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Fourth visit to install smart meters has just been aborted. Visit one, engineer couldn't get his van up the road due to snow (I'll give them that one, it was quite slippy although better tyres may have helped. Got our own car up with Michelin Cross Climates on it), visit two cancelled 2 hours after the engineer was supposed to turn up, visit 3 cancelled less than 24 hours before they were due (no explanations for these 2). Fourth visit just been aborted because it's raining, it's Lancashire, rain is a reality.
I'm working from home but online in meetings most of the day so had to re-arrange things alot, I would be livid if I'd taken 4 days off work. The best bit is you get three reminder emails sent in the week before, all threatening to charge you for a wasted visit if you're not in.
I'm not holding out much hope for visit 5.....May rig a tarpaulin up at the side of the house before the next one to take that excuse away.
We gave up after 3 failed attempts...
The last excuse was the fitter's wife had gone into labour!
the flat I let out has not had a working electric mater for 2 years. Many frustrating conversations with Scottish power - two failed meter replacements ie they never turned up or informed me and no sign yet of getting it done. I did extract a promise that there would be no bill for this period but I'll believe that when i see it.
We've got sewage treatment / septic tank shared by 3 houses with a separate electricity feed. Engineer turned up yesterday to fit smart meter. Couldn't find the supply. The meter is there, right there why can't you find the supply. He asked to see our meter box which is a way away from sewage pump supply.
So I share your pain.
My smart meter was installed months ago, however it couldn't get signal to connect to the network. I was told they'd fix it within a month, still no word and I cba chasing them
I have had free electricity for well over a year now.
I have, in writing, three electricity companies all denying that they supply me, one of them used to and two I tried to switch to as the first, Ecotricity, were hopeless.
I have not heard from any of them in over a year and have not had a bill in even longer. I have not chased this up.
I am considering taking up cannabis farming or something to take advantage of this.
I am considering taking up cannabis farming or something to take advantage of this.
Surely Bitcoin mining FTW? Free money!
I have had free electricity for well over a year now.
Just wait till you get a bill for 6 grand in a few years time !
Your meters are still recording so whenever they decide who does supply you, the instant they take a reading of the meters theyll know how much you've used over x number of years.
We gave up after 3 failed attempts…
Same here.
The last one, they turned up, looked at it (in a kitchen unit under the sink/drainer), and said, "too inaccessible".
Just wait till you get a bill for 6 grand in a few years time !
Your meters are still recording so whenever they decide who does supply you, the instant they take a reading of the meters theyll know how much you’ve used over x number of years.
Your maximum liability for 'back billing' is 12 months. Ofgem rule.
I had this. Smart meter install all booked in, explained over the phone beforehand one was above head height, chap turns up, can't do it as his ladder was too short.
He explained at length to me that the installers had all told the company they needed longer ladders, but the vans were apparently too small and they didn't want the carried on the roof.
Slightly beggars belief that they'd send them out without the correct length ladders. He also explained they needed to be non-conductive fibreglass (for obvious reasons), which he why he couldn't use my steps.
I got some money when they didn't turn up for a smartmeter installation
I have had free electricity for well over a year now.
I had that once (Belgium), tried to contact them many times and each time they denied we had a connection. When eventually they discovered we were telling the truth they billed us 10k EUR which was a penalty rate. It took lawyers and ombudsman to get it back to the correct bill.
Keep documentation, make sure and keep the real cash aside for when the bill comes. 1 year might be correct but be prepared for a fight
tjagain
Full Member
the flat I let out has not had a working electric mater for 2 years. Many frustrating conversations with Scottish power – two failed meter replacements ie they never turned up or informed me and no sign yet of getting it done. I did extract a promise that there would be no bill for this period but I’ll believe that when i see it.
If they never issue it, you'll never see it, so you'll never believe it.
This leads down the road to madness...
My experience of switching to Octopus Engery and them fitting a smart meter.
1) Day 1 : You can't have our special rates until we fit a smart meter and we are very busy at the moment. Is it okay if we plan to get you an engineer there to fit it in about 3 weeks time?
2) A bout a week later : Hello, this is Octopus Energy and we have an engineer available in your are next Wednesday, would this be convenient?
3) The following Tuesday : Hello, this is Octopus Energy just a reminder that Colin will be turning up between 9 and 11am tomorrow to fit your meter, he will need to turn the power off for about 30 minutes but it could be up to an hour.
4) Wednesday 9am : Hi, this is Colin and I am due to fit your meter today. Is it okay for me to be there at 10am?
5) Wednesday 10am : Hi, I am Colin here to fit your meter.
