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Edf Prepayment Meters


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Hi,

 

I am quite new to this forum and not sure if I am posting? correctly?

 

I am having problems with EDF and their Prepayment Meters and I just wanted to ask for advice of what to do please.

 

I moved into my new home on 3 Dec 09 and the meters were already here.

I contacted EDF straight away and was told to use the keys that were here and that their were no debts on them.

 

I used the keys all through Dec but had trouble keeping them in credit.

I worked out that I had spent nearly £200:shock: on gas and electric for Dec and

there were days when we did not have heat or light and I never had enough hot water.

 

I have used key meters before and never had this problem.

I can't even bath my 2 boys every day and since moving in have washed my hair in cold water.

 

I had to contact EDF again at the beginning of Jan 2010 to see if their was anything that could be done to help me.

They said I could go on to their "Energy Assist Plan" and apparently I was put on it and new keys were to be issued.

 

I have received the gas key but no electric key yet.

 

I was told that I would have to charge my keys 2 to 3 times for the new prices to take effect and I have charged them much more than this but no new prices have appeared.

 

I have not used my new gas key as I was waiting for the electric so that I could start them together. (I have not used any gas at all and we are living without central heating and hot water)

 

My electric meter seem's to have gone mad!!:shock:

 

I run out daily and go into the emergency all the time and when I go to put more on there will be a debt to pay.

I am putting on approx £10 every other day sometimes more.

 

We woke yesterday(Jan 28th) to find the £5 emergency had not lasted the night and when I went to put more on it said debt £12.99 and for me to get £2 over the £5 emergency I had to put on £15 and I know in the morning (Jan 29) this will be gone and I will have to put more on.

 

I do not understand what is going on?:confused:

 

We live in a 2 bed maisonette I am not using the washing machine at all and I have 1 convector heater on for the boys and a low watt panal heater in the kitchen.

We have low energy lightbulbs but we are effectivly living out of one room and the cooker/hob is electric.

 

I have emailed EDF asking for them to explain this to me and for someone to check the meter.

 

This can't be normal, can it?:-|

I would'nt mind the cost so much if it meant we had as much light/heat/hot water as we wanted but I feel I'm paying for the whole street.

 

Is there anything else I can/should do?:?

 

Any advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank You and sorry for the long post.

 

Suzanne:sad:

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Hi again,

 

I forgot to say we do not have tv in our home but I do have a radio on 24/7 and I do use a computer (although it is not on constantly due to the cost of the electric here)

 

And I had a electrition friend look at the meters for the 2 maisonettes to make sure they were okay and he thought it all seemed right.

 

The upstairs is on a normal meter and is next to my prepayment meter in the communal hallway right out side my front door.

 

Thanks

 

Suzanne

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Phone EDF as they are definately charging you too much. I live in a 2 bedroom house which is all electric (apart from heating and hot water) but i am using £10 a week on electric (with my tumble dryer being used) and £20 on the gas (even though i have the heating on). I am on the Energy Assist Tariff with EDF and i have never had any problems.

 

Definately phone them and tell them you want it sorted now or you are changing supplier. Is the meter saying £xx for debt? If so then i think you are paying the previous tenants debt which is a big no no so call them and let me know how it goes.

:cool::cool: Blondmusic :cool::cool:
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Hi Blondmusic :-)

Thank You for your reply! Thought I was right about paying to much!!

 

Quite a lot has happened since 29th!! I did ring EDF but that was about 10pm last night and I'll get to that in a minute!!

 

Firstly I spent most of the day working out running cost (£&kwh) for all my stuff. (Electrical only as I stopped using Gas at all for now)

 

I did it 3 ways -

1 - using what I want whenever I wanted over 30 days

2 - using a lot less but more than I have been

3 - using exactly what I have been

 

It was very interesting and surprising!!

It seems to show theres nothing wrong with the meter but something is still not right.

The £12.99 debt I had? Does not make any sense?

 

I trawled round the internet trying to find some advice when my upstairs neighbours arrived home.

In they went, music on (I dont mind it at all! They have had some wicked parties since I moved in!! All night and loud!! Does not bother me or the boys one bit!)

 

I suddenly realised I could hear a funny noise in the hallway, on looking out there I could see they had pulled a wire out (a bit chunky black one) of the box under their meter and the spinning disk was juddering to an alarm it has on it.

The numbers were not moving either!!

As far as I can tell it was not plugged into my meter but its confusing to me?:confused:

They had not heard it so I ran to get my phone to get a photo when I heard them come flying down the stairs!

