The landlord is not responsible for the bill or the fraudulently obtained Utility warrant. EON lied to me. They led me to believe they would not appear in court on 24 May 2019. On the 24 May 2019, EON lied to the Magistrate and abused the UK's legal system: EON told the Magistrate that I owed the full £1100 on 24 May 2019 when the actual balance was ~400. (EON told the CAB specialist that the £800 payment showed up in their system on 3 May 2019.) EON did not mention to the Magistrate that they had spoken to me and that I agreed to pay charges I believed I was responsible for - excluding their fines. (I received the letter dated 25 April 2019 on or around 29 April 2019, hence my four phone calls to them and initial payment of ~ £800.) EON did not mention to the Magistrate that part of the bill was in dispute. Between 3 May 2019 and 24 May 2019, EON had an obligation to acknowledge my payment and make clear their reasons for continuing to going ahead with court action - despite the dispute. After the phone calls and my payment, there was no further communication from EON. Their unequivocally letter states, however, that court action can be stopped by contacting them. I contacted them, and they went to court anyway: Ofgem have a code of practice Gas and Electricity Codes of Practice Guidance for Domestic Suppliers (October 2001). See https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/sites/default/files/docs/2001/10/gas-and-electricity-codes-of-practice-guidance-for-domestic-suppliers-10-10_0.pdf Per Ofgem, "Ofgem may require the licensee to give it additional information about the operation of the code, concerning the company’s internal debt policies and procedures, which will not form part of the published code of practice." Highlights from Ofgem's code of practice: Each code and statement should advise customers of the role of energywatch in providing free independent advice and dealing with complaints. They should provide the central telephone/minicom numbers and the addresses of energywatch offices for customers to contact if they have any queries or complaints about the codes or statements, or their implementation, which the licensee has been unable to resolve Customers should receive a service that is consistent with all codes of practice and statements. All representatives of the licensee (including third-party agents) dealing directly with customers must therefore be familiar with the content of the codes and statements and arrangements should be in place to ensure that appropriate training is provided. Licensees should be able to demonstrate that the aims and requirements of the codes and statements are properly reflected in operational procedures and keep a record of the general operation of the arrangements set out in the standard licence conditions. Arrangements should be made to carry out effective internal monitoring to ensure compliance of staff or agents and highlight any deficiencies that need to be addressed. The code or statement should clearly state its objectives and purpose, as set out in the standard licence condition. It should provide customers with details of: the measures in place to enable customers to recognise and establish that visits are made by bona fide representatives, for bona fide purposes; The code or statement should indicate that customers will be informed of any organisations likely to request access on the licensee’s behalf When no appointment has been made, the representative of the licensee must tell the customer who s/he is and explain clearly at the start of the conversation the purpose of the visit. The code or statement should set out the procedures for ensuring that the above requirements are met and the action that a customer should take if s/he wishes to complain about any failure by a representative to follow the correct procedure or meet the necessary requirements. More per Ofgem. See https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/consumers/household-gas-and-electricity-guide/who-contact-if-its-difficult-paying-energy-bills/energy-supply-disconnection-and-prepayment-meter-rules

The CAB specialist told me to pay the outstanding balance to stop the electrician from returning the flat for a third time on the Friday. I did a wire transfer via faster payments.

Hi BankFodder, I was never told of the court date. I would have requested the hearing be moved to London. They wrote the Human Rights letter, took my money and then went to court anyway without notifying me. October 2001Gas and Electricity Codes of Practice Guidance for Domestic Suppliers 4.8 Before installing a prepayment meter, companies must ensure that they are appropriate to a customer’s circumstances. Where customers move into premises which already have prepayment meter, companies should describe how they will establish the suitability of that method of payment for the customer.

I have a corporate flat. EON obtained a utility warrant by fraudulent means. They lied to the Portsmouth Magistrates Court. The landlord was several months in arrears when I moved in. 10 months after I moved in, on 25 April 2019, EON sent me a Human Rights letter. It stated they would go to Magistrates Court to ask for a utility warrant on 24 May 2019. The nominated court was in Portsmouth, eventhough the flat is in London. I called EON on four occasions that day to say that I had no problem paying the bill. It was very hard getting through to someone who wasn't rude or accusatory. The issue is that the bills they sent had the incorrect billing information. I had told EON the correct information for 10 months, but they ignored me. Collections agreed to update the billing information. I agreed to pay the outstanding amount on the letter they had sent me, approximately £800. Payment posted to EON on 3 May 2019. EON collections told me there would be no further court action. I never heard anything from EON. I expected to get an update. On Friday 31 May 2019, someone knocked on my door, demanding entry. He said he had a warrant from the Court. I told him that I paid the bill. He said that he was going to return with a locksmith and change my meter. I called Portsmouth Magistrates Court. They said they could not help me unless I told them the date EON was granted the utility warrant. I told them I did not know for certain as they never told me anything. Portsmouth checked the system and could not see a warrant issued for the date on the letter, 24 May 2019. They told me to contact EON or the Ombudsman. A few hours later, after I had stepped out, he returned and attempted to change the meter. I do not know what he did exactly. I then called Citizen's Advice Bureau. They have a specialist team for Energy complaints. The CAB specialist called EON who told her that unless I paid a further £400, that the guy would return for a third time that day and attempt to change the meter or cut off the electricity. I told the specialist that I disputed the extra charges, and wanted to see a breakdown of how they reached that figure. The CAB specialist said that the EON contact told her all of the charges were only for electricity, an no call outs. She said that EON should have notified me of their plan to go to court anyway.