@eonhelp EON Entered and Installed Meter Without Warrant While I Was at Work

[autechre]

Hello everybody

 

I recently got into debt bother with EON

 

. I spoke to them about my options with regards to my debt (installments, pre-payment etc).

 

I indicated that I would prefer prepayment to manage my debts but then took my time getting back to them

 

. Next I received a letter telling me that they were applying to the courts and had added £60.00.

The court date was supposed to be 12th of November and I awaited this date so I could contest the fee

(I had already told them that I wanted prepayment),

 

they wrote to me shortly before telling me that the court hearing had been cancelled and they would write to me at a later date.

 

Yesterday (12th) I got home to find some documents and a electricity key INSIDE MY HOUSE !!.

 

The accompanying paperwork said that they had acted on a warrant (no issue date, number etc) and had changed my electricity meter.

 

In my actual mail on that day I got a letter from them telling me that they had reapplied for a court date

- which was supposed to be the 16th November !!!.

 

So clearly they illegally entered my house without a warrant and changed the meter.

 

Luckily, nothing valuable was stolen from me by these rapscallions

.

 

I have not yet contacted them, instead I would prefer the advice of somebody who has experience in these matters to see exactly where I stand before I act. What are my options, so to speak ?

[E.ON Company Rep: Malc]

Hi autechre

 

I'm sorry you feel we haven't acted correctly. Not sure of the details but thought I might be able to point you in the right direction. The £60 you mention sounds like the Pre-disconnection fee. This covers visits to your home to try to sort out an arrangement to collect the money owed. This includes looking at the possibility of fitting Prepayment Meters. We send letters before this to let you know about an impending visit. If you weren't in when our representative called, they'll have left a letter letting you know we might apply for a warrant and the options available to you.

 

I suspect, as we didn't hear from you, the original court hearing went ahead and a warrant was issued. We certainly wouldn't have entered your property without one. Must admit, I'm not sure about the other letters you've received talking about alternative dates. As your account has gone this far, it'll now sit with our specialist Warrants Team. These are the ones to contact. They'll explain the sequence of events. Let them know if you believe we haven't followed the correct procedure at any point. It takes a fair amount of time to reach the warrant stage and is preceded by quite a few letters, emails (if appropriate), phone calls and visits. All this will be detailed on your account so the complete picture can be seen. You can have a copy of this by asking for a Subject Access Request (SAR). There's a £10 charge for this but it will help you see what's gone before.

 

Ask for a complaint to be raised. If we're unable to resolve this, you can go to the Ombudsman for an independent review. This is 56 days after the complaint is raised or where we've offered a final resolution which you've rejected. In this case, ask for a 'Final Resolution Offer letter.' This will let you go to the Ombudsman straightaway.

 

Sorry for the speculation autechre but hope this points you in the right direction.

 

Malc

 

[autechre]

Thanks for replying. I have these letters at hand - one telling me that there was a court date on the 12th, another telling me that the hearing had been cancelled (with no explanation I might add), and another informing me of a court date on the 16th. Are your engineers instructed to enter peoples homes without obtaining a warrant ? One of two things has happened. Either you have erroneously sent me a letter informing me of the court cancellation (even so, I was under the impression that I would get 7 days notice before execution - ref CAB) or your administration system has failed and assumed that a warrant would be in place on this date. Surely your engineers should first validate a warrant's existence before acting upon it ?

[E.ON Company Rep: Malc]

That's fine autechre, happy to reply. Just to confirm, we won't forcibly enter properties without a warrant. Once we have one, we'll visit the property within 28 days of it being issued. If we do need to force entry, we'll use a locksmith so the property can be left safe and secure when we're finished.

 

As above, I'm unable to comment on individual cases as each is different. The Warrants Team I mentioned will, though, be able to explain the full sequence of events including the various letters you've received. They'll also be able to give you details of the Court where the warrant was issued so you can see a copy.

 

Sorry I'm unable to help further autechre but this has gone way beyond my level now and that's why I'd encourage you to make contact with the Warrants Team. They're open from 8am to 8pm Monday to Friday and between 8am and 2pm Saturdays. Contact details will be on the paperwork we've given you.

 

Malc