EDF Energy threatening default

[Coffeebee]

Hi guys, 

I have an ongoing issue with EDF regarding my meter reading which was sent to them on march 31st of this year.

 

they threaten to default me for not paying bills due to discrepancy with meter reading that they will not amend

 

They sent the bill through with an estimate.

I notified them and they asked for a new reading.

I gave it to them and they issued a new bill but didn't apply the meter reading I gave them again for March. 

 

I have contacted them to explain what has occurred and they are ignoring me claiming deadlock because I apparently ceased communicating with them, which is nonsense.

 

Every time I attempt to communicate with them I was ignored and then someone would reply telling me to refer to the ombudsman, I'm not sure why I am being referred to a third party interloper but I would rather get their dispute and complaint settled without seeking ADR. 

 

It is literally a matter of amending the meter reading for march and then issuing the correct bill. I'm not sure why they are being so difficult.

 

I have written to the CEO who also ignored me, when I advised them I am disabled and vulnerable feeling alarmed and distressed due to the threats of harm I am receiving if I do not comply with their demands, someone sent a reply apologising for the way I feel and that if I send them the reading they will apply it and that they are not interested in protracted correspondence, even though they failed to answer my information requests and the fact I have already provided them the reading multiple times which has been ignored.

 

I keep receiving letters saying if I did not pay what was owed by 18th of November, yesterday, I would be defaulted. So I sent them some money at 23:30 roughly because after days upon days of waiting and being lied to by their customer service agents, no one had done what they said they would do. I still owe them money but am reluctant to give them any until they rectify their blunder and apologise for treating me so badly.

 

At this point I have no idea what to do and feel defenceless against them bullying me in this horrid and sickening way. I have also read many reviews about the ombudsman stating that they work for the Energy companies?

 

Can anyone offer any advice please?

 

Thank you kindly in advance. 

[BankFodder]

You start by telling us the value of what they are claiming from you and what you believe you owe them. How much you paid them on account?

I suggest that you start off by sending them an SAR.

Also, may be in this case going to the ombudsman is not a bad idea. They are normally pretty interested but at least it will get EDF to stop paying attention to your messages.

[dx100uk]

what have you paid them since march please?

 

dx

 

[Coffeebee]

Hi, 

 

Thank you for the prompt replies.

 

Claim is for £1362 as stated on demand notice and online the bill is £1428 roughly. 

 

I have just paid £700 out of the £1400 or so that was owed. This amount is roughly correct as the discrepancy is only for a thousand or so units, but they are trying to bill me Aprils prices at the higher rate per unit for units used in march which should be billed at the lower rate per unit.

 

I have every intention of paying, just not the incorrect amounts that they are demanding under threat of harm.

 

I just dont understand why they would make this really difficult to resolve and then just ignore me.

 

Edited November 19, 2022 by Coffeebee
.

[dx100uk]

so you've not paid them since march is the real truth?

no wonder they want to default you.

 

why is there such a hangup about meter readings?

why dont you give them readings every month via your web portal log in.

are you able to easily read your meter or do your disabilities make it physically difficult to do so?

 

then you are batting from a stronger wicket.

also why have you not got smart meters yet?

[Coffeebee]

I haven't paid them because they were going to up my DD to £600+ per month which is ridiculous and if they are ignoring me what am I supposed to do?

 

I have been chasing them constantly to correct their error and they are ignoring me, I have told them every time I am happy to pay upon rectification, but it never occurs.

 

Am I liable for paying bills that are incorrect? 

 

I forgot to add, EDF take meter readings twice yearly!! 

 

I'm really stuck here guys, I don't know what to do.

 

How am I supposed to resolve the issue if I am being ignored, please advise?

[unclebulgaria67]

Don't think you could argue about default. Yes, EDF are rubbish, as most energy companies are.

 

I don't think they are ignoring you. Because the energy sector is in such a mess with so many customers contacting them, they are not responding due to the volume of enquiries.  

 

As suggested, you may decide to contact the Energy Ombudsman, as EDF are not ensuring your account is being handled by their teams that help vulnerable/disabled customers. 

 

I would suggest that you continue to make affordable payments, whilst you try to resolve this.  And sending an SAR to EDF would be a good idea, to get hold if your records.  

[Coffeebee]

Thank you for the information.