They do not know if I heard/saw it but they went back upstairs to silence all afternoon.

I don't know if they know I end up paying for their electric or not?

But I have told them many times how the electric is affecting us, especially my boys. (They sleep in hats and jumpers and have been ill with colds since we moved in):-x

 

It had crossed my mind before but I found out they have not changed the name from the old tenant (when I overheard a debt collector come to find her for not paying the electric bill & I saw a card saying they were going to put in a prepayment meter.)

 

So I noted down their meter reading on th 23 Jan and again today.

It works out they use 10 units a day and I use 40?

Looks to me like I'm paying for it?

 

For the next few hours I tried to find someone to help me because I know EDF will not care or help

(My Mum went through the same thing except much worse! 5 Flats only 4 meters working could not get anyone to help her I did in the end but the result was key meters put in just before xmas with a debt of £1800 for a 1 bed flat for less than a year to be paid back at £5 per week - going to take her 8 years!! and the woman whos meter it is is still not on and she gets it all for free!!)

 

I found Consumer Focus but they are updating the website and hardly anything works!

They kept trying to direct me to Consumer Direct (Gov website)

It did not work I tried everything! Finally I found a bit of info basically they will refer me to Consumer Focus.

What a waste of time that was!!!

 

At 8pm I went to buy more electric (meter said £1.92E) and also on another screen £5.00 Charge.

I also saw that their wire is still out but I can not make head nor tail of it all!!!

I got all my info together and tried to ring EDF many Depts were shut but at 10 I spoke to a man.:rolleyes:

He did not really understand what I was saying and I had to read the screens from the meter to him and I know they were listening upstairs!

Luckily the man I spoke to was a complete fool and we mostly discussed that screen c was infact screen 1?? and he wouldnt have it otherwise!!

Upshot is - there was no debt on it after all last night and it is a 2 rated meter? Economy 7? (no-one ever said this before?) and both day/eve rates are the same?

 

And this is the reason it said £12.99 debt!:rolleyes:

Because once Economy 7 has kicked in and your credit runs out the electric does not turn off but continues till morning with the debt building?

 

I didn't ask him why I had spent more that night than i do in the day?

He was getting a bit cross with me!!!

 

Got my electrician mate to pop in and he says NOT ECONOMY 7???????

I am to ring EDF back on Monday and ask them to resend electric key as my 1st one didnt turn up?

 

But I am very worried about what to do and what if anything I will get back?:confused:

The Consumer Focus says never use anyone elses keys because the money is going to their account and as you have not paid you have to start making payments.

While written permission is sought to recover your cash!!!

 

I cannnot believe this??

How do I prove they have been taking it?

How do I get some money back?

Do I get the police involved?

 

This has been the biggest move mistake of my life!!

I am/have been freezing cold and as ill as the kids!:cool:

The Landlord seemed ok at first then wouldnt give me the keys for 3 days after I was supposed to move in?

But on the plus side I havent seen him since!!

But there are no certificates gas/electric/energy thingy (really bad I know):-o

I had not realised the gas meter is in the boys bedroom at my head height.

(I've been trying to find out if this is allowed/ok? but I can't.)

I am pretty sure the pipe coming through the wall from outside is not good but I cant tell from the regs if it has/should have been changed.

We have the ground floor (living room + kitchen/diner wicked view right across the bay of Hastings) Then down stairs 2 beds bathroom and garden.

Dont hear a thing down there!! lovely view too!!:D

But the boys room would look out the front but its so deep basement they have secret courtyard bit (house is 3 floors from front + 4 floors at back)

They feel really safe in there and that is important due to events from a while ago.

This is where the gas pipe comes in from outside 5 ft high quite a long way in before it gets to a big meter cupboard. It all seems pretty old but for the key meter in it.

I think the pipe might be lead but has so much paint on can't tell and I know thats wrong. I think its in the wrong place in case of fire and the pipe is supposed to be a safe distance from walls etc in case of subsidence.

Also there has been a leak from the roof for past 3 years (not much damp no smell either)

We are end terrace and mostly water goes halfway down middle of the side of house. There has been a leak over bay window in kitchen and upstairs says it pours through her bay first.

Didnt give it much thought really - to cold!! Then a really weird thing happened - It snowed here bad the ground was solid and creatures moved into the house!

I was beginning to think I was going mad!!:razz:

I knew they were there, I don't know what they were, i regularly got creeped out and would run from the room.

