@npowerhelp Npower and back billing.

[lee79]

Just tried to contact npower but they have a wait time of over 1 hour!

 

I thought I would try and get some info here first.

 

we have a letter today from them. Very polite, apologising for not getting in touch sooner about a bill.

 

The problem is that we have been trying to pay the bill.

 

My wife has tried numerous times to set up a direct debit without success.

 

The system will just not set them up for some reason, despite everything looking ok from our side.

 

She has also sent several complaints regarding this issue.

 

She has paid some of the bill via direct transfer, but, sometimes we forget, as nearly everything else is set up by DD.

 

Now, we expect the bill to be quite big as this has been going on for some time.

 

I'm just wondering what options we have.

 

I've read about the back billing which might be a defense here, but if not, what are our options?

 

Bearing in mind we have tried over and over to set up DD

and complained about not being able to on many occasions with no reply.

 

Thanks

 

Lee.

[rebel11]

Hi Lee

 

Follow the following to put your case forward, where it advises phone them don't, keep everything in writing, emails etc:-

 

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers/domestic-consumers/making-enquiry-or-complaint

 

The Backbilling will only help if it's their fault and over 12 months. You could argue that you've tried everything to set up the DD and NPower should have done more.

[batman1956]

[ATTACH=CONFIG]52639[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]52640[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]52641[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]52642[/ATTACH][ATTACH=CONFIG]52643[/ATTACH]

 

Found these online, They explain how Npower work out back bills

[Surfer01]

Only Npower can set up a DD although you could have set up a standing order.

[batman1956]

Further to the post that I made yesterday

there is a response below these documents which appears to have been made by an employee

(or maybe ex-employee) of Npower

 

The process that they made us all work is not compliant in the slightest.

 

If a customer receives a late bill and are eligible for back billing, then their account should be worked out to the penny.

 

This should include every payment the customer had made,

(if what they were paying every month covered their consumption then they would get nothing).

 

Every meter reading we received, price changes, tariff discounts and Direct Debit discounts had to be worked out manually

and back billing would be applied.

 

In some cases this would have to be worked out over years.

 

They were not compliant in many ways, but the main one is the calculator they made use didn't take any of these thing in to account.

Straight away they are breaking the law!

 

The process that they forced people to do was just like SAP unfit for purpose.

 

It rewarded people who were quarterly receipt of bill payers but penalised people who had paid continuously by Direct Debit

because in most cases they were in credit when they were eventually billed up to date and they would get nothing.

In fact they would be lucky if they if they got their own money back!

 

Every account i was made to work and issue back billing refunds were incorrect,

but they made us send them out anyway.

 

 

The accurate billing rules would appear to mean nothing to Npower who are one of the signatories to them.