EDF Billing for two years £1,000 arrears

[laticsforlife]

This is my 1st post, and am hoping for some help.

I changed from Scottish Power on 04/02/05 to London Energy 'LE' (now EDF), and gave a reading to both companies on 09/02/05.

LE would not use this, and following that have NEVER read the meter.

This week they sent an estimated bill (the first bill with any estimated usage on it since joining) for £600, but when I called with the true reading this became the £1,000 I'm posting about.

It's all about being on some database and never getting cleared off it, all about meter readings or lack of them. I did have readings when with all previous suppliers.

All my previous bill simply shows the amount paid by DD but no use figures, nor estimates etc.

My DD was set-up in Feb 05 and the letters say £20 per month from now on (not enough but lets not go there). They only collected 2 of those then I called to increase it to £30, which they took 1 month then stopped taking anything.

May 05 bill £70 cr, Aug 05 same, no DD's taken and all other bills up to July 06 say the same.

Then in Aug 06 it changes to EDF and they restart the DD for £22pcm from Oct 06 which continues to date and on the last bill it is £246cr before charges for electricity used.

So now what can I do.

My complaints are as follows;

1. They've spread the debt evenly over time, but I reckon we've become more energy efficient in last 2 years so reckon that's not fair (NB How can they know the bill is accurately split with only 2 meter readings to go off, 1 in Feb 2005 and 1 in May 2007 - with 4 changes of price in that time)

2. They took no DD's at all even though letters say they will.

3. I tried to give meter readings in the early days but the automated system wouldn't accept them nor did the CS Rep when I spoke to them.

The woman I spoke to this week said the system said meter readings could not be obtained, yet the same guy quite happily reads my gas meter every 1/4, and there's always someone in the house so they definitely have never tried to read it.

4. It's taken 2 years to resolve and now they want the money (although they say I can pay over same amount of time taken to accrue debt).

Is there any scope for me to get some of this debt wiped out due to incompetence?

What's my best starting point?

[ScarletPimpernel]

EDF (Electricité De Frog, or somesuch), are utterly, utterly useless. They are aware that I rarely get to my house, yet bombard me with requests for readings. When I get one. they fail to register it. My bills have been wildly overestimated and they took money without authority from my bank account.

My house is now sold, and I am looking forward to ridding myself of this hopeless company for good.

I have had some success getting them to back down and refund when they've messed up, but don't bother with their call centre - do everything in writing.

[mree]

Originally Posted by ScarletPimpernel

EDF (Electricité De Frog, or somesuch), are utterly, utterly useless. They are aware that I rarely get to my house, yet bombard me with requests for readings. When I get one. they fail to register it. My bills have been wildly overestimated and they took money without authority from my bank account.

My house is now sold, and I am looking forward to ridding myself of this hopeless company for good.

I have had some success getting them to back down and refund when they've messed up, but don't bother with their call centre - do everything in writing.

I appreciate you may have had problems with EDF, and I can't comment on them without knowing the details. What I can tell you is that I've just gotten home from spending 8 hours in their call centre bending over backwards to try and give excellent customer service. If I had a penny for each difficult query I've dealt with which could have been sorted earlier if someone had called us first, I wouldn't need to work there any more! laticsforlife, I've replied to your PM, hopefully I will be able to help with this next time I'm in work. Please don't let one person's bad experience put you off taking the most direct route to sorting your problem out.

[ScarletPimpernel]

Mree, I wish you had been there when I phoned - I never seem to get through to the good ones.

After being a customer for 4 years:

EDF are still unable to get my correspondence address correct, despite my writing and phoning to correct it 8 times
EDF threatened to get a warrant to break into my house if I didn't provide a meter reading, despite my having already supplied readings and informing them that the reason I couldn't provide one within their timescale was that I was in Iraq on ops
EDF consistently refuse to refund credit balances which resulted from their wildly over-estimated bills (10 - 15 times actual usage)
EDF took several hundred pounds from my bank account, without authorisation, as an 'annual adjustment'. They refused to refund it, but the bank did through the DD guarantee. In fact, they owed me anyway.
After I cancelled my DD, EDF attempted to reinstate it and collect money, without my knowledge or authority, 9 more times


So, I hope you'll forgive me not sharing your enthusiasm for EDF.

[laticsforlife]

When I called the woman couldn't be more helpful, and was pleasant throughout.

[zander]

Energywatch need to be informed of the poor service. Lodge your complaint with them. It would do you no harm to request a Subject Access Request.

[laticsforlife]

How do I ask for a Subject Access Request (or are instructions somewhere on this site)

[emmaf01]

try the Templates section/library- you just need to adapt it to fit, from bank to energy company.

If you continue to have trouble with EDF, who I have had both good and bad experiences with myself, try contacting Energywatch, as they can really get them jumping to help.

No disrespect to mree, who is obviously one of the best!:o

[gondukin]

laticsforlife, unfortunately they are legally allowed to back bill for up to two years, as they have done this and offered you an extended period of time to repay they are currently operating to the book. However a complaint to energywatch may help you get a goodwill gesture off the bill.

[laticsforlife]

So I've so far got 25% reduction in the debt, am awaiting revised bill.

Do people think that should be the end of it, or is there scope for anything outside of EDF's reduction? (many thanks to them so far for the 25% tho')

[mree]

Originally Posted by laticsforlife

So I've so far got 25% reduction in the debt, am awaiting revised bill.

Do people think that should be the end of it, or is there scope for anything outside of EDF's reduction? (many thanks to them so far for the 25% tho')

Believe me when I say that they've already given a lot more than they're obliged to, if I were you I would make that the end of it!