They made no mess, no poo, they would go through all my still packed stuff but did not damage anything except would make a long piece of black bag dangle down by chewing/tearing it?

It was wierd! I have a bull mastiff and he couldnt care less about them!

I know he saw them -I'd watch him watch them!

Then I started to see big lumps swimming under the kitchen lino (thought I'd really lost it then!!) you could see on the stairs lumps under the carpet coming down. I stopped looking- denial but I knew they were here and 4 days ago 10 at night the boys and I got back from late food shop. The house was freezing and my legs were killing me, I thought from lugging about furniture.

I realised the creatures were gone and sat to take off my boots and my legs were swollen big? and the pain!!I could not warm up and thats when I saw a huge gap along the bay where the floor didnt meet the skirting anymore? Couldnt believe I hadnt seen it before? when I put down a throw to block out the cold a load of insects jumped out from the gap.

My boys got out their torches and we had a good look clear bugs and a white moth thing.

Putting the boys to bed I could hardly walk now I saw on the white carpets bugs by backdoor (red) and loads in my room.

Had to leave my room shut up they were all over me and the dog.

Back in the kitchen were now hundreds, I was mopping them up but they were throwing themselves at us - it was gross!!

2 days later my legs still massive my mum came and took the boys and I realised the gap had closed up under the bay?

Investigating the internet Ive found out the house is "heaving" sort of subsiding but due to clay and water the house is lifting up and down and almost walking away.

Thats what all the rolling lumps are, like the floor in an earthquake.

Its been doing it today, its fascinating!! and thats why the creatures moved in and were waiting to go back but the heaving must have freaked them and they left (hopefully for good!!) and the bugs coming out because they had gone is exactly what happens!!

Its such a relief to know I'm not mad after all!!

But I am very worried about that gas pipe and the kitchen floor has dropped badly in the middle today.

There is no way my mum will let the boys come back either, Ive got to start repacking, get the Landlord in on Monday and EDF as well and I'm tied in here till end of May.

I'll let you know if the back of the house falls off!!

 

I have gone wildly and completeley off topic and I am very sorry about that and if you want to cut most of it out thats fine.:oops:

 

You could always put it in the "And You Thought You Had A Bad Day??" section?:D

 

Sorry, as you can probably tell I'm a very lonley slightly mad woman who has been cooped up alone for days!!:razz:

Well, not exactly alone..........Theres the dog......2 bloody creatures......

and I'm covered in insect bites that have possibly burrowed (Yes thats right burrowed) under my skin!!!!:-o

 

Thats got to be top of "the bad day" section?

No-one can beat that surely?

deserving of 1st prize??;) holiday in the carribean? suitcase full of money?

House in the middle of no-where - where no-one can touch the electric?

Anyone? Anyone?

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with regards to the meter being tampered with, you need to speak with a team called Revenue Protection or RPU, who will probably disconnect the flat upstairs or put a prepayment meter in so that they stop extracting your electricity.

 

The usage they have clocked up on your meter would be a civil matter between you and them, but the police could possibly get involved for "extractation of electric" which is basically theft.

 

Regards to the bugs, phone the council, think it would be housi8ng or environmental health - you can't carry on living in those conditions, and try something like Derback for the bites (it's used for scabies and lice and might help with the soreness etc)

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have EDF pre payment gas & electric. I use £25 per week electric (slowly approaching £30) and £10 per week gas (despite having only 1 small gas heater appliance.) But I think all in, £35 a week not bad for a 2 bed ground floor flat. Hope this gives you some guide as to what a 'normal' pre payment metre should be using.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hello Again :)

 

Thank you for replying to my post

 

Nothing has changed with my situation :evil:

 

I am still on the same tariff!

I still have no new key!

My neighbours are still tampering with the meters!

 

I have rung and emailed EDF but it is pointless and only makes me mad!!

 

I did, at first, get a good response to my email.

Quite a normal and helpful lady replied.

She stated :

They have me down as economy 7 and asked me to respond if this was right or wrong (As I mentioned I had gas central heating).

That she checked my meter and I am using 7.5 units in the day (normal)

But at night I use 20.5 units (Very not normal!!)

On checking the meter I am only paying for what I am using so it does not appear a meter problem.

She has also checked that there is no debt being collected on the meter.

The only debt that should show on the meter is £6.00 emergency, if it has been used. (I only have £5 emergency?)

And if it says £12.99 or more debt again can I take a photo and email it to them.

 

I replyed answering her questions and added about my neighbours incident with their meters alarm going off.

 

Unfortunatly my email went to a different person.

