We recently had a very poorly child which required some time in hospital. This kicked our finances quite a bit as we re-juggled everything to meet our LO's needs as well as their siblings.
This was when one of my direct debits for Scottish Power electricity bounced. I cancelled all my direct debits there and then to get things under control so we weren't left without and once we got back to normal, my husband and I agreed to standing orders from here so we can control amounts - as we had noticed Scottish Power were sometimes taking twice a month and more than our bill amount.
I gave them a call to get a payment plan set up for the backlog. They then said we need a smart meter installed and tried to book it in. I advised we don't have mobile data at our location so we know a smart meter wouldn't work and we don't want to have one anyway, so we don't want to book it in. The caller was so rude saying our reason was not valid and refused to proceed to the payment plan until I gave a valid reason!
Gobsmacked by the craziness, I just kept asking to set up the payment plan we agreed to and refused the smart meter. As I understand it, we are not legally required to accept them yet. After 1 hour of going back and forth she finally agreed to proceed with the payment plan, but changed the monthly amount because she "can't guarantee the reading I gave was accurate"! Fed up by this point, I said whatever and asked her for the bank details for the standing order, she then said a standing order was not an acceptable method of payment and she needed my credit card or direct debit details. She started listing the last digits of my bank account and said "is it this one?" insinuating she was going to restart my direct debit. I said that was the wrong details and I went back to my bill and pulled the details from their "more ways to pay" section. I copied and pasted the details to her and advised of the payment date and the dates it would be in thereafter. She was not happy, said it would be rejected, I was wasting my time and I would end up with a default on my name and debt collectors may come to my door. I explained it was all on the bill, in the "more ways you can pay" section but she wasn't having any of it.
Is this normal tactics for energy companies now?! They can just dismiss and demand reasons for not wanting a smart meter, force you into doing things a certain way instead of using ANY of the methods they say you can use? I could have just paid by card or direct debit but I am sick and tired of THEM deciding how much to take and sometimes taking double, leaving us struggling - we want some control over our outgoings.
Has anyone else had this?