Hi Ruth

I'm sorry we haven't sorted this matter out more quickly and for not calling when promised.

There isn't a great deal I can add to the advice already posted apart from to re-iterate the importance of following our complaints procedure.

Your complaint certainly should not have been closed on 11 December and our agent was right to re-open it. Also, as Jalexa says, the complaint should definitely be back dated to the time you first expressed dissatisfaction. From your post, this would seem to be round about 5 November 2010.

We have 56 days to try and resolve complaints. After this, you are free to approach the Ombudsman for an independent ruling. Given the above, I suspect the 56 days have now elapsed.

The agent you spoke to in the complaints team will have taken ownership of your issue. Either he or his manager will be in touch to explain how they intend to resolve the complaint. Has this happened yet?

The holidays may have slowed down contact but most people are now back at work and it may be an idea to call him and ask for an update. Ask for his manager if he is still away. If, as you say, we've already agreed you don't owe anything, it may be possible to resolve this matter without further delay.

If you are unhappy with the progress made/explanation offered then, as I said above, I would think you are now able to approach the Ombudsman.

All debt follow up is automatically suspended whilst there's an open complaint on your account.

I'm not exactly sure what has happened to produce the bill in question. If readings have been transposed at some stage, it may be all the accounts at the property have been billed to the wrong readings and this is now in the process of being corrected. However, I'm speculating and could well be wrong.

With respect to the Subject Access Request (SAR), ask your complaint handler to arrange this for you. As Jalexa says, there is a £10 charge for this.

Again, I'm sorry for the delay resolving this and for the distress caused.

Malc

RuthLA:

...I have asked the complaints agent to read me the letter I should have received from 11th November but he says he is currently unable to contact the person who wrote the letter...

I don't like calling organisations l*ars but I don't believe a "final response" letter is not available "on the system" to a complaints agent but I speculate the system shows the Complaint as "closed", the original agent was "inventive" that a letter had been sent on the basis that the Complaint was "closed", but there is no letter.

Anyway, that's not particularly important since the "8 week Energy Ombudsman entitlement" clock runs from the first raising of the issue of concern. The first thing you should do is obtain the EON complaints procedure and, with scrupulous reference to it, work out where you are with the Complaint, ideally in conjunction with an EON complaints agent. Make sure they are aware that you intend to enforce the "8 week Energy Ombudsman referral rule" if that is what you wish to do and that they are aware you never consented to the Complaint being "closed".

The next thing to do is to ensure that EON are aware that you dispute the account, a Complaint and possibly an Energy Ombudsman referral is pending and there should be no debt enforcement until that process is concluded. Make the EON adviser check back everything you say "for the tape" so that there can be no misunderstanding.

Based on all you have said, it seems to me that the Billing Code is applicable. That means that energy consumed more than 12 months prior to the date of the bill cannot be charged for. Specifically, make sure that the EON adviser understands that you are asking for the Billing Code to be applied. They must agree or disagree. If they disagree, continue with the Complaint.

I'm confused from you posts whether EON now agree the bill was a mistake or not. You will need to help me there, but if you wish you can make a Subject Access Request (SAR) requiring copies of all information EON hold about you including call recordings or transcripts, call logs, copy bills, complaint handling correspondence, etc. In a way its a no brainer, costs you £10, EON an administrative fortune, and there is every chance they will shoot themselves in the foot.

Info how to do that on the Information Commissioner's website.

Hi, I now understand the transposed part. The manager I spoke to in the first instance told me that the transposing occurred after I had given my final reading i.e. it was the person who moved into the property after I had moved out. This would seem to me that it was the new tenant error and that e-on should have picked up on this and told them it seemed odd, rather than billing me over 12 months later. The meters were read by meter readers and myself during my time at the property and every time I rang up with my reading I made sure that I was giving the right reading for night and day, and this was confirmed with the agents i was speaking to.

I have asked the complaints agent to read me the letter I should have received from 11th November but he says he is currently unable to contact the person who wrote the letter.

I have had a look at some other posts and seen something called SAR. Would it be worth me requesting this so I have physical details of all the phone conversations? Who do I ask for this, is it e-on themselves?

The readings transposed could mean the night and day meter readings were swapped around when written down or spoken, or one or more digits in one or the two readings were stated in the wrong sequence, or the reading was the last few digits on the right of the indicated numbers and not the first 5 digits read from the left. This could also be the situation with any person who has lived in the property since you and you are the last person on the energy suppliers records. One last thought is the possibility that you had a fixed-price tariff contract with them and it is your catchup bill of the amount you owe as the difference between the total of all your paymants made at the fixed price and the total amount of all the units or kWh you consumed multiplied by the normal variable price tariff up to the date of cancel of the contract and the final readings. I trust you can sort out this issue with them quickly.

BREWERDAVE1:

...The claim for £896+ could mean that your readings have been "the wrong way round" for several years....

Perhaps, and its useful to explore your theory as a possible explanation, but a scenario lasting "for several years" would almost certainly trigger the Billing Code. In that case energy consumed more than 12 months prior cannot be charged for, and no energy has been consumed for about 12 months.

