Dont forget that in most cases an arrangement total made by the utility company will include the current usage and the debt.

I come across this situation frequently in my job. The meters belong to the meter operators as already stated, but you as a bill payer have a right to choose how you pay for your gas and electric, so if you want pre pay meters then you can change them. Your landlord cannot tell you not to have the meters changed as he can always have them changed back after you leave. If you find it easier to budget weekly, have PPms fitted and to hell with the landlord. its you that has to pay the bills mot him.

I found this on the OFT website and thought it may be of interest to some. I hope i have posted in the correct place, if not i am sure a moderator wil move it to the best place.

The OFT have issued the following statement see it here

As previous posters have said, yes npower can legally enter your property once they have a warrant. Npower are one of the strictest companies when it comes to enforcing residential warrants. Several checks take place, and a lot of calls to npower befoe any supply is terminated, and as is usuall in most cases a pre payment meter is fitted.

If you had been with another supplier checks would have been carried out prior to the warrant being executed, and on the day of the execution.

The moral to this story is ensure that you notify any supplier when you move into a new property.

I know i may have left this a bit late as its now near the court date, but here goes.

The human rights letter that gives the court and date includes information to help you. You do have the right to turn up to the court, and you may get your chance to speak to the magistrates. it depends on your reasons for not allowing access to the utility companies equipment. if you are planning to go to court, ensure that you arrive early and make your self known to the court usher. They will put you in contact with the person applying for the warrant.

At this stage the chances are the utility company will want payment in full. If you cant pay it all, the chances are you will end up with a pre payment meter, sorry about that.

To save yourself a lot of additional costs you could always ring the utility company and arrange to have a meter fitted. There may be no costs for that, but you may have left it too late.

I hope you get this sorted.

It is section 2.11 h, shown below

 

h. visiting debtors, unless requested, at inappropriate locations such as work or hospital.

He does not say he will visit your place of work. What he does say is

personally visit your debtors business

or home.

Which is totally different

As Nottslad says if you cant pay the full balance ask to have prepayment meter fitted. They will arrange a time and date to fit it, and i think in most cases it is free.

Just to put your mond at ease, the process for obtaining a warrant can take a while. A letter has to be sent to you giving a minimum of 14 days notice that legal proceeding are gonig to take place. This letter will notify you of the court and the time of the hearing. You should really go to court and have your say.

Paying a sum to your utility supplier may not stop action, but it may help.

CSL are not bailiffs just debt collectors. A warrant of entry must be obtained before they can touch your supply.

If its in the terms of the original contract then i would have thought that yes they can.

Hi bbb bhavesh

 

In response to nottslad's query - it is only fair that you pay for your share of the electricity used while the property was occupied by the four tenants. If the three other guys moved out and you continued to live in the property, then it would be best to close down the account which has all four names on it with you having paid your share of the bill. The closed account will then be updated with full details of what has happened and your name removed from the account, leaving only the three people responsible for the remaining outstanding balance.

 

A new account would then be set up in your name (and the name of any other tenants living in the property now). This way, you are only charged for the electricity you use.

 

I have seen this in the past where properties are occupied by students who come and go. The best way to keep on top of payments is to bill an account as soon as a tenant moves out and then remove this tenants name from the account, or close the account when a tenant moves out and open a new account for the remaining or new tenants. This way charges can be proportioned correctly.

 

Let me know if you want me to investigate your account for you or if you have any further questions.

 

Kind Regards

 

Colin @ ScottishPower

Is this only applicable to students or can any person just pay there share.

I said it was reasonable because you are paying the £5-00 that you originally offered because that is all you can afford to pay, plus a figure for your current usage. I take it that you can now either not pay the original offer to repay arrears, or you cant afford to pay for current usage.

Contact your local benefits office, as you are out of work, and ask about water direct. According to the welsh water website this will reduce your bill by a further 25 pounds.

They have written back and said the minimum they can accept is £12.88 per week, to cover the arrears and the current bill. This is realistically more than I can afford..

I would say that this is totally reasonable for arrears and current usage.

