According to eon they didn't send anything at all until 4th June 2009. I have the full history of bills on my online eon login. It shows no bills before 4th June 2009. I was suffering from quite bad mental health issues at the time so didn't do a lot of things I should have done like informing eon that I had tenants etc. How can I be responsible for electricity that I haven't used when I wasn't living there?

Yes. From the tenancy agreement: 3. The tenant(s) agree with the landlord 3.2 To pay promptly to the authorities to whom they are due, all outgoings (including water and sewerage charges, gas, electricity, light, heating and telephone relating to the property) including any which are imposed after the date of this agreement (even if of a novel nature) and to pay the total cost of any reconnection fee realting to the supply of water, gas, electricity and telephone if the same is disconnected. I have no idea. I'm pretty sure she rang them because we had an argument about who's name the electricity bill should go in, I already had the gas and water in my name so wanted to share the responsibility, and she moaned about ruining her birthday. I remember her stomping off with the phone ringing someone.

Sorry, I didn't realise.

Why does the link to the leagal seagulls forum get changed to disneyland.info? Are links to other forums not allowed so they are changed to something rediculous to stop it?

I have read about the billing code here : The billing code - Legal seagulls Consumer Forum Your link appears to try to send me to disneyland.info The billing code - Legal seagulls Consumer Forum

I made a right hash of the dates in this. I've edited it to the correct dates and added more info now.

Thanks. I posted in the utilities section of these forums http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/utilities-gas-electricity-water/256420-eon-being-unreasonable-about.html#post2886171 but made a right hash of all the info and dates etc. I've finally got all the info sorted and correct dates with help from a close friend and my mother. I have struggled with this due to mental health issues but am slowly getting to grips with it. The house was empty and unused since mid 2003. According to eon the first bill they sent was to the "occupier" on 4th june 2009. There had been no previous bills. There were tennants in the house from 1st june 2005. I stupidly forgot to take meter readings as I was suffering with depression at the time and was mentally quite unstable. The tennants left on or around the 30th August 2008 (did a runner) and I moved back in with my then girlfriend on 8th september 2008 although I had been in and out redecorating from the 3rd September 2008. My girlfriend at the time rang eon with a meter reading on the 10th September 2008 to change the billing to her name. I was under the impression that she was paying the bills so had no reason to chase eon to find out why they weren't sending any bills. She left in the last week of May 2009. The first bill that I saw was sent addressed to "The Occupier" on 9th June 2009. Here is the letter I was going to send to eon. I wanted to know if it was correct. I wasn't sure about the data protection act bit and the CUPT thing. I've seen it mentioned a few times on various posts in here but there's so much on here and the search engine throws up so many results it gets confusing. Am I correct in saying that they cannot continue taking action against me and getting their dca to pursue me (and bill me £30 for every letter they send) while the account is in dispute? "Dear Sir I dispute the amount that you say I owe. I remind you that while I dispute this account you are not allowed under the data protection act to forward my details to any third party debt collection agency, this is also considered to be unfair under the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008 (CPUT) It has taken me quite a while to put all the following details together as I was suffering with poor mental health for most of the time concerned. I am willing to pay for any electricity that I am liable for but I am not willing to pay for electricity that I have not used while I was not living at this address. Why did eon not send ANY bills or letters to this address for over 5 years? Why did eon not chase the occupants for electricity being used for over 5 years? Why were estimated readings used from 2004 to 2008? If your meter reader could not access the property to obtain meter readings what did eon do about this? Please send me copies of ALL letters and bills that you have sent to this address. I was not living in the property prior to 3rd September 2008 as I had rented the property to (name) and (name). I have found a copy of the tenancy agreement that, unknown to me until a couple of days ago, my mother had been keeping for me which I have attached with this letter. I do not have a forwarding address for either of these people as they “did a runner” from my property on approximately 30th August 2008. The tenancy agreement started on 5th June 2005 and, after the initial 12 months shorthold agreement, the tenancy changed to a Statutory Periodic Tenancy hence the lack of any further signed agreements for the period from 1st June 2006 to 30th August 2008. We discovered that the tenants had left on the 3rd September 2008 when I went to collect the rent and discovered that they had left! My girlfriend, at the time, rang eon on the 10th of September 2008 ( I remember this as it was her birthday and she complained that it was a poor birthday present to put the bill in her name! ) to give a meter reading and put the electricity bill into her name. As the bills were supposed to be in her name I had no reason to believe that eon weren’t sending bills so I had no reason to enquire as to why bills were not being sent. She left sometime in the last week of May 2009, Her name is (name), I do not have a forwarding address for her. She was last known by me to be living in (town) in (county). Her D.O.B is (date). In addition to the fact that I was not living in the property until 3rd September 2008, so therefore not using any electricity, you must also take the Billing code into account: According to the Billing Code: “From the 1st July 2006 where the supplier has been at fault in not billing a domestic customer the supplier will not send a bill which includes energy consumed more than 2 years previous to the bill being issued. From 1st July 2007 this period will reduce to 1 year” 2.1.1 A bill has not been sent in one year Where the supplier is at fault in not billing a customer in the previous year, we will not bill a customer for more than one years worth of consumption unless it's in the customer's favour; the consumption relating to the oldest period (i.e. the period older than one year) will be withdrawn. For the purpose of 2.1.1, the supplier is at fault where they have made no attempt to bill or communicate with an existing customer during the previous 12 months. Specific exclusions The supplier is not at fault where A new customer has failed to notify the supplier that they are living in the property and we have sent letters to the address or we have continued communicating with the previous occupier. Eon cannot use this exclusion as I notified eon on 8th June that I was living in the property when I supplied a meter reading over the phone and eon did not send ANY letters to this address for over 5 years until the first bill that I saw on 8th June 2009. As I was under the impression that the tenants and then Miss (name) were paying the electricity bills up to that point I had no reason to contact eon to enquire as to why there were no bills being issued. You did not send a bill to the above address until 4th June 2009 therefore you cannot send a bill that goes back any further than 4th June 2008. However, you do not have any accurate meter readings for that date. You do have an accurate meter reading for 5th September 2008 of 95191 taken by your meter reader which coincides with the date close to when I and Miss (name) moved into the property. I must have let him in as Miss (name) was working at the time so wouldn’t have been in the house! This would have been what prompted Miss (name) to contact eon with a meter reading and to put the account in her name. As the tenants had left and I had access to the property from 3rd September 2008 and was living in the property from 5th September 2008 until the present day, I will accept liability for electricity usage from 3rd September 2008. I will not accept liability for any previous use of electricity at this address." I go on to say what the ammended bill should read based on the reading taken on the 5th Septmeber 2008 bringing it up to date with the last bill dated May 2010. I was then going to say I was including a cheque for that amount in full and final settlement (up to May 2010 bill date) I end the letter with this: Please note that I will no longer discuss any of this on the telephone. Please put all future correspondence in writing. Thanks for your help. I feel like I'm running round in circles with this. I have told them (eon) on the phone that I do not want to deal with this in phone calls yet they still keep ringing me.

