Held to ransom by Utilities Warehouse

[the good listener]

UW's favourite trick is to underestimate the consumption which in turn gives you a lower bill then all of a sudden you are hit with a big one based on true reads that you cannot pay and a pre-payment plan is agreed locking you into them for years to come at their higher rates.

 

It's interesting to hear these stories. By the sound of things it would seem we are a minority in that we haven't had any problems with UTW other than a massive gas bill when we first switched.

 

You are right in that your bill(s) are revised annually so it makes sense to ensure your initial payment truly reflects your usage at the time of switching. We had someone actually go through our bill from our previous supplier before we switched.

 

This year our gas price went up a little (last winter was a long one) and our electric has come down and not a comparison website in sight!

[shining Light]

I've seen and read some bollox in my time but that's the biggest load of them all.

Your opinion Conniff, it still doesn't change the facts.

 

I recently moved house (from a 3 bed detached) and my energy bills averaged around £100pm, however I usually received a discount of £30pm making it a little more bearable.

[Bazooka Boo]

Has anyone witnessed some of the less than ethical cold-calling tactics used by utilities reps like 'We just want to check your meter as we think you're paying too much for your gas/electric.'

 

Yes EDF energy are prolific in using this trick, rang my door entry buzzer the other week, when I answered it was a man saying, "I've come to read your meter" thought nothing of it as my electricity provider regularly comes round to read the meter, and when I my front door, was met with two guys wearing EDF energy jackets wanting to get into my electric cupboard??

 

They were very quickly told to foxtrot oscar and to leave the property immediately, as soon as they left I got straight onto the phone to EDF and made a formal complaint about their tactics and methods, they apologised and promised it wouldn't happen again, told them your not kidding it won't happen again, TS are still looking into it...

 

Google Utilities Warehouse [problem]=

Utility Warehouse under the spotlight | Money | The Guardian

 

Utility Warehouse [problem] Telecom Plus UK

 

Useless Warehouse

 

The list is endless...

[the good listener]

Yes EDF energy are prolific in using this trick, rang my door entry buzzer the other week, when I answered it was a man saying, "I've come to read your meter" thought nothing of it as my electricity provider regularly comes round to read the meter, and when I my front door, was met with two guys wearing EDF energy jackets wanting to get into my electric cupboard??

 

They were very quickly told to foxtrot oscar and to leave the property immediately, as soon as they left I got straight onto the phone to EDF and made a formal complaint about their tactics and methods, they apologised and promised it wouldn't happen again, told them your not kidding it won't happen again, TS are still looking into it...

 

Google Utilities Warehouse [problem]=

Utility Warehouse under the spotlight | Money | The Guardian

 

Utility Warehouse [problem] Telecom Plus UK

 

Useless Warehouse

 

The list is endless...

 

Nice one and thanks for the links. I had callers suggesting they 'knew' I was paying too much for my utilities and wanting to check my meters. When I asked them to tell me (all over our intercom as we live in a flat) how much more we were paying, they couldn't tell me. I then added that I thought they 'knew' I was paying too much and if so why couldn't they tell me? When they couldn't, I suggested they call elsewhere.

[shining Light]

Google Utilities Warehouse [problem]=

Utility Warehouse under the spotlight | Money | The Guardian

 

Utility Warehouse [problem] Telecom Plus UK

 

Useless Warehouse

I had a quick look at these and found:

 

The first article: One persons overview of the business and nothing horrific there.

 

The second article: A pretty good/positive review.

 

The third article: One companies view of a competitor, the article appears to be from a company offering gas and electric so just a little biased.

[Bazooka Boo]

Have you got your own thread SL?

This one is for a CAGger who wanted some assistance.

[shining Light]

Have you got your own thread SL?

This one is for a CAGger who wanted some assistance.

 

And my initial response did offer suggestions, however, like other members on this forum and this thread I am entitled to air my views/opinions especially when I feel some comments are biased or "out of order."

