'd called me or notified me that they'd be coming earlier I'd have been able to rearrange but honestly at this point it seems like a deliberate attempt to get more money out of me.

I know you shouldn't attribute to malice what can be attributed to incompetence, but I find it impossible to believe that things like this are coincidental at this point. There's a pattern.

bri160356 · 11 August 2018 at 12:43PM

It’s only 2 years since Ofgem fined Scottish Power £18Milllion for being a crap company;

…can a leopard change its spots?

Scottish Power increases bill after Ombudsman complaint

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