I was trying to dispute the debt but as it's with an electricity supplier there's no signed agreement. I've tried to find letter templates on here to help me with stuff but there's nothing relevant. It all seems to be aimed at banks and loans. I just want them to stop pestering me to pay them. I can't cope with it anymore

I'll change my letter and remove the cheque then. Thanks

If you send a creditor a cheque with a covering letter that states that the cheque is for "Full and final settlement" of a debt and they cash it, does that mean that they have accepted that it is indeed "full and final settlement" and they cannot pursue you for any more money? Thanks

It would appear that they weren't on the electoral register at all.

Ok thanks

Thanks, but I still don't what letter to use. The only ones that seem relevant include stuff about CCA requests etc. As this is a dispute with an electricity supplier there is no signed contract as it is one of their lovely "deemed contracts"

I am currently disputing a debt with an electricity supplier but they insist on continuing with taking action against me. As I understand, they can't continue with any action while there is a dispute? Could someone point me to the correct letter to send to both the DCA and the company I am disputing the debt with please? The letter template library is a bit confusing. Many thanks

The DCA is buchanan clark and wells. I have written a letter to eon disputing the bill on 2 grounds 1. That I wasn't living there and 2. That the billing code doesn't allow them to bill me. I found this while reading other threads on here: "From the 1st July 2006 where the supplier has been at fault in not billing a domestic customer the supplier will not send a bill which includes energy consumed more than 2 years previous to the bill being issued. From 1st July 2007 this period will reduce to 1 year" (Clause 3.5)" As they didn't send ANY bills here until 4th june 2009 they can't bill me any further back than 4th june 2008? Is this correct? My mother, bless her, has found copies of the tenancy agreement that she kept for me so I have sent them with the letter too.

I've just had the latest bill and they've now effectively doubled the cost of my tarriff too. I feel totally not in control of this situation and they seem to be able to do what they like and put me further into debt each day.