6) Wednesday 11:30am : Thanks and enjoy your new meter, any issues just give us a ring
Is it right that I was shocked by good efficient service?
As @ebygomm says, they're meant to give compensation for every failed visit, aren't they?
Your maximum liability for ‘back billing’ is 12 months. Ofgem rule.
That there rule doesn't apply when you know you should be paying someone, but haven't... because that's fraud (or something like that) - good luck with proving you didn't know you should be paying someone in a court of law etc.
I became somewhat familiar with the backbilling regs during an "amusing" mix up between our meter, our next door neighbour's meter, our old electricity company, our current electricity company, and at least one or two of the electricity companies that billed next door. Imagine the "hilarious" combinations of cockups that could ensue... and then the "surprise" of discovering who ends up having to actually sort it out, your clue is, not the multiple electricity companies who engage multiple bailiffs to collect multiple debts I didn't owe.
Official complaint lodged, new appointment booked at the end of March. See if I get get any recompense.
1.5 years waiting for them to finish mine, apparently there is only one guy qualified for the gas ones of the type I need in the whole of the central belt. TBH I'm expecting to die of old age before job gets finished!
I have made numerous official complaints over the last year and still have no date to fit a meter or even prospect of one. I have given up doing anything. the longer it gets free eleccy the better for me
My sister lived in a place with free electric for a while. It had a special pot to catch the no longer in regular circulation coin that you put in the slot and twisted the handle a few times when the lights went out. There was total paranoia about losing the magic coin!
Well I lodged a complaint and apparently I'll be getting £30 back in compo, 1 of the visits they messed up was covered by OFGEM guaranteed standards, apparently them not having suitable equipment to work outside in the rain isn't covered. Better than a poke in the eye with a poopy stick I suppose.
WorldClassAccident
My experience of switching to Octopus Engery and them fitting a smart meter.
1) Day 1 : You can’t have our special rates until we fit a smart meter and we are very busy at the moment. Is it okay if we plan to get you an engineer there to fit it in about 3 weeks time?
2) A bout a week later : Hello, this is Octopus Energy and we have an engineer available in your are next Wednesday, would this be convenient?
3) The following Tuesday : Hello, this is Octopus Energy just a reminder that Colin will be turning up between 9 and 11am tomorrow to fit your meter, he will need to turn the power off for about 30 minutes but it could be up to an hour.
4) Wednesday 9am : Hi, this is Colin and I am due to fit your meter today. Is it okay for me to be there at 10am?
5) Wednesday 10am : Hi, I am Colin here to fit your meter.
6) Wednesday 11:30am : Thanks and enjoy your new meter, any issues just give us a ringIs it right that I was shocked by good efficient service?
Word for word, except it was Ryan.
We had someone come to fit a smart meter a couple of years ago. Couldn’t do it as unable to turn off gas supply to meter as it’s boxed in and he couldn’t get his spanner on it. Reported to Cadent as a safety issue told they would one day come and replace supply to house from gas main including digging up the drive to relocate meter etc but it might be 6 months. About a year after this we needed a new boiler. Engineer able to isolate the gas and install a new boiler no problem. Clearly had a better spanner than first guy that came out. 18 months later cadent not been in touch. Changed suppliers along the way and now getting emails from current supplier (bulb) offering to fit smart meters. Am ignoring them for now.
The best bit is you get three reminder emails sent in the week before, all threatening to charge you for a wasted visit if you’re not in.
As stated the contract work both ways. Failure to arrive at the stated time should enable you to collect their penalty fee from them. I done similar with Halifax who wrote a year after I had closed the mortgage account and moved lender telling me I had missed a payment. They told me that I would be charged £25 for this egregious error. I wrote back and told them that the fee for my letter was also £25 and here are my account details. Money arrived in around 10 working days along with an apology letter.
It used to be possible to claim through the small claims process if they didn't cough up.
The saga continues, finally got the electricity meter upgraded on visit 5, miraculously it didn't rain. Gas meter not so lucky, apparently didn't have a part needed as my meter was really old (it's 20 years old which I reckon in terms of gas meters isn't that old at all). This was back in March. Had to chase Lowri Beck again to get another appointment, seems like their system doesn't pick up an aborted visit. Visit 6 was scheduled for yesterday, I was in all day, missed the phone call to say the engineer was on his way. I did hear the letterbox go once early afternoon, just once, turns out that was the engineer putting a card very carefully inside my letter box without knocking (which I would have heard) so it remained folded up inside the door and not on the mat. Roll on a couple of hours so I check, realise I've missed a call, ring the engineers mobile 5 times, leave a message, doesn't pick up. Wife rings him from her mobile, a number the engineer doesn't have and he answered first time. Says he can't come back he's now in York, we live in East Lancs, it's best part of a two hour drive to York! Phone up Lowri Beck, have a rant, next time an engineer is in our area (which obviously includes York 2 hours away) is 17th of May. I'm not convinced visit 7 will be anymore successfully. I'm no longer bloody annoyed I'm fuming and theres next to no recourse for complaint. Lowri Beck don't GAS about the home owner, we're not their customer.
