Help, powgen just put my DD up to £201pm

[percyarms]

Hi Everyone,

I used to pay £41 pound per month for dual fuel with Powergen, they set this amount when i switched to them in May last year from NPower. My meters are read regulary but I seem to have got into debt by £550, how i don't know, to which powergen have wrote and said that my DD has gone up to £201 to pay of the debt. I rang and they said that I should have been paying £95 a month and not £41, I said that they had set this not me and they said that I got bills aswell and should have queried it. I thought the idea of DD is that they regulary assess it and adjust accordingly, not from £41 to £201. Thay said they would reduce the amount to £157 pm for a year to pay the debt off. I can't pay this amount per month what can I do. Please help.

[Bookworm]

Cancel your direct debit NOW.

 

Then set up a Standing Order to the amount that you CAN reasonably afford. Then write to them, and tell them that this is what you have done, and at that rate, you calculate it will take you x months to clear the arrears. Tell them that if they're not happy with it, they can take you to court and ask a judge to decide how much you should be paying, but that they should know it is likely the judge will award them even less.

 

As long as you have DD, you let them have the upper hand. So don't.

 

They tried the same with me, and wanted, wait for it, £250 a month. I pay by S/O. They could say they wanted that much, doesn't mean they got it. ;-)

[alibobsy]

Some other people on here have reported billing problems with powergen and certain types of meters so worth a look around on the forums to read about that. If you're sure its a correct amount, just a delay in them doing readings/ adjusting the dd, I would personnelly work out the max I could afford to pay each month, could you manage £100? and do a letter offering this amount. Sadly the same thing happened to me. We had no readings for about 4 years and ended up with a load of arrears when they finally got around to checking the meter. Had to write to customer services a few times to make the arrangement. Sadly they only do readings when they feel like it and don't adjust the dds as you go along only every year or so. I looked at my previous quarterly bills and worked out roughly what we were using each month then what we could afford to pay. As long as you are paying enough to cover your usage and some over to bring the arrears down they should eventually accept it. Would do it in writing though as those at the callcentre are the "computer says no" types and no use at all. You need to get someone in the customer relations dept who can actually sort things out for you.

 

Good luck

ali x

[alibobsy]

Oops just as I was typing bookworm put virtually the same info lol. Defo the way to go SO not DD.

good luck

Ali

[charlie1963]

Hi, Is does your usage not seem a little excessive? I read a reply from ozzy yesterday stating that £13 a week for electricity in a regular family of 4, and my sister pays around £150 a quarter for her gas and her house is like an oven. Might be a good idea to a few meter reads over the next few weeks.

charlie

[percyarms]

Thanx, for the help, will do that and then change supplier.

Might just pay the lot off with credit card and change supplier straight away. There seems to be alot of issues with Powergen on here!!!!

[charlie1963]

well if anyones interested, i'm just about to switch the few bits i have running, off, and run a 500watt halogen worklamp until the meter clicks over one digit, take the time and reading and run it for two hours, read the meter again and see how many units its clogged up!!

[percyarms]

Good idea Charlie, why didn't i think of that.

My usage seems very excesive and I told them that on the phone but they didn't offer to check my meters.

(For info we are a pretty normal family of 4 in a semi, 2 adults 1 child 14, 1 child 5.)

Surely £1000+ is too much or am living in a fantasy world. :-?

[powelll]

Also remember you can approach EnergyWatch if you are having problems with any energy suppliers - I am on a monthly DD plan but keep an eye on all of my bills - every time I get an estimated bill they seem to be overstating the amount I owe and trying to up my DD. I always refuse and provide my own reading. On every occasion my reading was lower! I'm now with EDF energy ( actually for over a year now ) and have personally found them to be pretty good...

[charlie1963]

hi, ring energywatch and tell them whats going on. they should be able to get a check meter for you and see how the meters running. at least that way you'll be able to claim back your money if it's been overdoing it!! they seem pretty keen to take meters, i'm guarding mine until its been checked. i live alone, no hoover, pine floor. don't iron, no tv, just a kettle, washer, pc, microwave a few mins a day and my aquariums. with the aid of timers i've just managed to get down to £25 a week! somethings still wrong! so i know what you mean. living like a miser and paying massive bills. oh by the way my meter moved up 1 digit just under 10 mins before time.