It's a right mess and I'm to blame for it I suppose. In my defence I wasn't really "right in the head" over a lot of that time period. Thankfully my mental health has now improved quite a lot so I'm trying to get to grips with geting it sorted out. When I asked them about the estimated readings they told me that they had just worked them backwards for 5 years from the actual reading that the meter reader had got on 5th sept 2008! They say they don't have any records of readings or bills prior to that date. I have continued to pay them for the current usage but today I received a letter demmanding payment in full and telling me that it's now been handed over to their DCA who will "visit my home to discuss repayment". I don't want anyone coming to my home and intimidating me to make payments on something I shouldn't have to pay. I'm really not sure what I should be saying in writing to them. Any advice on what I should put in a letter to officially dispute this would be very much appreciated. Thanks for the help so far guys. It's very much appreciated.

The house was empty and unused since mid 2003. According to eon the first bill they sent was to the "occupier" on 4th june 2009. There had been no previous bills. There were tennants in the house from 1st june 2005. I stupidly forgot to take meter readings as I was suffering with depression at the time and was mentally quite unstable. The tennants left on or around the 30th August 2008 (did a runner) and I moved back in on 8th september 2008 although I had been in and out redecorating from the 3rd September 2008. My girlfriend at the time rang eon with a meter reading on or around the 10th September 2008 to change the billing to her name. I was under the impression that she was paying the bills so had no reason to chase eon to find out why they weren't sending any bills. She left sometime in May 2009. The first bill that I saw was sent addressed to "The Occupier" on 9th June 2009. Here's what the first bill said: Previous 80972 estimated on 4 March 2004 Mid period 81248 estimated on 5 April 2004 Mid period 82578 estimated on 6 September 2004 Mid period 83304 estimated on 29 November 2004 Mid period 85680 estimated on 31 August 2005 Mid period 87511 estimated on 31 March 2006 Mid period 88885 estimated on 6 September 2006 Mid period 90924 estimated on 30 April 2007 Mid period 93835 estimated on 1 April 2008 Mid period 95070 estimated on 22 August 2008 Mid period 95191 read by us on 5 September 2008 Mid period 97107 estimated on 31 March 2009 Current 97709 estimated on 4 June 2009 16737 Normal kWh (kilowatt-hours) used Charges Normal units used 16737 kWh at 6.19p each 1,036.01 Standing Charge 1918 days at 9.87p per day 189.38 Sub total of charges before VAT = 1,225.39 VAT @ 5.0% on £1,225.39 61.27 Total charges including VAT = 1,286.66 Please pay = 1,286.66 Note how it starts with an estimate!! There had been no bills issued to that address since 2003! I took a meter reading on 8th june 2009 and rang eon with this reading and then received another bill this time in my name. Previous 97709 estimated on 4 June 2009 Current 2128 read by you on 8 June 2009 4419 Normal kWh (kilowatt-hours) used Charges Normal 4419 kWh at 6.19p each 273.54 Standing Charge 4 days at 9.87p per day 0.39 Sub total of charges before VAT = 273.93 VAT @ 5.0% on £273.93 13.70 Total charges including VAT = 287.63 Account balance from your last bill f on 4 June 2009 1,286.66 Please pay = 1,574.29 I disputed this immediately and told eon that I had not lived there since 2003 but that I had not got the original tennancy agreements due to my ex burning my stuff. I also wanted to know why they had not sent any bills for 5 years but they just kept ignoring that and saying it was my responsibility to pay as the owner of the house. I offered them the names of the tennants but they weren't interested. They basically told me that unless I made a payment plan agreement with them they would come round and cut me off. At the time I had nearly £2k worth of snakes and reptiles living in my spare room and loosing my electricity supply would have killed them so I agreed to a payment plan. The rest is as posted in my first post.

Thanks for your reply. I tried disputing it but as I was living with a girlfriend in her home I had no bills at that address in my name. I exhausted all routes at trying to prove I wasn't living there so according to eon as the house owner and landlord I was responsible for any unpaid bills for that address. It would appear that they had not taken any meter readings for some time and had not sent out any bills, not even to "The Occupier". It wasn't until I moved back in, after the tennants left, that the meter reader gained access and I received a bill for nearly £1500! I have repeatedly told them that I am struggling financially but I CAN afford to pay for the current consumption. It's just the arrears that I can't afford at the rate they insist on. I will write to them again, sent recorded delivery this time, and try to dispute the arrears again.

