Another Past Due "Customer"

[sjl2]

Hi All,

Yet again, Another Past Due "Customer"; I will give you a run down on my situation. (Apologies for the length of the post, it is summarised below!)

 

I moved into a property and took out an account with Scottish Power for electric. I then received a bill for over £1200 for 3 months electric usage. I advised them by telephone that the meter must be faulty, and their reply was "we will not change the meter, you must have used that amount". The long and short of it, they refused to change the meter until I was in debt; so I cancelled the direct debit, and waited.

After a while, they agreed to change the meter for a prepayment key meter, with the provisio that a payment of £5 per week was to be taken automatically when using the key to pay for the debt. Please see next section for a direct copy of text from their email: (some details have been amended to try to remove identifying stuff!)

 

"From the XX November 2008 when we gained the property supply to the XX May 2009 a credit meter was on site. The cahrges for this period total £834.XX. During this period you made four paymenst of £49.XX each and a further paymenst of £122.XX. This gave a debt outstanding to the prepaymenst meter installation date of £515.XX. Should you dispute this balance you will need to contact the general call centre on 0845 027 2700.

 

The engineer added £5.00 credit to your new meter and this left a total debt to be repaid of £520.XX. You were issued an invoice to the meter exchnage date showing a debt of £435.XX. This invoices reflects your charges on the credit meter however at the time the invoice was issued there were £80.XX key paymenst on the account plus the £5.00 credit added by the engineer to the new meter giving a true debt of £520.XX as detailed above.

 

No debt recovery rate was set on the meter and therefore the balance has not reduced. The charges on the key meter from the XX May 2009 to the XX January 2010 total £350.XX. The meter has recorded you purchasing £335.XX during the same period - this confirms no debt recovery was added to the meter.

 

The account has been closed to an accuarte final read for the XX january 2010. The final balance is £496.XX and this reflects the meter being £1X.XX in the emergancy credit facility as at the XX January 2010."

 

I have now received a letter from Past Due demanding £744.XX, oh and a gesture of goodwil are offering to lower it to £558.XX!

 

Postpay: I make it 5 months at £834 = £166.8 per month.

Prepay: I make it 7 months at £350 = £50 per month.

Note: I did not make any changes to the amount of time lights / boiler / TV / cooker / washing machine were on etc.

 

 

Does anyone have any suggestions on where to go from here?

I have asked Scottish Power to reconsider their demand, and have advised Past Due that the debt is in dispute.

Thanks for your assistance in advance,

Edited April 18, 2010 by sjl2
Added detail.

[cerberusalert]

Post moved and new thread created so you don't get missed in someone elses thread.

[sjl2]

Post moved and new thread created so you don't get missed in someone elses thread.

 

Thanks, wasn't sure weather or not to generate an extra thread!

 

Cheers,

[Guest Cartaphilus]

I know it's with Past Due Credi but I also know Scottish Power has a special 'escalations team' which is separate from the call centre and deals with issues like this. However, I will wait to see what assistance others give you not to cloud yours for the time being. But I will try and find that number for you. It's 0800 from what I remember.

 

But, definitely £1200 is rather OTT for 3 months hence my suggestion it being a previous debt added. It happens.

Edited April 18, 2010 by Cartaphilus
Sorry, was on two websites at the same time so edited something out

[sjl2]

It may also be the previous tennant had a debt on with Scottish Power and they've added it your key? Just a suggestion, only on what I've read can happen with those meters requiring a key or card to PAYG.

 

I know it's with Past Due Credi but I also know Scottish Power has a special 'escalations team' which is separate from the call centre and deals with issues like this. However, I will wait to see what assistance others give you not to cloud yours for the time being. But I will try and find that number for you. It's 0800 from what I remember.

 

But, definitely £1200 is rather OTT for 3 months hence my suggestion it being a previous debt added. It happens.

 

The funny thing that gets me is that the bill went from £1200 and suddenly dropped to £834 and there was no mention of the £1200 again. Are the just picking figures out of the air?

[Guest Cartaphilus]

Well, my gut instinct reading it through quickly before was about them adding someone elses debt on your meter. Just on the amount alone if you see what I mean? Is this a rented property?

 

Anyway, others will be able to help you, I am on several websites at the same time so my attention isn't directly on one singlely at any one time. If you see what I mean.

 

The funny thing that gets me is that the bill went from £1200 and suddenly dropped to £834 and there was no mention of the £1200 again.

 

To me, that would be questionable: why the sudden drop? Just on that basis.

Edited April 18, 2010 by Cartaphilus

[sjl2]

Well, my gut instinct reading it through quickly before was about them adding someone elses debt on your meter. Just on the amount alone if you see what I mean? Is this a rented property?

 

Yes. I moved out in November 2009, but Scottishpower are trying to charge me until Jan 2010

[Rightinit]

I am an ex sp employee.

 

Have you got proof of the date you moved in and when you moved out.

Did you ever take a start meter reading when you moved in and when you moved out?

When you first had the large bill for 3 months, did you ever get an offer of testing the accuracy of your meter? If not why? as you had called and disputed the bill, they should have started to look into your account.

 

If you have proof when you left the property send them a copy of this as this is proof of the date you vacated and that is when you stop paying service charge.

[Guest Cartaphilus]

Mmm, providing you notified them (as I am sure you did of your leaving the property) then I don't understand why they've charged you up until January if you moved out November. Have they got their wires crossed?

 

But righinit has definitely given you some good advice there. Regarding how to deal with it.

[sjl2]

I am an ex sp employee.

 

Have you got proof of the date you moved in and when you moved out.

Did you ever take a start meter reading when you moved in and when you moved out?