LOL just to add a lighter note to it all. be careful. i have my front room littered with powergen bills meter readings on the backs of envelopes, scraps of paper and a diary full of them, videos of the meter, check lists of wattages on stuff, times of trying each one accompanied of course by times and more readings and best bit of all,,,,,,, i'm absolutely hopeless at sums!! my scribblings and scratchings at workings out are rip my hair out stuff. still i know a big bill when i get one!!

[tiglet]

I know he's having internet access problems, but would really suggest pm-ing ozzywizzard.

 

He is incredibly helpful, but can't access the forum at the present time.

[percyarms]

Wow thanks guys most helpful.

[installspark]

My meters are read regulary but I seem to have got into debt by £550, how i don't know, to which powergen have wrote and said that my DD has gone up to £201 to pay of the debt. I rang and they said that I should have been paying £95 a month and not £41, I said that they had set this not me and they said that I got bills aswell and should have queried it. I thought the idea of DD is that they regulary assess it and adjust accordingly, not from £41 to £201.

 

Ah Ha, they're trying on the old dual culpability trick where they are saying that they have the responsibility to bill your account but you have the responsibility to check the account has been billed accurately.

 

Were your bills billed to the readings taken or were they billed to an estimate? If they had been consistently billed to estimates and then to an actual read there is the possibility that a catch up bill has been produced. However Powergen should have the actual read on their systems under what is known as a D10 flow from the Data Collectors (for simplicity aka meter readers)

 

As far as i can remember from my time spent employed by Powergen direct debits were only reviewed yearly and they relied on the customer to inform them if the direct debit amount was not covering useage., this in itself is a failing and can lead to the situation in which you find yourself now. There are other companies in the market who review direct debit accounts quarterly to ensure that the payments cover the usage on the account, one of which is Atlantic Electric and Gas, part of the Scottish and Southern group.

 

There is a possibility that your meter is not accurately recording your actual useage, although less than 99% of meters are found to be inaccurate.

 

To get a meter accuracy check done there are a series of hoops that need to be done whereby you take daily readings of your meter and list the appliances (including lights) used and for how long. Then you phone up with these details and Powergen should then go through your useage and compare it with the useage expected from known appliance running costs. If a large discrepancy is found then a check meter should be installed to run in parallel with your meter over a period of 28 days.

 

The check meters are calibrated prior to installation and during their time at your property record the useage. Readings are taken from both your meter and the check meter at installation, again after 14 days and finally upon removal. A meter is classed as accurate so long as it is not more than 2% fast or 5% slow. You may be asked to pay a deposit to have a check meter fitted which would be returned, usually to the account, if it is proven that the meter is inaccurate.

[Guest Ruthie P]

In response to what installspark has suggested regarding meter checks etc, if the meter is accurate (the levels are 2.5% fast 3.5% slow) you will be charged for the meter test. In five years I have not known any faulty meters although, that doesnt mean they dont exist but they are very very rare. You need to be looking at what appliances you are using, all advisors have access to information that, based on your appliances will work out what you should be using on average daily. I have managed to get my electricity bill down to around £200 for about 6 months, I dont have anything but energy saving lightbulbs and I switch everything off all the time, nothing is left on standby and it does make a difference. Call powergen, ask them why you have ended up in debit, what readings they are billing you to and whether on a two rate meter the meter readings are the correct way round (i.e if you have storage heaters and the readings are transposed, this would mean your night units when s/heaters are charging are billed on your higher day rate)

[tiggersmum]

Hi percyarms.

By any chance have they changed your meter recently? My old Mum's meters were changed in Feb 2006 and from then on her bills went through the roof so by Feb this year, her DD had gone up to £125pm...she lives alone in a one bedroom bungalow.

Took me a long time to get it sorted but turned out Scottish Power had set both meters (she's on a white meter) to the normal day rate. Only got sorted after I complained to Energywatch. DD now £44 per month.

Scandalous.

[shelter pie]

Hiya - this also happened to me.

 

Bought A brand new house, had est billing from EDF.

 

However to through a spenner to the works Twice a year we had a meter reading by them.

 

In Jan last year (5 years into ownership) we had a bill for £1500. Basically the £35 per month we had been paying them, had fallen short.