 

Going back to your sarcastic (not your first) comment above, I see your initial response to the OP was, "seems this company is extremely dubious....would not touch them with 'your' barge pole, least of all mine!

Did a few searches and it seems that they are fully aware that people know their fleecing the public and are a [problem], so much so they have even taken to fabricating websites telling everyone how Good they are! Pull the other one, morons"

And this was helpful to the OP, how??

 

You obviously only want to get replies from people who agree with your narrow minded opinions.

[Bazooka Boo]

That'll be a no then!

[Conniff]

There will be a company number on the documents that is sent to customers.

 

Will someone please post up this company number?

[the good listener]

The registered company number is 3263464.

[the good listener]

Alternatively if you mean the company contact number, it's 0844 815 7777. Other std landline numbers are available from saynoto0870.com depending on your enquiry.

[pelham9]

There seems to me to be a serious problem in the system of distributors signing up new customers and being paid for it.

 

These disributors have a vested interest in putting the best face possible on UWs product. Thay are in fact a hidden army of advertisers and will take every opportunity to boost the product.

 

How many on this thread telling us of the virtues of UW are in fact distributors.?

 

I would never take the advice of a single utility let alone their agents.

[shining Light]

There seems to me to be a serious problem in the system of distributors signing up new customers and being paid for it

Get real!! Do you think the agents working for all the other companies aren't on commission?

 

I had a rep from one of the big companies call on me a few years back and he did his best to convince me I would save £100 per year if I switched to them, after he left I worked out my usage at their costs and it would actually have cost me £68 more!

 

With the other companies, they earn £40/50 for signing up a customer and if the customer finds after a few months they have been "duped" and cancel, well it makes no difference to the rep, he has his money.

 

With UW the distributor earns only a very small commission for introducing a new customer but get a small commission each month so long as that person remains a customer, so it would take quite some time to equal the above. It is therefore not in the interest of the distributor to spend time going to meet a potential customer , using fuel etc etc only to have them cancel after a couple of months.

 

Talking to people about the UW is no different to having the "energy door knockers" calling on your home.

[the good listener]

There seems to me to be a serious problem in the system of distributors signing up new customers and being paid for it.

 

These disributors have a vested interest in putting the best face possible on UWs product. Thay are in fact a hidden army of advertisers and will take every opportunity to boost the product.

 

How many on this thread telling us of the virtues of UW are in fact distributors.?

 

I would never take the advice of a single utility let alone their agents.

 

It's an interesting point and of course we all have a choice who we give our business to. The initial thread here was all about problems associated with UTW and how to resolve them but this deserves some discussion and is a valid concern.

 

The truth is, no-one likes to be sold to. We all like to make our own decisions, and in the case of utilities this requires research through the myriad of comparison websites. If you have the inclination to keep making comparisons throughout the year, you will no doubt enjoy the most competitive rates available - at the expense of switching provider every few months.

 

The monetary reward for UTW distributors signing up utilities customers is designed, as far as I'm aware, to provide a long-term residual income and not a substantial short-term income like door to door and why not? My point is, UTW distributors are not motivated in the same way as other mainstream utilities companies to get the business.

 

Even BT, the largest telecom company in the UK expects customers to sign an 18 month contract just for its broadband/telecoms package.

 

And again for the record, I am not a distributor for UTW but found through my own research that the utilities companies I switched to and from were all misleading customers at the point of sign up. With UTW, we only get one bill adjustment a year and this suits us. It may not suit everyone.

[loopinlouie]

Not a distributor but fighting their side so well, keep it up chaps and lasses, ha ha;)

 

With uw you only get a bill adjustment once a year and that suits you, good for you, it doesnt suit a lot of other till a jcb drop it on the door mat:D I prefer an adjustment bill by bill, I know where I stand.xx

[the good listener]

Not a distributor but fighting their side so well, keep it up chaps and lasses, ha ha;)

 

With uw you only get a bill adjustment once a year and that suits you, good for you, it doesnt suit a lot of other till a jcb drop it on the door mat:D I prefer an adjustment bill by bill, I know where I stand.xx

 

 

Glad you like the objective view! And hey I've already had a JCB sized bill too! The only reason I favor UTW is for the reasons mentioned already. I switched utilities 4 times in one year trying to keep up with the 'most competitively priced package' and discovered, as have a great many other folks who frequent comparison websites, that the savings are short-lived.