Turning up in court is nearly always the right thing to do. Unless you know that the arrears are completely fair, that the repayment schedule is semsible for you, that you are not classified as vulnerable and that the utility is putting a fair case how can you let them get away with a default warrant?

Everybody is given notifation of the court date and time, and indeed more should turn up. As a person who applies for warrants i personally hate it when someone turns up. I always try to resolve the matter prior to the court hearing, and will always contact the utility company whilst with the customer. If there is a genuine dispute on the case then it will get postponed, or indeed cancelled. People have to turn up first though.

As mentioned bt NOTTSLAD suppliers can stop you from leaving if you owe money.

If you turn up to defend this cosy system is not possible so the application is withdrawn and the utility will try something else.

Not always correct, as several courts that i visit for warrant applications will postpone the hearing. A time is booked usually 1 to 2 weeks later when more time is given so that both parties can put their side.

The time taken to obtain a warrant of entry varies between suppliers and collection agency.

Before a warrant can be applied for, you should receive a minimum of two personal visits to try and resolve the matter, you may even get three. If the matter has not been resolved, you could then receive a human rights letter giving notification of a court date and time for the application. This could be anywhere from a few weeks to at least a month away. If the warrant is granted it must be actioned within 28 days.

What i am trying to say is that there is no fixed length of time. It depends on the utility ccompany, the DCA, and especially the courts.

Hope this helps

If there is a new occupier in the premises, B gas will need to see proof of occupancy, and they can not touch the supply as its no longer their supply.

In my opinion, i would send regular payments to them by whatever means you can, but make sure that you keep reveipts. If a DCA turn up at your door, the chances are that he will try to contact SP whilst he is with you, and he may be able to resolve this with them. Whatever happens you will be left with a letter of intent. If you are unable to sort thing out, you will receive through the post a human rights letter, notifying you of court action, and the date and time it will take place. Do not panic. If you turn up to the court, your case may or may not be heard that day., as some courts will adjorn it until more time is available. The time span from the first visit to actually getting to court could be as little as 4 weeks, and could be lots longer. This will give you time to pay off your balance.

I am not going to get into a slanging match on this forum, as the advice i gave in my posts was accurate and correct. If you want to pm me. i will.

zazen.warrior

I believe that you are correct and the advise given should be taken

As to a warrant being force on you. YES they can, and yes they probably will. If you feel so confident that a warrant will not be granted, when you receive a human rights letter notifying you of court action, turn up at the court and contest it. I know the legal position of the utility company, i know what has to be proven when applying for a warrant, and i believe that the magistrate, and not a fudge, will grant a warrant. Now your task is to prove me wrong.

For your information, i am a self empoyed debt collector, speciaslising in the collection of utility debt. I work on behalf of many of the large utility suppliers, and several of the smaller ones so i know the system, and i have a reasonable sense to tell when people are trying to play the system.

Your £1 offer is ridiculous, and will not be accepted as a utility company can take £3 per meter as a repayment if you are on benifits. They can and will go to court to force you to have prepayment meters fitted, which will add costs and charges onto your debt.

I hope this answers your question to your satisfaction, and i hope you now see sense, have prepayment meters fitted, and take an adult view that money is owed and should be paid back.

Have pre payment meters fitted and only pay 3 pound per meter once you have proven that you are on benifits.

Dependant on what meter you have depends on what the third screen says. What make of meter is it and what is the letter before the pound sign

A bailiff has peacable entry to your home. If a door is unlocked he can open it, he can climd through a window if its open. Next time the bailiff comes and knockes on your door, pick up your door keys, walk outside your house, shut the door dehind you, and speak to him. he may well accept your offer. I dare you to give it a try.

I think your best bet is to pay off any monies owed to npower and switch suppliers.

It sound to me as if you have made no effort to pay any of this bill, and you are reallly loking for an excuse not to pay ot, just because you cant afford to pay it all. Make an arrangement to pay it off over a few months. You have used the gas so pay for it. Failing that arrange tpo have a pre payment meter fitted, and if tyou can prove that you are claiming benefits, the repayments could be set as low as three pound a week.