Scottish Power Mis-Sellings of contracts

[Melbel]

Hi All

 

Thought I'd let you all know what's happened with Scottish Power and myself.

 

Last summer I had a door to door salesman call by selling on behalf of Scottish Power, I don't normally do this but I listened to what he had to say as I was already thinking of leaving British Gas.

 

The deal sounded too good to be true £35 a month Gas and the same for Electric if I paid by direct Debit. He said this would be capped until 2012 - It would never go up no matter how much I use, and I would never get a bill at the end of the contract if I had used more. he also said that if their prices drop, so would my payments.

 

Ok i thought and signed up - only after checking and double checking this was right and they couldn't charge me anymore than £70 a month.

 

The day after - I rang the call centre and went through this again, i checked they wouldnt take anymore than the £70 and was it defintely capped - the answer was yes.

 

Fast forward to today and they have taken £106!!!! They tell me that they can do this if I use more energy etc etc and that I had used more over the winter!!! furious isnt the word, I told them they have lied and missold the contract etc etc and she agreed to refund the £36 and drop me back to £70 a month. However it could go up next winter if my usage does etc etc and that if I don't pay what I have used I will build up a debt with them...

 

I have raised a formal complaint meanwhile..

 

So, now I am planning to use them during the winter months as it is sticking at what was agreed however I plan to break the contract and change to another later in the year.

 

Has anyone else had this and what did you do???

 

Thanks

[rebel11]

Hi Mel

 

I think it's the salesman thats probably misled you. It's the Tariff thats Capped, not the cost regardless of the amount you use.

I'm not surprise, most of the Sales people work on a commission bases and will say almost anything.

[Melbel]

Hiya Rebel

 

Yup, that's what the lady I spoke to earlier said.

 

I'm just sooo angry i was misled.. Unless they honour the £70 a month (as i was led to believe) rather than the tariff then I will consider staying. Other than that it's bye bye Scottish Power and I will cancel the contract.

 

I think I have a note of the salesman name somewhere, i'm tempted to make a complaint against him.

[rebel11]

These Sales people if you can call them that are out of order. Scottish Power were on Watchdog recently regarding their Sales people. This was a couple of months ago.

 

Heres guidance on Complaining:- http://www.ofgem.gov.uk/Consumers/Pages/Consumer.aspx

[Melbel]

oooh thank you - There's no way I'm leaving this, just for their sheer cheek

 

I work in Sales myself, If we went about conducting our business like that, we would have no business left.

[rebel11]

I've dabbled in retail, totally agree, build the business on honesty, word of mouth, leave the customer with a good experience etc.

 

There is a SP Rep on this site, he can look into the matter for you, but this might be outside of his remit.

 

 

oooh thank you - There's no way I'm leaving this, just for their sheer cheek

 

I work in Sales myself, If we went about conducting our business like that, we would have no business left.

[ScottishPower Company Rep]

Hi Melbel

 

I'm sorry that you have been given this information by one of our salemen. The information provided to you is incorrect and if you can find the name of the salesman, then please do call us to complain so that we can report this back to the relevant manager.

 

If you agree to a capped tariff then it is your unit rate that is capped and will not change throughout the contract period. If you are using £50.00 per month to begin with, then you change your circumstances and you start using £70.00 per month then your monthly payments will be altered to cover you new level of consumption. We do not offer, and never have done, a tariff where you pay an agreed amount each month and you can then use as much electricity as you like.

 

Your monthly Direct Debit may have been lowered back to £70 per month however if you are using more than this then this will create an outstanding balance. If you have been mis sold then we have the option of processing an erroneous transfer which will return you to your previous supplier as if you did not leave in the first place. If you do not wish for this to happen, then we will charge you for the electricity you have used based on accurate meter readings and on the correct capped tariff rate.

 

If you would like me to review your account just send me a PM and I will be happy to investigate for you.

 

Kind Regards

 

Colin @ ScottishPower

[Melbel]

Hi Colin

 

Thanks for replying.