[stevo7790]

I have to admit and sorry if I am wrong but, ok you got a good deal but I for one don't go abut bragging about my utility provider/s, I dont use them out of choice but more out of need.

The OP has a problem with the company in question and most certainly isnt happy, so in the interests of the OP I don't think positive opinions of their practices count or are needed.

The OP needs help not a 'look at what you could have won' opinion

[loopinlouie]

I have to admit and sorry if I am wrong but, ok you got a good deal but I for one don't go abut bragging about my utility provider/s, I dont use them out of choice but more out of need.

The OP has a problem with the company in question and most certainly isnt happy, so in the interests of the OP I don't think positive opinions of their practices count or are needed.

The OP needs help not a 'look at what you could have won' opinion

 

I agree and personally cant help but wonder wether some of the new cagger posts are not a little biased. Anyone can register on cag with an email address and good for you first comment how happy you are, when the issue is the op having problems to which such comments are irrelevant. I personally suspect something is up as find it very rare for other utility companies to have such positive feedback on complaint threads. I feel something up as in suspect motives to some of the posts, of course I could be wrong, I will leave other readers to make up their own minds. Its amazing how many uw positiv poster turn out to be agents how do they put it? Well they sell it to others if you know what I mean.

 

Of couse cagger if happy with uw, why not start your own thread on how much you love them and leave others to find hopefully resolution to their threads without bombardment of well it didnt happen to me, like a wet kipper being slapped in someones face, nice.

[the good listener]

I agree and personally cant help but wonder wether some of the new cagger posts are not a little biased. Anyone can register on cag with an email address and good for you first comment how happy you are, when the issue is the op having problems to which such comments are irrelevant. I personally suspect something is up as find it very rare for other utility companies to have such positive feedback on complaint threads. I feel something up as in suspect motives to some of the posts, of course I could be wrong, I will leave other readers to make up their own minds. Its amazing how many uw positiv poster turn out to be agents how do they put it? Well they sell it to others if you know what I mean.

 

Of couse cagger if happy with uw, why not start your own thread on how much you love them and leave others to find hopefully resolution to their threads without bombardment of well it didnt happen to me, like a wet kipper being slapped in someones face, nice.

 

 

I agree. This thread has tended to get off track and if I have been part of that sidetracking process my apologies as a newbie here. But as I pointed out in my first post, I did recommend the op contacted UTW via phone to get their issues resolved.

 

The comments which followed related more to the reasons behind using UTW for which I gave experience of my own dealings with this company. This is in no way intended to represent the experiences of every customer and should not be regarded as such.

 

Once again, I am not an agent or representative of this company and certainly on this forum there is nothing to gain in the form of links to websites or other resources so there is no motivation to promote one company or opinion over another. Furthermore, from the comments appearing here it would appear there are still a great many people unhappy with their utilities providers. I was indeed one of them.

[Iannun]

Message deleted by me

[Surfer01]

Iannun it was a good post that you deleted.

[Want2getaway]

Yes Surfer01, you have outed me, I am not a new poster as some of the "distributors" have claimed here, I registered a different log in so it did not cloud other posts that are non telecoms related.

 

So here's where I am on it.

 

I am sorry, but some of the posts on this thread have made me seethe with anger

 

Clearly those with a vested interest have hijacked it and I kindly ask them from refraining to give me their "helpful" propaganda. You represent a company that has taken over a BT telephone number, I got some silent calls, I asked them to change the number as I had a worried wife and two children, they did. They did not tell me that they would then de-list the number so other providers could not transfer it, had they done so, I would have changed providers.