 

Please bare in mind that I have been contacting them since April about this.

 

As I made the payment of £700 will this avoid them defaulting me, I don't think it is fair to default me for want of a correct bill? I have never had a problem paying and have always been up to date with them until this issue, I feel like I am being bullied

Edited November 19, 2022 by Coffeebee

[unclebulgaria67]

But the amount you have paid compared to what would be due on the correct basis, would be quite different.

 

Contact the Energy Ombudsman and ask them to intervene on your behalf.  

 

/images/bitmap/ombudsman-share-image.png

Contact us

WWW.OMBUDSMAN-SERVICES.ORG

---

Find out how to get in touch with us here.

 

[BankFodder]

But send the SAR as well

[Coffeebee]

I will have a go thank you, is there any way to get the default removed?

 

The default if registered would be due to their disregard of the situation and unwillingness to remedy it by simply correcting the bill, can this be blamed on me?

 

I had always told them I was willing to pay as soon as they corrected and presented me a true and accurate bill, they even told me they were going to generate a correct bill then failed to send it to me before the cutoff date they had threatened me with?

[dx100uk]

i will withhold payment until you rectify my complain.

 

not the way to go sorry.

 

if they have made a mistake , they will refund you.

 

so answer my other questions i asked please

as well as...

WHEN did you last pay them anything?

 

dx

 

 

[Coffeebee]

My apologies, 

 

I have been advised against smart meters by most of the people I know who ended up getting them, I have also read many nightmare stories about them, My old meter has served me very well over the years so whats not broken do not fix as they say.

 

I am happy to give EDF my meter readings as and when requested which is twice annually, I just get my son to note them down for me.

 

I paid them the £700 at 23:30 on the 17th of November because no one had responded to my constant requests for help paying my bill, and I didn;t want to be seen as not willing to pay if it goes to court.

 

I have literally spent months trying to get their help, as their demands kept coming I kept contacting them but no one is helping me, I can screen shot and show you, I have tried every possible method using their online chat, whatsapp, text messaging, phone calls... I have no luck every time.

 

I just get lied to, why lie? Why say they will generate the correct statement and then not hear anything from them and they let the deadline pass? It doesnt make sense unless they want for this to happen, well thats how it seems anyway. 

 

It is just very bizarre behavior, even their deadlock claim is provably false. It's like they were desperate to get me to contact the ombudsman, I hear it costs £500 per case referred, why would they eagerly seek this cost for themselves when all they need to do is amend one number, recalculate, send the bill and get their payment? 

 

I managed to get through to edf webchat by not giving my account details until I got in contact with a human being, they are saying a default has been registered, I asked if they could kindly remove the default and the agent said to give him a few minutes and he would remove it for me whilst continually pressing me for creating a repayment plan.

 

Excuse me for thinking I am being lied to again?

[BankFodder]

It would be quite remarkable if a default was removed.

 

[Coffeebee]

Their Agent Ajit advised that it has been removed and is pressing again for me to commence the repayment plan. Why do I feel like something is fishy here? it took him about 30 seconds?

[BankFodder]

Get him to confirm in writing

Always ask for any undertaking or agreement to be confirmed in writing

Read our customer services guide

[Coffeebee]

Does the webchat transcript not count?

 

I have asked but I have a feeling I will not receive one. 

 

Thank you again for your help I really felt alone.

 

He is saying that as soon as he gets the repayment plan set up i will get a confirmation email that the plan is set up and the default removed?? Should I trust him?

[dx100uk]

yes that will work.

 

all they want is movement toward payment.

agree and then it gets you time to get this mess sorted out.

 

get smart meters fitted then you wont ever have to read that meter again. nor have these issues with estimate reading.

 

its really is a stupid old wives tale not to have them.

you should also be giving reading on their site say every 1 month then they can't pull these stunts.

 

your 18th century thinking is im sorry partly to blame here.

 

if you cant read your meter easily they should have (by their own rules) moved them years ago due to your disabilities, they've let you down too.

 

dx

 

[FruitSalad1010]

You haven't said whether you have sent EDF a SAR and it is very good advice that you do so as soon as possible.


I am afraid I don't entirely agree with DXs position.