His reply said

To check if my neighbours were using my electricity I need to get an electrition to check the internal wiring.

To check that the key meter is actually mine by waiting for the credit to run out and see my electric goes off.

If my neighbours have tapped into my supply they will not be able to refund me anything they have used and I need to raise this with them.

The problems (I think he means the incident) my neighbours had with their meter does not indicate they are using my supply.

He has checked their meter and their consumption is quite normal. (Not compaired to mine!!)

Looking through the list of appliances I had supplied the 1200 watt oil radiator is costing 14p an hour and thats £3.36 for 24 hours use.

I am roughly spending £4.00 per day on electric.

Please be assured we have updated your tariff to the "Energy assist rate", this will be picked up by your key at a pay point while charging your key as normal.

Dated 8/2/10

 

To be honest I lost the will to be bothered with it all.

I have other problems and life has settled into a kind of pattern you just get on with.

 

But I think I know what my neighbours are doing now and I have got photo's.

They are not stopping their meter they are doing something to the box that both our meters go to.

I am not sure what this box is called but green/yellow wires from my and their meters go to it and it has no metal security wire thingy.

You can see clearly marks from where it is opened frequently.

 

They have still not registered with the southern electric for the meter and today there is a letter from a debt person.

It is addressed to the old tenant and says they are applying to court to come in and put in a pre-pay meter.

Every time they have been £33 has been added for the visit.

 

And I guess my neighbours are going to get away with everything they have done.

The meter, debt and charges are not in their name so is Southern Electric even going to be able to put a pre-pay in?

 

And I have no chance of getting any money back!

EDF could not care less and are not gouing to help.

 

Oh yes, My RPU (Revenue Protection Unit), who I should report this to is EDF!

 

What Now?

I'm going to try complaining and email EDF my photos.

I had asked them to send someone to check the meters, who I hoped would be able to tell what tampering was going on.

How am I supposed to know about these things?

 

But to be honest it depresses me to even think about talking to EDF people.

They know nothing, will say anything to make you go away and are not in a position to make decsions.

 

Another utility incident, that has happened recently, is I had a look on the Uswitch website (late jan 2010) and within half an hour a man from them rang me.

He said "eon" would save me £180 a year and I should change to them.

I told him I did'nt want to change because it took 6 weeks, of my problems with EDF and that "eon" had not come up on the website?

He said it took 7 days to change and I could then get them to put in a normal meter which would save me loads more money and (I realise now) some bull story as to why they had not shown up on the website.

So I agreed, Stupid I know!

 

The agreement arrived from Uswitch but it said it was for me to pay £180 per month by DD.

I can't pay by DD so I emailed to cancel and thought that was it.

I did not receive any keys within 7 days.

 

Last week I started to get letters from "eon" :

First saying they urgently need some number from the electric meter.

(I did not respond)

Then a leaflet thing about giving them readings.

(I did not respond)

Then a gas key.

(I have not used it)

 

I also received a letter from "British Gas" saying they are sorry they are leaving them as a gas customer?

 

I also received a letter from EDF addressed "To the occupier" asking if I know anything about the previous occupier as they urgently need to contact them??

(Do they mean the people before me? and if they do why was the letter not addressed to me or do they mean me because they think I have moved out?) :???:

 

I have not used the gas since mid jan and have not had heat or hot water.

I went to have a look at the meter and found it had a £6.80 debt on it.

I thought EDF didnt charge a standing charge for the gas meters?

 

I really don't know what is going on?

They all want me to ring them and I cannot afford to.

 

So I have done nothing yet!

 

Also my 2 1/2 month old Granddaughter has recently been very ill for a couple of weeks and was in hospital with feeding tube, drip and in a oxygen bubble.

She's much better and back home but this makes you realise what is important in life!!

 

But it's really not fair that I have to somehow get the money I paid to EDF from the neighbours.

EDF do not even supply upstairs.

Are they going to work out what the overpayment is and give it Southern Electric?

From their last email seems to me, they are going to keep the money, not tell SE anything and tough on me!!

EDF have no right to that money whatsoever and if a company paid anyone by mistake it would have to be paid back. (When a bank mistakenly puts money into an account and that money gets spent it's theft! So why not for this situation??)

 

I will email EDF as soon as I work out blue tooth for phones to tne p.c. and post any further developements.

 

Any advice very welcome.

 

Thank You and sorry for another long message.:rolleyes:

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EDF certainly should come out and check your meter in this situation - this should tell them if the people in the upstairs meter are tampering with the supply.

