Can't get a refund due to faulty smart meter?

I have never called OVO to try to resolve any problem. My first point of contact with them has always been the Messenger option on OVO’s Facebook page. It is not instant, BUT you do get the time, on that initial contact, to explain completely what your problem is, including the opportunity to add pictures of, for instance, your non-working smart gas meter. How do you pay for your energy? I do not understand why, if you have been told that your meter has not been sending readings for 2 years, they have not suggested that it needs replacing. Have you been able to use gas for all of this time? Have you been billed for that use?

Hi, 

Thanks for reply, I'll try that this morning. Our payments have always came off direct debit, so the past 2 years must be estimated usage. We have no issues receiving our gas supply whatsoever.

Regards

I would assume then that your gas bill has been estimated for that time. If that was done to me, it would cost me a fortune if they used what would be the average usage for a house of our size and occupation. According to OFGEM, the typical annual gas usage for us would be 11500 kWh. My actual usage for the past year is 5610 kWh. Your bills should show if estimates have been used since your meter stopped sending data. Do you still have bills from before the meter stopped working? When they come to remove/replace your meter, in theory, the readings for the last 13 months should be stored in the meter. The new meter will start from 0000 and the closing reading from your old meter is needed to make sure that you are billed correctly up to the time of its removal. This is what my gas bill details looked like for the month my old meter was replaced with my new one. (September 2023). 

Thank you for that, tbh I don't know if it's the actual meter or the smart meter that isn't working  as a digital smart meter is installed over the gas meter, so only they can determine what us faulty. I'll check back my bills, as concerned over if they owe me a fortune or I owe them.

There is no split of balances like that for a dual fuel customer.
There’s just one balance for both and one Direct Debit for both.

(I did used to have seperate bills for each fuel, and seperate DD’s for each when I was with SSE, but that changed when it moved to OVO and now it’s all on one bill and just one payment).

Reading your post again I believe that the real issue here is that your gas smart meter is not sending data (and you havent sent any meter readings) and so you have not been being billed for any gas used  at all.

Is that correct, that you are not being billed for gas use at all?

You are now looking for a refund of your credit.

And so you have calculated yourself what you estimate you owe for gas?
I also have to ask just how you have done that when you say that the meter display is blank and so no meter reading is available?

If I’m correct and that is what you mean here then unfortunately that is never going to work, OVO are not going to accept your estimate.

OVO will not agree to a refund until they can calculate/agree what you owe for gas usage.

PS. How long has the display on the meter been broken?
Or is the display on the meter working and it’s just your In Home Device that is blank?

Reading your latest post I now believe that you are meaning that it’s the In Home Device that is blank.

Go to the gas meter itself - it will be fixed to a wall or in a box in the garden.
Can you see numbers on the display panel?

Your meter reading will usually be on the screen and will have “M3” after it, similar to this:

see also this link for ‘How to read a gas Smart Meter”

https://www.ovoenergy.com/help/article/meter-readings

If you post a photo of the meter (preferably with the display panel on) then we can advise further. 

Thanks for replies. The display to the gas smart meter is totally blank, nothing happens pushing buttons A or B, so I can't give a reading. I have been charged every month and paid through DD, so must be estimated bills. It's over £150 every month, so should adequately cover usage and more than likely more in credit than estimated.

Reading your latest post I now believe that you are meaning that it’s the In Home Device that is blank.

Go to the gas meter itself - it will be fixed to a wall or in a box in the garden.
Can you see numbers on the display panel?

Your meter reading will usually be on the screen and will have “M3” after it, similar to this:

see also this link for ‘How to read a gas Smart Meter”

https://www.ovoenergy.com/help/article/meter-readings

If you post a photo of the meter (preferably with the display panel on) then we can advise further. 

Sorry, not long in from work, I will take a pic of display, but shows nothing whatsoever on it.

Gas and electricity, are they from the same supplier? As Nukucad said, there is no split of balances for a dual fuel customer. If there is, I would assume that they are supplied by different companies. In that case, it won’t be possible to transfer your balance. The only way would be to request a refund from one and pay that money to another account.

Morning, both are supplied by Ovo, they have always been split bills in all the years, maybe at least 10, probably more. I used messenger to contact OVO, they said complaints will call yesterday. It's like groundhog day, I did receive a call, confirming all details, put on hold, receive a call while I'm on the call saying she cut me off while I was still on hold, waited another 30 minutes to be told lines are really busy, the same thing every time for 3 weeks. I got an email saying they are looking to see when an engineer can be arranged, I will get a response within the next 7 days. That will now go into week 4, which I think is poor service. All I want is their faulty smart meter to get repaired or replaced, my refund if still entitled to it. They are quick enough to take £205 out of my bank last night, I should have cancelled direct debits until rectified.