Don't Pay

[paxman]

There's a movement on Twitter that is suggesting customers don't pay for their energy by cancelling DDs. I can't see who they people behind the movement are. Anyone know?

Idiots and or mischief-makers

Idiots?

People won't like the reality of having their electricity cut off and being taken to court and companies will have to do that rather than set a precedent for allowing non payment.

Why are they idiots, because they refuse to be sheep led to the slaughter.
action is what is required !!!!

@OnlyFoolsnMothers they're idiots to not pay for a service they're using. If they stop using all gas and electricity so cancel the direct debit and don't pay the daily standing charge that's different, but somehow I can't see that happening.

They can always ask for their power to be cut off now if they don't want to pay for it .

The people behind the campaign won't be doing it themselves, they probably don't even have energy bills to pay.

As long as folk understand they will get cut off and be taken to court and have costs awarded against them.

They should put the money away or risk years of debt.

if the council made your council tax £2000 a month would you pay it? Is there not a ceiling at which we can say this is ridiculous? Billion pound profits reported and peoples energy bills have more than tripled. What do you propose people do, write a strongly worded letter to their Mp?

That’s the point, they couldn’t take everyone to court!

Well. They are idiots if they don't understand what happens when you don't pay your electricity bill.

What do they think will happen?

Protest, yes. Absolutely.

Making your protest getting your electricity supply cut off and getting taken to court = idiot.

Why are they idiots, because they refuse to be sheep led to the slaughter.action is what is required

Don't be so dense.

Those behind these groups probably have no intention of stopping their own payments. No one with the smallest amount of common sense will.

What it will do is suck in several thousand gullible fools who follow their advice. They'll stop making any energy payments, will have red letters and debt collection contact, then a default on their credit file for 6 years. Then bailiffs will force entry and fit token meters.

Then they still have to pay what they owe - plus the extra costs incurred for the bailiffs.

It will get people precisely nowhere except in a worse financial position for far longer.

They can cut everyone off which would save people some money on their bills and clog up the court system with the queue, by starting the process.

As others have said idiots.

Also if they stand behind their campaign why not name themselves? dontpay.uk/resources/faqs/#who-is-dont-pay

That’s the point, they couldn’t take everyone to court!

But not 'everyone' will do it, will they?

@OnlyFoolsnMothers nobody's making anything £2000 a month.

Of course the prices are disgusting, but you can't just not pay, like you couldn't just not pay your council tax.

If people can't afford it, they need to speak to their energy provider. Just cancelling a direct debit is going to get them into worse financial trouble.

They couldn't take everyone to court 🤣

Theres no limit to court cases you are allowed to file.

The number of people who would actually do this will certainly be low enough to not overwhelm the court system.

Also, when you're sitting there with no electricity or gas and your credit file is facing a ccj, who's going to crack first? Cold you with no hot water or way to cook or the big company that's still got most people paying and who the bloody government would likely bail out anyway?

Protests work when they harm the protester less than the company/authority/policy they are protesting.

And yes, as pp said, they'd also end up with a prepay meter which means you pay even more and they'll be fucked for years.

Idiots.

Wrong .
There are laws about when power can be cut off . Certain groups of people can't have power just cut off for non payment .

Sometimes people need to act in unison . Power companies made billions in profit as was pointed out upthread .
People do have the power .
When they use it that is

That’s the point, they couldn’t take everyone to court!

Sorry but they will.

Back in the poll tax days militants encouraged lots of people not to pay.

In the end they all had to. Arrears plus charges. Lots of naïve poor people ended up in thousands of pounds worth of debt. Some are still paying it off.

This is a very irresponsible campaign tactic that puts vulnerable people at risk.

Have you not heard of a rent strike ?

Same thing .
Happened early twentieth century in Scotland i think .

Landlords put rents up , people couldn't pay and women organised a rent strike .

It worked . Government stepped in and introduced rent laws .
A no pay movement re energy bills will not be solved but he energy companies. If enough people do it the government will have to step in .

Wrong.

Companies can and do cut you off. Take you to court. As pp said, ultimately make you have a prepayment meter.

You think that's wrong? Doesn't happen? Something they can't do?
It is a process yes but they can and do take action and it's incorrect to say they don't or to tell people they won't.

When I was a kid our electric and gas got cut off. My dad ended up in court. We had to have prepay meters. Back then it was 50p in the gas meter. My dad ended up with a criminal record for breaking into the meter and taking the 50ps back to feed us.

I know what they can and do do. People are fooling themselves if they think a few hundred or thousand people fucking themselves over for years will change anything.

I hope it's ok to ask this question here but would appreciate some help. I am in credit with Bulb and pay by dd. If I cancel my dd and pay by standing order each month, is that acceptable? It seems they only offer a dd or pre payment meter, although that might be my misunderstanding.

I don't want to owe anything but don't really want to be in credit either. Can I be penalised in any way?

Thanks

No they won't.
They'll agree that people who won't pay must have prepay meters.
The very most they might do would be get the companies to not charge as much more for prepay customers.

You think the government gives a shit about a largely apathetic electorate? You clearly think better of them than I do

The only thing that would work is everybody turning out to vote for, say, independent candidates or really small parties. That they would care about.

But I don't think anything will make the entire country turn out to vote and certainly not in a really revolutionary way.

Don’t fuck up your credit rating with such shite.

Independent politicians and small parties would mess this up even more! Terrible advice