I completely agree with your suggestion that complaints are best made in writing and sent recorded delivery, but I think a "complaint clock" starts with the first expression of dissatisfaction regardless of how it was made. The OP is entitled to police the "8 weeks" from the first contact.

What these issues require is the complainer's management of the complaint process and timeframe strictly in accordance with a supplier's complaints procedure - and no quarter.

RuthLA:

Alas, she did not and I decided to email the complaints department and ring them also. I spoke to a man on the phone who said the complaint had been closed on 11th December and I should have received a letter. I did not. He also said it appears that the meter readings had been transposed (not sure what that means) after I had given my final readings. He said he would re-open the complaint and deal with it personally.

Thanks,

Ruth.

This could be the critical issue - you said that you were on Economy 7 - this means you have two sets of meter readings - one for day use and the second set for night time use,designed for situations where you have storage heaters.

The claim for £896+ could mean that your readings have been "the wrong way round" for several years so that you have been undercharged OR it could just be that they have transposed the final readings leading to the apparent monies owing.

You really need to see a full final bill which gives rise to this £896+.

As already said, you need top push the complaint forward asap - suggest you do it in writing and send recorded delivery.

RuthLA:

...Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated as I am really distressed about the situation (been extremely stressful over Christmas too!) and feel that I am not getting anywhere with E-on as they say they will rectify the situation then don't do it...

You've done the right thing by raising a Complaint. Briefly, after a supplier has sent it's final response or after 8 weeks - whichever occurs first - if you remain dissatisfied you are entitled to ask the Energy Ombudsman to consider the issue. That would cost you nothing but (I believe) would incur EON a hefty case fee.

I advocate a zero-tolerance approach to supplier error. That said, on the face of it, EON seem to think they have resolved the issue. Ask your complaints contact to read the 11th December letter to you. Either it address the issue or it doesn't. Regarding whether the Complaint is "closed" or not, EON have to address the issues, but only the complainer (you) can decide whether you are satisfied. Ensure that EON understand you have not received the final letter and you will not decide whether you accept the Complaint outcome until you have received the final response in writing.

In particular, given the circumstances, it would appear you should be entitled to a generous Distress and Inconvenience (D&I) payment. I would say at least £50 but why not ask for £100. Remember only you can decide if you are happy, and if not happy you are entitled to refer the issue, at no charge to you, to the Energy Ombudsman.

Go for it.

Hello,

I am having ongoing problems with E-on regarding a so-called unpaid bill. Any help/advice greatly appreciated.

I moved out of a property, with E-on supplied Electricty (economy 7) in November 2009 and provided E-on with my final meter readings. I then received a final statement and paid this, in full, by Direct Debit on December 16^th 2009; it was the amount of £48.98.

Rather unusually, and worryingly, I received a bill for electricity to the property almost 12 months later (5th November 2010). I rang up immediately querying this and was told I had to pay the outstanding £896.34. As you can imagine I was utterly flabbergasted by this and so I disputed it with the Customer Service Agent and thus the issue had to be escalated to a manager. The manager investigated the situation and phoned me back, confirming an error had been made and that my bill would be reset to zero.

To my surprise and disappointment, on 22nd December 2010 (more than a year after my final payment)I received a threatening letter, dated 16^th December 2010, from E-on demanding that I pay the outstanding £896.34 within 7 days or they would pass the debt onto a Debt Collection Agency. Not only was I shocked to receive this but I was also greatly distressed. Immediately I rang Customer Services Team and explained the situation to a team member, he read through the notes and confirmed that the bill should have been reset to zero, quoting notes on the system saying “will re-bill to zero”. He then contacted the department in question and spoke to a senior member who confirmed that the bill should be reset to zero and she would correct the error straight away. I asked if he could confirm this in writing to me but he said he did not have the authority to do that but gave me the details on the senior member in case I needed to contact E-on again.

After this date, not to my surprise anymore but rather to my great distress and frustration, I received a further bill from E-on, via email stating that I still owed £896.34. Again, on 29^th December 2010, I had to ring Customer Service Team and spoke to another staff member. Again I explained the situation to her, she read through the notes and confirmed on two occasions that it stated that the bill would be reset to zero. She also confirmed that this had not been done as the account still showed as owing £896.34. She said she would deal with the matter herself and ring me back the same day.

Alas, she did not and I decided to email the complaints department and ring them also. I spoke to a man on the phone who said the complaint had been closed on 11th December and I should have received a letter. I did not. He also said it appears that the meter readings had been transposed (not sure what that means) after I had given my final readings. He said he would re-open the complaint and deal with it personally.

Can anybody give me any advice on where I stand on this matter? I know I don't owe the money as E-on have already admitted the error on 3 different occasions, yet they are still sending me the demanding and threatening letters.

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated as I am really distressed about the situation (been extremely stressful over Christmas too!) and feel that I am not getting anywhere with E-on as they say they will rectify the situation then don't do it.

Thanks,

Ruth.