Anyone else being harrassed by their Electricity/Energy co? EON Next

[wickedstepmothfker]

So I was with Bulb who went bust last year. Ended up being transferred to EON Next with a large credit balance from overpaying (DD of £85 pm). Earlier this year (before all the chaos re price rises), they tried to up it to £250. I cancelled my DD as at the time I was still overpaid on £85 per month. I could see prices were going to go up so re-set up a DD a month or so later for £120 (after they charged me a late payment fee - I mean, WTF we weren't even at the quarter end!!).

Fast fwd to the end of Oct 22. They changed my regular DD and took £336 off me, which sent me overdrawn within 2 days of getting paid. I went online and tried to change my DD to a more appropriate £180 per month but the system wouldn't allow me to reduce it below £336. So I cancelled my DD with a view that I would set up a standing order again. Just so you know I actually submit regular meter readings. This is when it all started.

It took them a week to call me. Trying to get money out of me because I'd cancelled my DD. I explained I'd only paid them £336 less than 2 weeks previously and they were getting nothing out of me until the end of Nov. I put in a more recent reading. Call after call I got, telling me my account was in a 'state' as I owed £177. Telling me I didn't 'understand' how it worked. Well I work in Finance so I'm pretty sure I do. Whatever happened to the 'paying a regular amount' by DD and being behind over winter only to catch up in summer? Or even at a basic level, I am not 'in debt' or 'arrears' until the end of the quarter i.e. December. It's like they want your account to be £0.00 all the time or overpaid or they panic, thinking you are going to default and bully you by having you constantly on a chase list.

Within the last month I have had over 19 calls from EON, mostly daily, 2 today already, 3 yesterday. Text on Tuesday 6th saying my balance of £108 was overdue (that's funny, it was £177 a couple of weeks ago??). List attached, although this is not all of them. After the first 3-4 calls I clearly told them they were harassing me, not to call me and that I wanted a complaint escalating. I was assured it would be raised to the manager. The calls have not stopped since complaining on 18th Nov (circa).

Anyone had a similar experience?

I'm with a different energy supplier.

They refused to action my requests by phone call so I sent them an email with "formal complaint" in the title and waited a week. I then went online and left them a one star review on Trustpilot. I suddenly got contacted by them, most of my credit refunded and my monthly DD lowered.

I knew after writing my email the next step would be to take them to energy ombudsman after 8 weeks. I would then be entitled to some compensation.

At no point did I cancel my DD.

Eon Next are an absolute nightmare. They ring me every single day, at least once. I'm not even with them personally. Like a poster upthread, they are the energy provider for one of the many, many, void properties of the company I USED to work for. I've blocked their number now as they don't listen to a word I say. They don't respond to emails and they don't respond to written complaints.

We moved into a house with Eon Next a few months ago and went straight on to their standard variable rate but didn't set up the direct debit straight away, I didn't realise that meant we paid slightly more as the tariff is higher without a DD, they phrase it as a discount for DD but it amounts to the same thing.

Eon next are absolutely horrific.

They told me that because I don't have a smart meter I MUST submit monthly readings otherwise they will estimate my bill based on "the average family home".

I asked why they can't use the readings I've provided every quarter for the last 2 years and their response was "because the aren't monthly so we don't have like for like and it's colder this year so you might use more this winter".

They no longer offer quarterly billing, only monthly. So if you don't have a DD set up (which they seem to change constantly and make up as they please) and you don't provide a monthly reading they will literally ring you 2 or 3 times a day. Even if you are in credit.

WTAF???

I’m with Octopus and they’re not too bad. They kept putting my DD up without permission which was annoying but I managed to get someone to switch that setting “off” on my account, so I’m in control now.

That said, my bill was £600 last month so my self-appointed £450 DD didn’t cover it. 😱

EON are shit. However, I did eventually manage to get them to engage with me on whatsapp after 3 weeks and they did reduce my DD as I said I can't afford what you want to charge me and I will be cancelling my DD if you go ahead and put it up.

I had an issue with my supplier constantly telling me I needed to increase my DD. I rang them and pointed out I put in a meter reading on the 1st of every month, that I was in credit, that I haven't missed a bill payment in 40 years, and I don't need their advice so I would regard any further pressure as harassment and report them to the ombudsman.

I haven't heard from them since. 🙂

I think @TheGander is right, they are all trying to have us with large credit balances in case we use more than the direct debit amount each month. Though I think it has always been like that to some extent (build up credit over the summer, use it up over winter) they are going over the top in many cases.

I know someone whose account has an absolutely enormous credit balance & is struggling to get a refund. Another friend says they wanted to increase her direct debit to £1000 per month!

EON are criminals and fraudsters; my complaint originally went to the Energy Ombudsman and was upheld last year however EON have not been honest and so this year another very serious complaint has been raised and is back again to the Ombudsman. This company are conning vulnerable people and they have a total disregard for the truth about their dodgy practices. Join "Which Legal" and get the best consumer advice and legal advice. I did and now EON are in breach of contract under Section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015. Stand your ground with them and don't be bullied or harrassed by them either. Threaten them with legal action if you know they are deliberately overchrging you which they constantly do and record all calls with a dictaphone or audio recorder (I used my old iphone's 'VOICE MEMO'), They are definitley the worst and most prolific offenders ever and have terrible Trust Pilot ratings. Maybe consider a Direct Debit refund/cancel your Direct Debit and set up a Standing Order for a fixed amount each month that you can afford...this is just a friendly warning to anyone considering taking them on as they will NEVER stop their behaviour and are without doubt the most "virulently anti customer/anti consumer" organisation in the energy sector! AVOID EON and don't give in to their threats to change your locks, come into your property, destroy your good credit, make you insolvent and all of the nasty tactics they have the reputation for!