 

So, getting back to it. I have phoned "we will answer your call in 3 seconds" UTW only to be told that sorry (clearly reading off a card) you want to leave, let me pass you to a technical expert who might be able to help. So I go through to to a chap called Kim there, who tells me that he can up my setting on my broadband, give it 24 hours, turn off my router, give it five then turn it on again and I will see instant results. So, there's me, me fell out of the tree yesterday doing it. Has it made a difference? Well the 45k speed check just done suggest not.

 

I phone up the main head office number and get put through to a very nice and helpful lady in customer relations, in fact the manager! Well, I explain everything and ask them what gives them the right to unbundle my BT line only to be told that this is done by Opal Telecom who UTW buy off. (I have checked who they are and its the carphone warehouse). I said that is very nice, but unbundle my line, let me port my number elsewhere, give me my MAC code and I will B*gger off. "Sorry, we cannot do that", says the helpful lady. "What if I give you one month half price"? NO, I say in an irate voice, give me my number, my LLU, my MAC code and let me bu**er off. Sorry, you can cancel you will then have to get BT to install a new line if you want a land line and broad band. "Why"?, I said, " I am looking at the phone socket on the wall, are you coming to take it away, does BT have to install a new line, maybe a faster one than the one you provide"? "No" says the helpful customer service manager, "we de-list your number, that is why your area code has changed from 02476 to 02477". "So what are my options then, do I cancel now, order a new BT line" (I have checked with BT and you would not believe it, although we left without owning them a bean, we have to pay over £130 to have an imaginary line fitted. I say imaginary, because we will all pretend, the man from BT will pull a piece of copper wire from the local box to my house and connect to the BT phone plug socket I am looking at whilst talking to the UTW customers services manager)", "Yes you will have to because it is not our policy to de-listed, de-listed numbers in case our customers want to transfer to someone else". "Well, thank you C***l", I said, Joining UTW will now cost me around £130, plus the loss of broadband and phone for a few days and a lot of inconvenience, something, my now ex-friend never told me when they signed me up.

 

So, to recap. I have cancelled with UTW, I have had to order a new BT line and go on a contract for 18 months, UTW have lost a customer, and a mean bugger who will now repay the lovely [problem] artists at UTW by the bucket load. Why, I am setting up a blog with all the key words, my web design knowledge will allow. It will document what a nice company it is, it will go head to head with those who claim the company is wonderful (oh, did I forget to mention I am a distributor), and it will replay the telephone conversation I had with the customer services manager at Utilities Warehouse. I am not going to give any more details away. They know who I am, my times tamp on the telephone to them on their system that records conversations is 19.07.10 @ 15.03

 

Live and learn UTW, take someone's rights away and see how they pay you back. Again, no more posts please from phoney distributors. I am very angry!

[shining Light]

Hi Want2getaway, just a follow up to your original post.

 

asked UTW to change our number. They did this but even changed the area code, which caused no end of confusion as people thought we were giving out the wrong number to them.

I have now found out that this is happening (particularly in London but also in other areas) because apparently many exchanges are running out of numbers. In London for example you might now get 0203 instead of 0208.

 

This is probably what happened to you. UW had 2 choices, (1) issue you with a "pool" number ie one that was previously allocated to someone else or (2) issue you with a brand new number but as your local exchange didn't have any, the area code was changed to allow this to happen.

 

Regarding your other problem I can only think there has been a mix up or some sort. If you transferred your number from BT to UW (LLU) then you would have to transfer back to BT and this should not normally be a problem, and you wouldn't need a new BT line.

 

A MAC number will be given providing you are no longer under contract and the account is up to date.

 

I cannot see any reason for your problems unless there is something else we are not aware of.

 

You have left UW but I for one would be interested to know what led to this situation.

[loopinlouie]

Simple it seems to me, poor speed and realise paying a lot for terrible service. Cant you see that shining light?

[shining Light]

I think want2getaway can answer for himself!!