Just to add to the list of examples, I lived in a flat above two shops in Hathersage for about seven years. There was a flat next to mine too. But the landlord (the owner of an extensive estate agent business in the region) was too tight to split the main meter to the building so we had a single feed for all four units.
When I moved in I wrote to him asking to explain how the apportionment would work. No reply. Did that every month for the first year. On the first anniversary of moving in I requested my bill and asked again how it was calculated. Got a reply but with a “I’ll get back to you” and then nothing.
So this charade carried on until I served notice at which point he wanted, from memory about £2k. At this point I popped the file of printed off correspondence on his desk and reminded him of the back billing arrangements in place with Ofgem and argued that as I didn’t even know who the utility supplier was that he was in effect my supplier.
At this point he turned a slightly funny shade of purple and said that because I drove a BMW I must have enough to cover the cost. I told him to basically do one and said he could keep the deposit on the flat of £500 as my only offer. Moral of the story, keep your paperwork and rich estate agents are arseholes.
Oh dear. I have been chasing ovo to get one fitted so I can get SEG from the roof panels.
Now things have opened up again. They have come back offering June 24th.
Let's see how that goes.
All these engineers fitting electric meters, surely that’s a waste of a degree? Unless it pays more than I imagine, in which case I suppose it’s just a boring and quite non-ergonomic way of getting a decent wage
Tuboflard - I know exactly which flats and landlord you are talking about. Top work. He’s not a popular chap.
We’ve got an appointment next month to fit one. One was fitted three years ago, after we said ‘have you checked the mobile coverage’ as our metre is in a dead spot of an area with at best limited coverage. An hour later after fitting it they had to take it out again because there was no coverage.
This time they have told us they will come with the right kit (if they are using the same network as last time that will either be a fifty foot high aerial or a Jodrell Bank size dish)
All these engineers fitting electric meters, surely that’s a waste of a degree?
Engineer not being a protected title in the UK, a technician or installer can call themselves an engineer, no degree required.
Pretty sure anyone can call themselves an engineer actually.
Tuboflard – I know exactly which flats and landlord you are talking about. Top work. He’s not a popular chap.
He tried to do over the post office with the same approach as me. And Outside I believe when they had the Patagonia store there. I just hope the current tenants have got wise to him.
Yep, I worked for Outside at the time, we didn’t capitulate either. What a lovely way to run his business.
May have been said...you are due £30 for any visit cancelled with less than 24hrs notice (maybe check the 24) within 2 weeks, after which it becomes £60 - worth waiting but you may have to complain as suppliers will do all sorts to wriggle out of this.
cycnic-al I did manage to get compo for the one visit (after it was mentioned on here previously) when they just failed to turn up, another they cancelled just before the 24 hr deadline, 2 aborted due to weather, one partially successful visit when the electricity got done and they'll claim they turned up yesterday despite not bothering to knock the door.
it’s 20 years old which I reckon in terms of gas meters isn’t that old at alL
25 year asset lifespan - so yes, pretty old.
Moral of the story, keep your paperwork and rich estate agents are arseholes.
That is the same 'B' agent who came to value our house in Sheffield. Called & texted his mates (landlords) and basically tried to do a backdoor deal at a low rate with one of them on our house.
What the Agent didn't know is that we had a BTL elsewhere in Sheffield, and one of the landlords he messaged by text was with me at the time doing a private deal to sell our BTL. She was shared this 'low price' on a nearby house as a bargaining chip on the BTL with me. Of course I asked which street, and was given my own address and a fixed price...
I too ended up in the agency having a 'wee moment' very publicly in front of a line of customers about the cheating and lying owner of the 'B' grade agency. He was in the office but too chicken to even meet me face to face.
The 'B' valuation was £15k less (15% at the time) than the other three valuations I then sought - and this was the Agency known for getting the highest prices.
Both houses sold to a friend who is still a Landlord and still owns one of them.
Yep. He’s a shitehawk @matt_outandabout. Mind you I’ve never met an estate agent yet that I’d trust.