 

I took my case to EngergyWatch - who deemed that despite the fact it was EDF error we indeed did own them the money.

 

EDF reduce our bill by £300 as a gesture of goodwill. They deemed we now use £60 per month in Gas - thats before paying off the £1300 arrears.

 

We now pay £100 per month to them - to add insult to injury EnergyWatch confirmed that EDF were entiltled to ask for the repayment to be made over a period of 12 months!! which would have meant our bills were £200 per month for a whole year!!!!!

 

Theres no way we can afford this. Periodically EDF write to us demanding we up our monthly payments - the last demand came about 5 weeks ago and was for £320 per month!!!

 

I just tell them to take us to court because at the end of the day I genuinely cant afford to pay back more than £100 per month and I cant see how a judge can force us to pay back more than Ive got!!!!

 

And to add insult to injury Im stuck with this company for year now until the debt is paid off - so I cant even shop around for a cheaper supplier!!!

 

I spoke to CAB about this - and they informed me that there appears to be a lot of cases like this!!!!

 

I came ot the conclusion that suppliers are doing this to tie customers into them!!!!!!

[tnoemis]

Ruthie P is right in that everyone at powergen has access to consumption calculators as well as a dedicated consumption department. Check meters can be installed at a cost of £75 (last time i heard anyway) that will be refunded if the meter is proven to be faulty. If you have an E7 mtr take a reading and then take another reading an hour later. That will confirm which is the day rate and confirm it with powergen to make sure the readings arent the wrong way round. In the long run if you want to save money you are better off with the monthly DD as you will get a better discount. If you have gas with them also, check with them that there isnt a confusion between cubic feet and cubic meters as you could be paying 3 times more if its incorrect.

 

Hope this helps!

[Bookworm]

We now pay £100 per month to them - to add insult to injury EnergyWatch confirmed that EDF were entiltled to ask for the repayment to be made over a period of 12 months!! which would have meant our bills were £200 per month for a whole year!!!!!

 

Then EnergyWatch is way off base saying that!!!

 

Only a court can decide what EDF is "entitled" to, and if your outgoings mean that you couldn't repay it in 12 months, that's what it would be! Repayments are based on amounts, not time-scales.

I am surprised and shocked EnergyWatch would state such a thing.

[tnoemis]

Sorry but I don’t know if I agree with you bookworm.

I don’t work for EDF but I do work for an energy company. They aren’t banks that charge interest so the longer a customer is in debit, the more money they are loosing and before you say "what about all those on DD's that are in credit" they get the discount for having a DD and building up the credit. If you have used what they are saying then they are entitled to ask for the repayments to be made over a period of 12 months. You can’t walk into Tesco and say I'm going to take £300 worth of food but pay £50 a month, they would laugh at you. Unfortunately it’s the same with energy companies. If you use it you have to pay for it. The best thing you can do is try and be more energy efficient. A lot of companies have energy efficiency help lines who can advise you on the best way of cutting down your usage.

Worst case scenario, have a prepayment meter put in and pay £5 a week off the debt and pay for what ever you’re using at the same time

[Bookworm]

You don't have to agree , but the law is the law. If a user falls in arrears and can not afford to pay more than a certain amount, then a judge will look at his income & expenditure sheet, and fix the amount to be paid accordingly. It's irrelevant how long it will take him to pay off the debt, and especially in this instance, where the energy company screwed up in the first place, and user didn't intentionally not pay, a judge is unlikely to look sympathetically on the energy company. What is relevant is that he should a) pay the debt, b) not be left short for the other essentials: mortgage/rent, other utilities, food.

[tnoemis]

Yeah I agree with you on that one in which case my suggestion would be to go to the CAB or other financial service and get them to write a letter of all the income, expenditures, mortgage/rent, other utilities, food and send it to that utility company stating "this is what I have to pay out, this is what i can afford to pay you". I cant speak for EDF but the company I work for will accept the letter and set up a payment plan accordingly. You dont need to take it all the way to a judge to get something like that set up, it's just unfortunate that this kind of information isnt widely available. Thank god for sites like this!

[Clare_L]

I also work for Powergen, and today we were told that the cost of having a meter check had now gone up to £93:eek:.