When you first had the large bill for 3 months, did you ever get an offer of testing the accuracy of your meter? If not why? as you had called and disputed the bill, they should have started to look into your account.

 

If you have proof when you left the property send them a copy of this as this is proof of the date you vacated and that is when you stop paying service charge.

 

Hi,

Thanks for your help.

I have proof of the meter start reading and date from the tenancy agreement, signed by the letting agent as well as me.

I requested the meter be changed as soon as I received the large bill; I was told it was not policy to change meter "just for the sake of it". At this I made it clear that I believed the meter to be faulty and was told the only way of getting a replacement meter was to go onto prepayment, but I would have to be in debt for that to happen. At that point, I had been making payments by direct debit regularly, so I was not in arrears. There was never any offer of checking the meter.

Many Thanks,

[Rightinit]

Hi,

Thanks for your help.

I have proof of the meter start reading and date from the tenancy agreement, signed by the letting agent as well as me.

Have you sent them a copy of this?

 

 

I requested the meter be changed as soon as I received the large bill; I was told it was not policy to change meter "just for the sake of it". At this I made it clear that I believed the meter to be faulty and was told the only way of getting a replacement meter was to go onto prepayment, but I would have to be in debt for that to happen.

 

Was this just via the telephone or in writing?

 

At that point, I had been making payments by direct debit regularly, so I was not in arrears. There was never any offer of checking the meter.

Many Thanks,

 

 

Have you still got the bills?

 

If you want I can have a look at them, I worked in a few departments within sp over the 5 and a half years I was there Inc looking into accounts with unexplained debt or credits and dealing with complaints.

 

If you want me to do this, please can you post up a copy of your bills with all personal details removed. Also the date and readings that were taken when you moved in and out of the property.

 

One more question. What type of prepayment meter was installed a key or one you buy tokens to insert into the meter.

 

If you have these I can advise you how to try and get them to correct another one of there mistakes and believe me there are plenty of them.

[sjl2]

Have you still got the bills?

 

If you want I can have a look at them, I worked in a few departments within sp over the 5 and a half years I was there Inc looking into accounts with unexplained debt or credits and dealing with complaints.

 

If you want me to do this, please can you post up a copy of your bills with all personal details removed. Also the date and readings that were taken when you moved in and out of the property.

 

One more question. What type of prepayment meter was installed a key or one you buy tokens to insert into the meter.

 

If you have these I can advise you how to try and get them to correct another one of there mistakes and believe me there are plenty of them.

 

Thanks once again! It may take me a few days to dig it all out, but will update this when I have done. The prepayment was a key type meter which was a nightmare to find a retailer who was willing to top it up by the way! Like a right idiot, I wrote down the final meter reading on an envelope, and then promptly used the envelope! What a plonker! I have not yet sent back a copy of the tenancy agreement, I wanted to post on here first to see what the best course of action was.

 

I only spoke to them on the phone about the faulty meter, so never got anything into writing.

Many Thanks.

Edited April 18, 2010 by sjl2
Added an extra answer!

[Rightinit]

Key meter is to your benefit as they send a meter reading every time you top up, So they can find these quite easily, just not all people in the general call centre know this.

 

When you have the details pop me a pm saying you are ready to host them as I am not on here all the time, busy trying to get myself out of debt and working as hard as I can with a family in toe.

 

Some great people have help me out on here and if I can help someone else out on here I am more than happy to.

 

A word of advice, pop a email to them with your name address and account number saying this

In reference to the above account for balance £744. Please can you hold any further action on my account for 28 days to allow sufficient time for me to obtain details of any meter readings my previous landlord may have taken whilst I was responsible for the electricity supply at xxxxxxxxxxx.

 

 

The reason I say email is you can trace it and they have less time to respond, plus these go directly to the complaints team.

Give me a shout when you are ready and I will work out what you used on a pp compared to when you paid via dd and we can go from there. I will also check your readings they have used etc.

[Guest Cartaphilus]

Just regarding sending them your tenancy agreement. Surely, just providing them with your current letting agents contact details should suffice so then they can check? A fax for example would verify it faster than what they have asked for confirming date details very easily.

 

Just I've seen a lot of these where utility companies have asked someone to forward these copies, which puts extra cost on someone and inconvenience (to me it does) especially if it if then turns out it's due to their error. I wonder, have you also contacted one of the regulatory bodies for utility companies on this as well?

 

Oh, re that telephone number I mentioned before - it's actually also on CAG somewhere which is where I orgiinally found it googling one day a while ago - but I can't find it so maybe they have withdrawn it. But it was a very useful number and separate from the customer care team(s). Also a very useful contact number to have as well, they appeared to be very helpful.

[Hoose]

Hi All,

 

 

Postpay: I make it 5 months at £834 = £166.8 per month.

Prepay: I make it 7 months at £350 = £50 per month.

Note: I did not make any changes to the amount of time lights / boiler / TV / cooker / washing machine were on etc.

I had the same thing with NPower, for £750 of debt.

 

the prepay readings showed a much lower usage on the same appliances.

 

spoke to them, they said they needed a year of readings to compare. got back in touch after the year, explained the situation and they cancelled the debt and credited back what i had paid.

[Rightinit]

Sp have a policy that if you can't deal with it on the phone in a max time of 10 mins, put it on a pro forma and let the back office deal with it when they have time. Hence I said email as this goes straight to the complaints department.

 

They will not phone the letting agents, the will want a pot(proof of tennancy) the only time they contact letting agents, council etc is when they are chasing you for the debt.

 

If you can not supply readings or you were not on a key meter then all they would do is reduce the service charge and meter rental for the tow months that they are charging you for not being in the property.