I moved back into my previously rented out house in september 2008. The tennants had run up a £1500 electricity bill. Eon say that as the owner/landlord I am responsible for the debt and will not budge on that unless I can prove that I had tennants with a tennancy agreement but due to my ex turning all my possessions into a big bonfire I have no proof that I had rented the house out. I am self employed and due to various reasons I currently have no income apart from £40 a week working tax credits. I had a repayment plan in place with eon but missed a couple of payments due to a complete lack of money. I wrote to them to explain but they insist they never received my letter. They have cancelled my payment plan and have passed the debt to a collection agency called buchanan clark and wells. I have rung both the dca and eon to try to restart a payment plan but they simply will not accept that I can't afford to pay them what they want (£86 a month) and are insisting on a pre payment meter. They say that they cannot spread the repayments out over more than 2 years but I simply cannot afford to pay £86 each month. I have repeatedly made them an offer to pay £65 a month, and have been paying that, but they refuse to accept it as an agreement and say that I can pay them that amount but they will still continue with the dca action and that it will incur more costs and eventually lead to forced entry to my home to install a pre payment meter! I feel like I'm being held to ransom by eon. Any advice on this would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Just noticed that the post code for Fenton Cooper is identical to Rockwell. I'll ignore this one too.

Thanks very much for the info I ignored their letter and today received a letter from Fenton Cooper on behalf of their client Phoenix Rec UK Ltd SARL Tessera. It basically says that failure to contact them "may" result in the following actions: 1. A Debt collector may visit my home 2. Court judgement/decree may be requested 3. Any court costs will be added to my bill Seems they've passed it on from Rockwell to this Fenton Cooper lot now. I'll send them the letters you suggested and see what happens. I'm not sure about the PPI thing though as I have no records of any of this, only what I can remember from the time and that it was definitely 1996 and the bank was still called Midland at the time. I find it rather odd that several different companies have now been involved in trying to recover this alleged debt!

Now I'm even more confused. Should I ignore them and wait for their next move or send them a letter?

Can someone help me please? I've searched and read many threads on this subject but I'm still confused. Bit of a long story so bear with me please. I took out a bank loan with Midland bank many years ago... I think it was around 1996.... and also paid for redundancy/unemployment cover. The loan was a fixed amount ie I borrowed £3k and had to pay back a fixed amount. In 1997 I was made redundant but they refused to pay out on my payment insurance as they said I'd made myself redundant because I'd not been in the job for very long and should have investigated the company more thoroughly before changing jobs!! Anyway, I disputed all this for months during which time Midland kept changing the amount that I owed on the loan saying that the interest was changing even though the original agreement was for a fixed repayment amount. As I wasn't getting anywhere with my disputes I just refused point blank to pay them anything until they could prove to me why they were constantly changing the amount I owed them. They also added my overdraft to the outstanding amount before passing it over to a debt collection agency. Fast forward a couple of years and I'm being harrassed by "Phoenix Recoveries UK Ltd SARL Tessera" but once again I dispute the amount owed but being rather naiive I agree to pay them a £1 a month to stop them from pestering me. Fast forward another few years and suddenly I'm getting letters from Rockwell saying I owe them the money now. So, still being rather naiive, I start paying them £1 a month to stop them from harrassing me..... Now up to present day (well about 6 months ago) and I find this forum. I start reading about how DCA's are harrassing people over debts they can't actually enforce so I cancel the payments to Rockwell. They ring me on an almost daily basis but each time I tell them I will only deal with them in writing. Eventually I answer the phone and tell them they have the wrong number, saying I just bought the phone of a bloke in the pub That stops the phone calls at all times of day and night!! I heard nothing from them at all for months until yesterday when a letter came from them.... Further to our previous correspondence, your account still remains unpaid and we have received no proposals for repayment. It is a legal requirement for us to send a notice of Intended Litigation before legal proceedings in the County Court are issued against you. This letter meets these requirements, even if it is not actually read by you. To prevent legal action from being taken you must arrange to make payment in full to these offices by the 26 July 2009 otherwise we will take immediate action agaisnt you. If you fail to respond to this letter, a Judgement Order may be obtained and, if this remains unsatisfied, enforcement of your debt may be sought by one or more of the following: Warrant of Execution by bailiffs against the goods you own. Attachment of Earnings Order with your present or future employer Charging Order on any property you may own now or in the future You should understand that a Judgement against you would seriously affect your ability to obtain credit in the future. TO AVOID ROCKWELL TAKING ANY FURTHER ACTION, TELEPHONE THE PRE-LEGAL DEPARTMENT NOW ON .............. Firstly there has been NO previous correspondence!!! I doubt very much if they actually have the original credit agreement from 1996 so I'd like to send them a letter asking for a copy but I'm not entirely sure which one from the templates to start with. Could someone please advise me which letters to send as there seems to be various different things like asking them to stop proccessing my data and telling them they can't come to my door as well as asking for copies of the original credit agreement.... Thanks for any help.