My experience with E.on Next was so dire when I moved last summer that I chose not to hold them to my cheaper, fixed rate contract (which they were obliged to honour but I was not) and pay 4p a kWh more to go with Octopus.

They seemed fine when they were E.on.

Actually getting them to move my account from my old house to new one was a joke.

Earlier in the year, in changing from E.on to E.on Next, unbeknown to me because I wasn't keeping an eye on it, as part of their rebranding, take over, whatever it was, they cancelled my DD in Jan and when their rebranding exercise was over around April or May, I got a bill for three or four months of electricity that needed immediate payment.

Octopus are slow but good. I emailed them about a month ago saying 'your recommended DD is fixing me at £220 but I am now only using £96 a month and have cleared my balance so I want one for £120' and they just changed it immediately with no argument.

I'm with Eon. If you are not on DD, you are expected to pay monthly within 7 days of invoice.

This is odd to read. I'm with Eon Next and they've performed much better than Eon which they were before the change. They also performed much better than Scottish Power - nightmare company!

I'm on monthly direct debit, smart meter and I've had no problems with them. They email me for anything necessary or else they leave me alone. I get emails before they change anything too. It does take a few days to get a reply from their customer service whatsapp but they're very helpful once you get someone.

Currently on their standard variable as I haven't found a good fixed rate and I'm still okay with them.

I am with Shell and use the app. It is fine, really easy to use. Over the winter months they kept trying to up my direct debit, I would just go into the app and lower the amount again. It was bizarre as I was never less than £700 in credit. I much prefer using the app than talking to a customer service person.

SO haven't billed my elderly Mum for gas for over 6 months. The 'smart' meter isn't working. We have been telling them the meter was erratic since early last year, and told them again, repeatedly, when it stopped registering. A meter reader came months ago and said it wasn't working, and he'd report it. We have been passed from pillar to post, nothing has been done, and it's now with the Ombudsman. I think if you draw their attention to a meter not working and they don't fix it, they should not be allowed to charge for the power you use until they do fix it- I doubt anything else will get them to do anything.

We have had over 2 months of issues and being messed around by eon including being on phone with them for ages one of calls was 1hr and 31 minutes for NOTHING 🤦‍♀️ trying to change to smart pay as you go but it has been one thing after another.
first engineer putting in smart metres effed up gas one in october last year ,took till this month to fix that and so many complaints about other engineer not turning up having to wait till this month, being over harged with estimated bills! (When they couldnt get readings shouldnt have been charged at all) After telling them we didnt use much gas .
and so many times calling them and kept on phone from 20 minutes to 30 minutes and couple weeks ago 1hr and 30 minutes all these calls trying get gas meter issue fixed, engineer to come out and change to pay as you go .its ridiculous and very frustrating im lucky my contract phone has unlimited calls or would have cost me there too.
They love to over charge aswell
now they are saying firmware issue with there systems on there end no fix date? How is that possible ?they are big company lots money . Though they love to shove money at you as a way of appology and ending complaints what the hell how about fixing issue another not throw money at us that is not how it's fixed
We are going to have to look up new provider I think
Getting messed about by Eon Next I DO NOT recommend using them

There was something on R4 Moneybox a few months ago about the amount of (our) cash the energy companies have tucked under their belts. It’s staggering.

I was transferred across to Octopus from Bulb, and they seem to be ok in terms of communication. They did refund me some of my credit, but I’d have liked to have had more money back.

Take my advice. They had £500 of my money in the end. I sacked them off and went to Octopus. Got a refund quite quickly

Eon have my gas meter number wrong, it somehow managed to revert to the old meter number that was replaced three years ago, so I haven't been able to give them a reading for a year and a half. I've been trying to sort it myself and the meter reader has been three times and has also tried to tell them, but they've done nothing, so I've given up. It means I'm paying less and they can only backdate payments a year so their loss.

I complained about eon next at the ombudsman and won a decent payout. It was easy and I recommend it . Bunch of arseholes.

What was your complaint. I might try that myself?

Very similar experience with eon next. They decided to jump our payments from £180 pm for dual fuel to £536. Like wtf? How is that sustainable?

I called the bank and told them, eon had no permission to take those funds. The money was returned. I called eon and changed the dd back to £180.

Carnage!

@wickedstepmothfker
Apols … my post wasn’t clear…

I transferred across to Octopus from Bulb no problem. All my credit moved successfully.

It’s Octopus who don’t like to see my credit drop below a certain amount which constitutes about 5 months of bills…!

Can’t really say without outing myself but it was basically about payments and incompetence so I think you’d have a good chance as you have the evidence. You just upload it all to the ombudsman site and they do all the work.

I’ve not found this, if you’re in credit you can reduce your payments on their app. You can also change the payment date hence stretching the month. I’ve found them really good.

@Countrylife2002 - they’ve given me some of the money back, but are still holding onto more than they should. I have (at current DD outgoings) 8 months credit with them.
I’ll ask again and see if they budge…