Spark Energy - Tariff Issues

[Toonsi]

Hey all,

This is my first post although I have used the site before (lurking in the shadows) for advice on a lot of different things

and now I have a query that I can't find an answer to without asking it myself!

 

I moved into a property back in the end of September 2012 & unfortunately I've been having a lot of trouble with Spark energy.

 

I have contacted them on many occasions as I was trying to receive a final bill in order so that I could switch to another supplier.

 

I've now finally managed to receive a bill from them, however the problem I have is the fact it seems they have changed my tariff retrospectively.

 

I was in receipt of a letter dated at the end of March that stated I was currently on the best tariff,

however to retain this tariff & complete account setup I would have to provide either a security deposit of £150 within 7 days

or provide my DD details or I would be switched onto a worse tariff (the standard plus).

 

I didn't do this as I have been trying to leave them (I was wary in case it meant me having to chase them for money after I had left).

 

However I have now received a bill which states that for my usage between September up until today,

my account was on the worse tariff which makes a difference to the bill of about £800 (which incidentally is around half the bill's cost).

 

I've no problem paying for what I have used,

however I was just wondering if anyone could advise as to the situation

and the legality of the tariff being retrospectively changed to the worse one?

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[Toonsi]

As an update I have checked the letter for wording and it states, "if we haven't heard from you by the time your first bill is due, we will have to change your account back to our Standard Plus tariff, which is more expensive."

To me the wording of this specifies that they will change it back upon the due date of the first bill, but in no way specifies that they will backdate the previous energy used onto the more expensive tariff.

[seregap]

they are a well thought out rip off and a nightmare to get rid of.

they do this to everyone. you have to wait for months for the first bill to then find out that you have been charged the most expensive tariff for failing to set up the DD. and in the meantime they block any attempts to transfer to another suppier on the grounds of your acount being in arrears.

If they had sent you your first bill in october or at least in december you would have been able to at least get rid of them back then even if you had to pay the higher charge, but they have dragged it for over 6 months to try and overcharge you for the whole period.

 

what you need to do is dispute the bill and send them a formal compaint to [email protected] stating exactly that they failed to provide the bill despite numerous requests and had you known that you had been charged double the normal rate you would have paid off and trasferred out many months ago. Request that they recalculate the bill based on their original tariff back to the date when you first contacted them requesting the finall bill. Advise them that you will complain to the Energy Ombudsman, if they fail to do that.

 

They will then most likely offer you to backdate the cheapest tariff only if you set up the direct debit agreement. Tell them you will only consider the direct debit after your complaint has been upheld and you have received the recalculated bill. Then it's up to you to decide whether to pay it off in full and try to transfer out again, or to set up the direct debit (for a bit higher than your monthly usage to pay off the arrears) and stay on their cheapest rate (which is sort of reasonable i must admit). Try and keep all communication in writing, using your complaint ref number, they WILL try to phone and text you to bully you into paying the full amount. You will never see a refund after you have paid even if they agree to your complaint at a later date. google them, you will find lots of stories similiar to yours.

 

ps. just noticed the original post date. hope the OP got it all sorted. will leave my reply for others who may have similiar problems with spark energy