 

I definitely want this looking into as It's totally wrong. It is only now that I am aware of how it works. I was reassured time and time again by the doorstepper that i would NOT pay anymore than the £70.. I even went to the trouble off calling Scottish Power myself the next day and was told the same again.

 

I am at work now and about to leave however, I will bring my account details in tomorrow or friday and send you a PM if that's ok??

 

TTFN

[Surfer01]

It seems that thsi is a fairly common tactic used by a number of utility salesmen which si why it sounded "too good to be true". Any utility company offering that sort of tariff woudl be bust within a year.

I strongly suggest that you supply meter readings as soon as possible to SPOW so that you know exactly how much is outstanding after your DD payments have been deducted. You may find that you have a larger outstanding amount than expected, however don't forget that it is averaged out over the year so the £70 may balance the books but unlikely.

As a comparison as a couple we lived in a one bedroom flat. Our electric was about £40 a month and gas about £25, but then we spent a lot of time out in our caravan. If you have a larger place and family living at your residence expect it to be a

lot higher.

Let us know the outcome once you have supplied meter readings to Scottish Power.

[ScottishPower Company Rep]

Hi Melbel

 

Yes that will be fine. I know how frustrating this can be and I do apologise for the inconvenience caused.

 

I look forward to hearing from you.

 

Kind Regards

 

Colin @ ScottishPower

[Melbel]

I have dug out the original document from the sales guy, there is a space for the sales guy to enter his signature, id number, date and time - none of which have been filled in. So, I want to find out his name. Im going to inbox Colin now and see what he thinks.

[Surfer01]

BTW the supplier would have paid the seller commission for the sale so the supplier will have a record! If the document is unsigned I would have thought that no contract existed as it requres at least two people to agree to a contract. You could highlight that bit if it helps as they will not be able to change it to a higher rate for past consumption. This would leave you free to move to another supplier once the bill is up to date..

[ScottishPower Company Rep]

Hi Melbel

 

I have received your PM. I will investigate your sales application and let you know the outcome.

 

Kind Regards

 

Colin @ ScottishPower

[Melbel]

Hiya Surfer

 

I was thinking the same thing myself, the salesman was that desperate to sign me up, there a flaws on the document.

 

I will see how Scottishpower deal with my complaint - I do want this 'salesman's' name and something done about the way they mislead people into purchasing their product.

 

I think this is a case of playing by ear before deciding what I do in relation to changing my energy supplier

[Melbel]

Hi All

 

I have just had a call from a lady at Scottish Power regarding my complaint.

 

She explained basically what the salesman should have explained to me and how much I average per month, she also gave me options of what other tariffs SP have available should I wish to change. Finally she gave me the option of leaving the contract and finding another supplier.

 

She dealt with my complaint very well and went through how much I use on avaerage and what would work out the cheapest which ended up being the tariff I am on - however we decided to move my Direct Debits up to £78 as that should make sure I am covered (based on what I have already used). If my bills were to go up it should'nt be by very much as the figure of £78 is more accurate to my usage.

 

Anyhoo, she mentioned the steps that would be taken against the sales guy and explained they usually have a 3 step process on employees if they receive complaints and she assured me this complaint wouldnt be taken lightly. She also gave me her direct number, email address and name so I could always go straight to her with any queries.

 

I've had a good outcome and told her I would be happy to carry on with SP

 

[Surfer01]

Thanks for the feedback and pleased to hear that you have been successful.

[ScottishPower Company Rep]

Hi melbel

 

I am so glad that we have been able to resolve this for you. It does not take away from the fact that the salesperson was out of order and please be assured that we will not stand for this kind of treatment. If you speak to a doorstep salesperson in the future, make sure that you take the full name of the agent and their ID number. This way, the salesperson will know that if he/she provides inaccurate information to you then this can be fed back to us and we can take direct action against that person.

 

Please let me know if you have any further questions and I will be more than happy to help.

 

Kind Regards

 

Colin @ ScottishPower

[Melbel]

Hi all

 

Im hoping I have posted this is the correct forum - its regarding Scottish Power but it is debt related.