I don't think it is entirely unreasonably for you not to meet their payment demands if they are excessive and would cause you financial difficulty. £600 per calendar month or £7200 a year certain seems excessive, even with the recent energy price increases, but it could be reasonable depending on your personal circumstances. Large house poorly insulated, constant use of heating etc.

If like most people you think you use close to the average you should bring to EDF's attention the most recent Typical Domestic Consumption Values publish in 2020. While these will get reviewed from time to time they unlikely to change greatly. It is not unknown for energy companies to completely screw up their estimate usage, however where estimates are used your annual expected consumption should appear somewhere on your billing.

If you don't think the use of estimates is a problem then disregard the above.



Perhaps you could clarify exactly what the difference is between what you think you owe and what they are seeking payment for. Certainly paying what you think you owe should help mitigate your losses.

You could perhaps write to EDF stating you are willing to use the Ombudsman provided they immediately stop reporting what you consider to be inaccurate data to your credit file. Data subjects have a right to request restriction of the processing of their personal data where the accuracy of the personal data is contested by the data subject.

While referring your complaint to the Energy Ombudsman will certainly make you appear reasonable, be under no illusion that they are a limp wristed arbiter with little to no interest in holding energy companies to their lawful obligations and are much more geared to pandering to a decision that tramples over your rights in order to get your case off their books. They are staffed by the same employees that handle parking ticket appeals and it is well understood from this site how rotten that industry is. If EDF do not agree you also face the issue that any resolution via the Ombudsman could take several months and may have little to no affect on their credit reports.

Your response largely depends on how far you are willing to take your dispute, certainly the simplest option that could mitigate potential losses from inaccurate credit reporting is to meet their demand, pay under protest and deal with the outstanding issues going forward.

It is my understanding that energy providers are subject to the Standard Licensing Conditions published by Ofgem and which they are required to adhere to as a licensed operator.

Under the Gas Act 1986 energy companies are required to hold a valid license to operate and while the SLC's are not statutory law they are in effect lawful obligations for the purpose of holding a valid license.

Within the SLCs it states "If a Customer provides a meter reading to the licensee that the licensee considers reasonably accurate, or if the Gas Meter is read by the licensee, the licensee must take all reasonable steps to reflect the meter reading in the next Bill or statement of account sent to the Customer."

From what I understand you are saying EDF have ignored your request to use the meter reading you provided around March 2022, therefore they could be acting unlawfully.

If I have understood your complaint correctly, EDF consider there is an outstanding balance of approximately £700 after the payment you said you made, and you estimate that you owe part of this remaining sum but not all of it?

[dx100uk]

20 minutes ago, FruitSalad1010 said:

you estimate that you owe part of this remaining sum but not all of it?

 

The main issue here that led to the default is that zero payment was made from MARCH till NOVEMBER. that's +7mts.

 

Even if you dispute a bill, there is zero reason NOT to pay something on a regular basis, as regardless, you do owe 'something' , that 'something' is your usage, past and going forward. That does not mean you simply blindly pay what is demanded, but it's utterly stupid to withhold any payment for that amount of time.

 

the OP has not done themselves any favours there and that's why they got in the position they came here with. 

ok it prompted them to do so, and now are getting the advice and help needed.

 

if you are registered disabled and cannot easily read your meter, LONG LONG LONG ago, if your supplier was made aware by YOU of this difficulty in writing, they should have (under existing statutes) implemented the measures they are required to do, like moving your meters for free, but you must be registered on their 'priority scheme'. i will have a guess that as they themselves read the meter twice per years you already are, but it's down to the customer to push home the free meter move. many supplier simply won't bother to offer it.

 

but i'll say again, whatever 'the dispute' is about, withholding all payment 'as a way of escalating' a dispute, is NOT the way to go to resolve an issue, even if you think you are backed in a corner and they are ignoring you.

 

 

dx

[Coffeebee]

Hi there, 

I have not sent a SAR to EDF as yet, I have just looked through the SAR process on your website, do I send that to EDF now? What is the purpose of the SAR in my instance? Forgive me for asking.

 

I have given them roughly half of the money owed, and the discrepancy is for around 1500-1800kwh units. They want to charge me the increased price per unit when it was used prior to the price increase which I have opted to not accept and quite rightly so.

 

I have also not had the confirmation email I was told I would receive by EDF within 24 hours of making the repayment plan agreement yesterday.

