Anyone else had issues with Bulb / Octopus switch

[Northtosouth]

use to be Bulb customers, always had a direct debit and paid off any additional usage straight away if when we submitted a meter reading we owed more, I’ve never let the debt build up.
Octopus took over and they’ve send a bill for over £3000 that they’re saying we owe. I honestly don’t understand how. They’re saying from 1st April - 30th June we’ve used £2000 of gas ?? How is that possible, I’ve not had the heating on once and we have electric oven and hob. Surely it’s imposible to have used that much over just heating water for 2 people. Obviously extremely stressed, does anyone have any idea what could have happened ?

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It will be a mistake of some sort. Contact them with the final meter readings from your old contract and the current ones as a starting point.

Yep, myself and two neighbours all having problems.

Check the dates, readings and account numbers on all the bills, both Bulb and Octopus.

With mine it transpired that one of the companies had created duplicate accounts on the property. One account I was merrily paying, all up to date and even in credit. The other had never had a payment (obviously), and they were pursuing for the fictional debt.

I would blame the switch over, but I think Bulb actually created this mess before it happened. Anyway, there was definitely a period after the official switchover date, when Bulb kept hold of the account that had money coming in on it, while Octopus was raging that they weren't being paid for the other account.

Also, from experience, do everything in writing. Don't bother making phone calls which they can distort.

I had an issue in that when it was first transferred over, the DD (we have a variable one) wasn't taken, which I saw at the end of the month when I went to put in meter readings. I paid that and then when it seemed to not have been taken the next month, I paid by card again, only for them to then take the DD, so I had paid double. They didn't respond to my email requesting the money be returned and it wasn't enough of an overpayment for the website to allow it.

But nothing like yours! Have you been putting in meter readings regularly and is this last 2000 still there after a recent meter reading? Your post makes it sound like an estimate. If you log on and put in actual meter readings, after a short time, it should send an updated bill based on the actual values.

They send me bills every month. I usually get an estimated bill generated 28th, and then put in the actual readings on the 30th/31st, at which it regulates itself to the actual values.

We had a similar experience, but a bill for £19k. I phoned and they immediately admitted their error.

It was an estimate they sent me, I then put meter readings in thinking it can’t be right and the electric was way higher than they had estimated so they’ve added another £1000 on. Gas was lower but they’ve not readjusted the bill, I don’t really know how it works enough. The bills are so confusing I’m struggling to understand it.

I Submitted meter readings to bulb in April, I have an email thanking me for submitting them but annoyingly I can’t find them anywhere. I normally take a photo of the meters but don’t have a photo on my phone. So I don’t know what the meters were in April! I’m so stressed, haven’t told my husband yet. I have a new baby too, I have no idea how we’d afford to pay this if it’s correct.

You can access all the readings and payments you have made on the websites. The old Bulb site is still accessible and the new Octopus one has now migrated all the information over. You should therefore be able to see your reading and/or estimates for years.

I haven't had any issues at all. I always submit a reading on the same day every month, am billed by the next day, and a payment goes out within two days after that. I am in credit, and will leave that to cover the increase in the bills through winter.

yes, the bills are double counted with bulb to octupus switch.