 

I recently left them (due to a series of problems) and have been left with a final bill of approx £270

 

I cannot afford to pay it back in one go so have offered £35 a month until paid (unless circumstances change) I really cannot afford more, perhaps £40 at a push.

 

I have been receiving letters from their inhouse people Stirling Collections threatening defaults etc..

 

I had a voicemail from a SP employee yesterday refusing my £35 offer saying it needed to be paid within 3 months.

 

Where do I stand here? can they default me? I was after some advice before i called them back

 

thanks

Edited August 24, 2011 by Melbel
error

[AndyOrch]

Hi Melbel

 

What if my creditors refuse my offer?

 

When you write to your creditors and make an offer of payment you often get a mixed response, with some creditors accepting your offer and some refusing. If your creditor has refused your offer of payment then you can ask them to reconsider.

• Explain your circumstances again and enclose your personal budget sheet.
  
• It is a good idea to start making the reduced payments you have offered on a regular basis and point out that you are doing this as a 'gesture of goodwill'.
  
• It is also worth telling them if any of your other creditors have accepted your offers.
  
• If you can afford to, send photocopies of letters from your other creditors as proof.
  
• Explain that you are unable to increase your offer of payment to this creditor without upsetting the other arrangements you have made. Point out that you have to treat all your creditors fairly.
  

To:

Dear Sir/Madam

Re: Account/Reference Number:

Thank you for your letter/telephone call of………., concerning the above account.

I am/we are sorry that you feel unable to accept the offer which I/we have made. The majority of my/our other creditors have accepted the offers made to them and I/we have commenced payments. I/we cannot offer you more because I/we can only afford £…………. per month between all my/our other creditors, and it would be wrong to cease or reduce payments to my/our other creditors in favor of your company. The offer made to you is on a pro rata basis, as used by the county court.

In the light of the other creditors agreeing to my/our repayment plan, please would you reconsider my/our offer. I/we will be making the payments in line with the offer to your company, on a weekly/monthly basis, as a gesture of goodwill.

(Optional - add details of your circumstances and financial situation)

I/we look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible.

Yours faithfully

(Your signature)

 

 

Retain all correspondence in case they escalate this.

 

Regards

Andy

[Happyhippy1959]

If they refuse, then knock it down by a fiver each time... They will accept. Just set up a standing order, get there bank details. Easy to do. Some one will probably have it on there site.

 

Now can you afford £35.00 Why not offer £25 to be on the safe side. six months and its paid. ( they will not go near a court do not worry..) Don't forget, in writing and pay do not care what they say.... If they take it to a judge he will have a diddy fit,, you are offering to pay...

 

Yep andy that does it mate I think... Worked with my 40k of debt.. any that got funny about a £1.00 got it reduced to 75p till they accepted.

[dpick]

As HH says above just setup a standing order for an amount you can reasonably afford. A judge would not be very happy if they tried to take it to court and anyway by the time it went to court you would have paid the majority if not all the debt off. Also did you yourself take a final meter reading as I found with BG they just used a estimated reading not the true reading I gave them.

 

dpick

[Melbel]

Thanks everyone.

 

I will send them a letter tomorrow stating I cannot budge from the £35 - which is true anyway.

All meter readings etc are done and upto date. my final bill read as 'actual meter reading'

I will pay them online every month via bank transfer (thats how I pay all my bills)

 

I'm worrying they will default me though, is this a possibility??

Edited August 24, 2011 by Melbel
add more info

[brokebutnotbeatn]

Hi Melbel. If they do, they do. Stop worrying about it.

[ScottishPower Company Rep]

Hi Melbel,

 

If you want to PM me your account details I will see if I can agtree to a repayment arrangement that you cna keep to.

 

Kind regards

 

Graeme @ ScottishPower

[AndyOrch]

Hi Melbel,

 

If you want to PM me your account details I will see if I can agree to a repayment arrangement that you Can keep to.

 

Kind regards

 

Graeme @ ScottishPower

 

Well done Graeme, result Melbel.

 

Regards

 

Andy