 

Thank you all for all of your help again, it is greatly appreciated. 

 

With regards to the way I had handled it, I do see what you are saying but, to me, it is akin to this, (bear with me)

 

I go to the petrol station and put £10 of petrol in my car, the machine says £10, I approach the cashier and he charges me £15. I say to him that the bill is incorrect and that he must amend it to reflect the actual cost. He says ok and represents me the same bill for £15.

 

I tell him I am happy to pay upon production of a true and accurate bill. He ignores me, I ask him if he can assist me, he ignores me, my time is valuable, he ignores me, I tell him I would like to pay so he shows me a bill for £15 and I repeat again that it is incorrect and that if he wants paying he needs to produce me a true and accurate bill, he ignores me. I tell him that if he wants payment he is free to send me the correct bill and when he does I will happily settle it. - apparently I am in the wrong?? hmmm

 

Could someone kindly explain to me why? I do always have good intentions and would never purposely behave unruly, I just feel like I am being bullied and I must protect myself. How are they allowed to behave as such but you and I are expected to behave perfectly and without frustration at their blatant disregard for us.

 

Thank you all again.

[dx100uk]

just click and send the sar to edf.

that gets you all their bills, all their notes on your customer record of conversions and everything else they hold on YOU>

can be very useful.

 

now your example...

you pay for what you bought/used. so £10 mate, if you don't like it ...tough i've paid i've proof.

 

you withheld all payment for +7mts, not the same. withholding payment, should never be used as a weapon. 

 

you are quite right, that you should not be levied a more expensive tariff or a different price on consumption before the price increase came into force. but that is not any reason to withhold the complete sum owed till last week. no wonder they are after you.

 

now it may well be that they want to charge you an increased price because they have discovered they undercharged you prior to march, this they sadly can do, but they have to PROVE it. which is a hard task.

 

get the sar running

get the info.

 

pers i would look at / work out your monthly usage and pay them that sum, so all you are 'short' to them by is this disputed overcharging difference.

 

 

 

 

 

[Coffeebee]

I appear to have made a mistake, but it was not intentional, I wanted them to treat me with a bit of respect. You live and you learn hey?

 

With regards to the interaction with their agent and their claim that upon setting up a repayment plan the default would be removed and that I would have nothing to worry about? The agent said he would send a confirmation email within 24 hours but I have received nothing as yet? Is there anything I can do with this?

 

Thank you DX

[dx100uk]

its a util account.

it cant have a default notice issued against it like say a card/loan as you've signed no agreement regulated by the consumer credit act, so section 88 doesnt apply , no default notice.

 

i would suggest that they mean is they will default you, i'e add a D for whatever months you were behind on your report, but on the monthly calendar section, which only you and them can see anyway. it might simply bump your score down a bit thats all. which sadly they are quite entitled to do...you didn't pay.

 

all of this can be resolved 

 

lets get the info

the chat will be in the sar as it's so recent so you have proof of what was agreed.

 

i'd simply get a repayment plan running as i said earlier, then they will be happy and that gives time to construct your case we'll help you.

 

are you registered disabled?

are you on their priority scheme?

 

dx

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Coffeebee]

It just feels like they are seemingly warranted by some kind of legality to cause my person harm if I do not submit to inaccurate demands. It appears that I am expected to suffer harm and the ensuing loss and then be expected to beg for rectification afterwards whilst having to jump through tremendous amounts of hoops for free apparently, or £50 comp I hear most people get after complaining to the Energy firms ombudsman department.

 

I am sure if it were the other way round their final position would be payment will be made upon production of a suitable and accurate bill or statement of account and until this condition is satisfied no monies will be exchanged and if you took it to court and complained about it, the judge would deem this a fair and reasonable condition alongside a possible vexatious claim as it would be my fault for billing them incorrectly and then I would have to cover all the charges involved in bringing the case to court and wasting the courts time etc... It just seems like the entire corporate world is set up to use and abuse us, the people. 

 

I will follow the advice given here and do genuinely appreciate it but cannot help feeling the way I do based upon my real world experience.

 

What ever happened to the customer is always right.. 

 

Let's see what the response to this SAR is. Not registered disabled as yet, I am in the process of completing this and yes I have just been put on the register!!

 

Thank you all again

 

Edited November 21, 2022 by Coffeebee