Yep SSW were my first port of call, I proactively and relentlessly called them over a period of a couple of months telling them something was wrong with the bill and most of the people I spoke to actually agreed, but were unable or unwilling to do anything. I kept chasing them because I wanted them to bill me a normal, realistic bill so I could pay and close my account. I did indeed tell them my moving date long before I moved. Hopefully now its been escalated someone with a brain might sort it, I won't start holding my breath any time soon though

OK when I next receive correspondence I will ask for the SSW contact that ICI are dealing with Just short of 1.5 years , though they were still debiting me up til maybe 4-5 months ago as I hadn't cancelled the DD and they continued to bill me a long time after I moved out.

Letter is from inter-credit again. All correspondence is so far.

Hello Update on this one, received two further letters since I posted ( I've been mailing them since the first two, no response yet ). Third letter came today saying they are in process of drawing up court papers, going to charge me legal fees, interest, 50gbp court, 50gbp solicitor etc They then want to make two further points about it affecting my ability to get credit, and that they will apply for bailiff warrant Ps the charges they are charging are based on meter readings... My dispute is that they cannot be accurate. Any advice?

renegadeimp, cheers I thought as much but just wanted someone to confirm I wasn't mad. OK I'll send em a letter and any further contact I get will be reported. Thank you.

Hello all, I had a query with a water company at my previous address whereby they charged me water usage charges of £475 for a period of a couple of months As a person living alone and being at work all day, having no hot water other than shower, no garden to water and no car to wash, I found this to be a little alarming and queried the charge (As my usual bill was about £18 a month) - I was on a water meter. The company in question (South Staffs) had the usual drongos on the phone who of course were not able to help in any way. I pro actively kept chasing and calling South Staffs to say I would pay a normal water bill but not one for £475 which in my opinion is completely unfeasible given my setup. This went on for a good month and a half of ME CHASING THEM to resolve this issue so I could pay them. Today I recieved a letter at my new address from a company called INTER CREDIT INTERNATIONAL demanding that I pay the client (South Staffs) said £475 within the next 5 days. To me this isn't a bad debt, its an invoice query that they seem incapable of resolving. Am I right in saying that a court would have to order me to pay this before a collection agency could really do anything? Whats the procedure? It's not even a matter of I cant pay - It's that I will NOT be bullied by South staffs just because they are a big company into paying charges which are nothing short of ridiculous. Any advice on this would be most appreciated. Best regards Luke

As I feared I too am out of ideas as to how to make them see sense.

Not until I did my analysis to see if I could afford to move house (As last post). Its a difference of £20-£25 a month so didnt really stand out.

I opted out of recieving paper statements years ago, and I had no significant enough balance changes to warrant me trawling through statements and checking what might be up. It was only when I decided to run an analysis of my incoming/outgoing as im looking to move house that I noticed it really. (Too much trust in companies to bill me only what they're meant to and not whatever they decide?)

Thanks for your replies. I've started proceedings with the ombudsman, I will update here of progress

thanks for your replies guys. My complaint is from start to finish in writing (I prefer it that way when dealing with people like this). When they refused to refund the difference I left Virgin late last year. Can I still take it to the ombudsman?

Hi I had virgin media for years on their 3 for £30 deal (Phone, Broadband and a TV Package for £30) when I moved into my place years ago. I noticed in the middle of last year that they've been debitting me £50+ a month for AGES (This isnt phone usage or and pay per TV services, they've upped the price of the package) and when I queried why they said "we sent you a letter" which they certainly did NOT. I said I had no letter and wanted a refund for the difference as ive never signed any contracts saying I wanted to pay more than the £30 per month that I signed up for. They basically dismissed my complaint and I didnt know where to turn etc. But as I am on this forum now I thought I'd see if any of you guys might know what I can do? Please let me know Thanks Luke

Hey all, And here is todays disaster. I went onto a water meter (my choice) because I wasnt happy paying against rateable value because I dont have a garden to water, a car to wash, have no hot water so dont have baths, dont have a dishwasher etc - I have a VERY basic setup. Water is used for showers, washing up and drinking. I had been getting about £14 worth of water usage a month for the first couple of months of having the water meter. I then stopped monitoring it because it was such a miniscule amount. But now I have absolutely no idea how, I owe £1000 (despite paying £30 a month, for something that was costing £14-£16 a month) - The meter reading they've done IS correct. But its not possible that I've suddenly used 10 years worth of water in two quarters surely? I've been on holiday twice aswell!! I do not leave taps on. I live in the upstairs part of a maisonette so if there was a leak my neighbour would surely advise me when he'd finished swimming around his living room. I did a test yesterday, wrote down the meter reading before I went to work, then checked it immediately when I got back - no change, so it doesnt appear that there is a leak. I also checked the meter serial was actually mine - it is. I did have the water come through cloudy and weird a few months ago almost like they'd been doing some work on the pipes? My only idea is that they could potentially have had a mad water loss while playing with pipes? Is there anything I can do? Because as it stands it seems to be a black and white "But if your meter reads this then you owe this much". They dont take into account the fact I'd need to be emptying and filling up swimming pools to achieve this bill? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks guys Luke

Thanks for the info guys. 11 Working days since RBS signed for my recorded delivery letter and no reply yet! Do they usually wait right til the last second?

Outcome: They honoured the original price...