Is your prepayment meter a card or a key? If it is a key, you can see whether you are on E7 tariff or not. You press the button to cycle through the screens. The screen with the letter G at the side is the total reading, H is the daytime reading and if you have a J reading that signifies the night time reading (normally between about 12 midnight till 7 am - the times can vary). If you have a J screen, you are on the E7 tariff (regardless of what EDF may say over the phone). Normally, if you have gas heating, you should be on a single-rate (non E7 tariff) although there are exceptions. This is because whilst you get considerably cheaper price for the electric units used during the night on E7 tariff, you will be using few units during this time and you have to pay slightly more for the greater number of units used in the daytime, than you would if on single rate tariff. EDF should be prepared to change the tariff if you ask them to. I believe they can do this remotely from inside their office.

Furthermore, you can check your meter to see if there is a debt on it. The key has to be in the meter for this to be done. The screens are right at the end of the cycle. There is one screen that says how much the meter is taking each week to clear the debt and the other tells you how much debt is remaining.

As EDF have not sent you a new key for your electric meter since moving in and you have had letters addressed to the occupier asking for information as to their whereabouts, I would say there is a good chance you are paying back the previous tennat (or landlord's) debt. This is obviously not on. You should demand that EDF send you a new key. They may ask you for a copy of your tenancy agreement, but apart from that there is no reason why they should not send you a new key. Until you get a new key, no payments you are making via charging up the key are going on to your electric account. This is only going to lead to further trouble in future - ie: EDF are likely to demand money from you for a supposed electric debt.

If EDF won;t budge, fire off a written compaint letter to them (with official complaint written in bold on the top of the letter). EDF are messing you around, there is no doubt about that.

 

Oh,a nd I would be very wary of moving your supply to EON if you want your pepayment meter removed. Eon are notoriously difficult about having prepayment meters taken out of rented properties (they won't do it until a year has passed and even then there are absolutely no guarantees). Ignore what their sales department has told you - it is rubbish!!

There are other companies that will remove your prepayment meter (subject to passing a credit check) eg: Scottish & Southern, British Gas. EDF are normally good about it too - although they are already supplying the electric here which may mean they are reluctant to remove it.

However, I advise against moving supplier until this farce has been sorted out with EDF - until this has been done, any transfer is likely to be completed erroneously.

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I would add it appears that your gas supply has noved from British Gas to EON. If you do use your old BGas card instead of your new EON one, you are likely to end up owing EON money - as the payments would be ogoing to BGas - who are no longer your gas supplier

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Hi :)

 

Thank you for your replies.

 

I have never had a gas card from British Gas at this address.

 

When I moved in both electric key and gas card were EDF.

 

I rang EDF the day I moved in to request new key and card and they told me to use the ones here as there was no debts on them.

 

When I rang EDF in JAN asking to be put on the social Tariff I was told the account had not been updated with my details.

They put my details on the account and sent me a contract.

 

I don't think I can owe EDF any money because I am paying full price for my electric and my contract is for the social tariff.

 

I am going to start to take regular photo's of the meters to keep as proof of what is going on.

 

I have asked for a new electric key 4 times and I would say definately the last time I demanded one to be sent out.

Always told the same thing "A key is being sent to you 1st class and you will get it in 2-3 days".

I did think that maybe my neighbours might have interfered with them but not 4 times? Surely I would have got to 1 of them 1st?

 

The electric meter does say "Rate 1 and Rate 2" on some of the screens.

This does give the impression that I can have 2 different rates at different times throughout the day/night but both rates are for the same price -

11.76p per KWH

So I think that is just the way the meter is programmed.

 

I don't see how E.ON can say I owe them money as I have not signed up with them.

I did agree with Uswitch to sign up but when the contract came it was to be a Direct Debit Customer, which I cannot be and would not have agreed to be.

Also Uswitch's terms and cond state they can only do Direct Debit people and if you are unable to do this you cannot use them?

 

It's all just one big con - All of them!! And there is nothing you can do -

Except go solar/wind power which I am going to be doing!!

 

It's not as hard or expensive as the Solar Power Companies make out.

And if I have to I'll use paraffin.

Light, heat and cooking!!

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Because:

1. edf are giving her the run around - she needs a new supplier. (Something like EBICO who don't charge for keys) and lodge a complaint with edf and follow it up as far as it needs to go

2. Same with the theft of her electricity - the police need chasing on these things.

3. Her Landlord need to be forced to secure the electric supplies and chuck out the noisy neighbors if needed.

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