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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

£1600 electricity surprise..I feel sick :(

65 replies

amber90 · 11/09/2017 19:38

I really hope someone can offer some advice. I currently live in a small, 1 bedroom flat. I would have thought my electricity usage was below average. I have storage heaters however these do not work and have not been turned on for over 2 years. I dont use the hot water heater switch beside the tank - I have an electric shower which I use so no baths. I use calor gas for my heat currently although sometimes use 1 bar of an electric fire. The extractor fan in my bathroom has been broken for maybe a few months and wont switch off unless the lights are turned off at the mains. I'm at university and live alone so have struggled a lot with the costs of maintaining the place with little jobs like that. Anyway - sorry. Just wanted to make sure I gave all the info. I changed providers in 2015 and was quoted £56 a month and set up a direct debit - all the meter readings were passed on from my old provider and that was that. I've never had anyone out to take a meter reading and have never been asked for one. I've also never been billed by them and to be honest I never thought about it - I figured I was paying the direct debit and that was fine. This morning I received an email from them saying that I owe them over £1600. I rang them to query this and they said I have two electricity meters in my house and that this is the amount I owe even after my monthly direct debits have been taken into account. They said that this dates back to 2015, when I changed over and that this is the first time they've been able to bill me (I should have asked why this was but I didn't think). I can only see one meter in my cupboard! I don't have this money to pay them - especially if my current payment isn't enough to cover my use along with paying back this huge bill at the same time - I don't see how I can possibly be using so much or how I have two meters. They've asked me to email them photographs of the meter and I've done so but I'm really freaking out and I just cant possibly afford this. I start back at university tomorrow for my final year and am gutted. I don't know what to do. :(

OP posts:

allthegoodusernameshavegone · 12/09/2017 00:54

There is def something wrong, I pay £25 per month, I do actually think the £56 pm dd is high for one bed flat, but I'm not sure about storage heaters. I think your paying for two flats.
Invite them to come and do an on site reading and show you the meters.

Do you know a good sparky that could be there with you. I think you will get this sorted the figures just don't add up.

Orangebird69 · 12/09/2017 01:11

I'm a sahm so home in the day a lot. No gas where I love. 3 bed cottage. At least 3 storage heaters on over the winter months plus emersion overnight every night for hot water. Electric cooker, lighting etc. I'm not 'careful' with usage really. And my bill is nowhere near yours. Does the bill have estimated readings on it? Do they compare to the actual meter readings?

Justaboy · 14/09/2017 11:03

OP, Did you ever get the original readings to work out the bill?.

Original poster

amber90 · 14/09/2017 11:52

Justaboy - I didnt. They were sent directly across to them from my old provider as far as I recall but it was over two years ago so I don't have this and cannot access the bill as per my screenshot above. I spoke to them yesterday and have emailed them across information and photographs they've requested and also kicked off my complaint as advised above. Sorry I didnt update yesterday - a lot to be dealing with. As soon as they've checked out the photos for the meters they're going to get back to me. I'll keep you all up to date.

OP posts:

SunSeptember · 14/09/2017 12:18

I know its not N power but yes they are awful

If its NPower then the bill is probably wrong. We went through hell with them and incorrect bills, it was very stressful

YY. awy

Hissy · 14/09/2017 12:26

I know it's easy to say, but please don't worry.

I am sure that this matter will be made to go away, but you will need the CAB etc to help. You are not the first, and sadly won't be the last.

Firesuit · 14/09/2017 12:36

I have a bathroom extractor fan that runs 24 hours a day, deliberately, to keep humidity/mould to a minimum. It runs faster when the light is on/I'm in the bathroom. It consumes 12 watts in background mode and 25 when running full blast. I've calculated that depending on the number of hours per day that the light is on, it consumes between 1 and 2 pounds a month. (For 2 pounds a month the light would have to be on 24 hours a day.)

19lottie82 · 14/09/2017 12:48

Fuck, First Utility are the WORST! I had so many problems with them and they were totally incompetent.

Get in contact with them and ask them to justify why they claim you owe them so much when you have been paying a DD every month.
I'm pretty confident they will fuck this up and make a load of promises they can't deliver but you will need to make an effort to resolve this with them before going to the ombudsman. Make sure you kee a detailed record of any communication with them from this point onwards.

Sorry if I've missed this but is the bill an actual bill (based on your meter readings) rather than an estimated one?

19lottie82 · 14/09/2017 12:51

PS OP my problem with them was that they kept sending me sky high estimated bills despite me giving them meter readings multiple times.
I got in touch with the ombudsman who sorted the issue but even after that FUs incompetence was beyond ridiculous - they were ordered to send me a cheque for £100 as compensation for the trouble they'd caused me, and sent it out in the wrong name, TWICE

Ginslinger · 14/09/2017 12:52

I'm with first utility and they ask me for a meter reading every month - they send an email asking for this -

markydeedrop · 20/09/2017 13:47

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

BarbarianMum · 20/09/2017 14:20

Another NPower survivor here. We were hit by a surprise bill of over £2000 - wed been paying the neighbours bill for 2 years apparently, not our own. We took it to dispute and won. And have since changed suppliers.

Don't panic, dispute.

orangeowls · 20/09/2017 14:52

Check they have definitely got the meter readings correct. I had this once and the person who read the meter had written it down wrong.

Katedotness1963 · 20/09/2017 14:58

I was shocked how expensive electricity was last time I lived in the UK. We had a tiny three bedroom house, didn't use the heating as we had a Calor gas heater, basically it was lights, tv, small fridge, and cooking one meal a day. Put £80 a month on the meter key. I questioned it with the electric company and they said that was about what the previous tenants had paid.

I checked because a previous landlord had debt on the gas and electric meters which they were sneakily getting us to pay off. I realised when I couldn't turn the gas on despite not having used it since the last top up. I got the overpayments back. Cheeky fuckers...

LazyDailyMailJournos · 20/09/2017 20:03

I pay £48 for a one bed flat (all electric, same as you) and there's two of us. I am in during the daytime as well - although we never put the heating on (very well insulated so luckily it never gets really cold - we were also children of the "if you're cold put another jumper on" upbringing!). Anyhoo -

As others have said, they can only back-bill up to 12 months if they have not previously billed you. I have been through this exact experience with N-Power who tried to back bill for 2.5 years. It needs to be logged with them as a formal complaint and advise in writing you will continue to pay £x per month. In my case N-Power fucked about and never bothered to respond to the complaint, so I took the complaint to the Energy Ombudsman and won. Back-billing was limited to 12 months and a load of the money got written off because they were unable to explain how they had arrived at their bill amounts - which were completely contradictory and a load of nonsense.

It is definitely worth checking what tariff you are on. If you have a water heater then you may be on economy 7 use (where there is a day and night rate). If that's the case then you need to make sure that they are using BOTH meter readings and that they know you are on economy 7. Try not to panic - even if you do owe them money you can agree a payment plan with them and if they mess you about, go to the Ombudsman (who were extremely helpful BTW).

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