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J
Rank 2
Jammintunes
Rank 2
April 13, 2023
Solved

High estimated bills - ongoing issue - OVO not helping

  • April 13, 2023
  • 43 replies
  • 3045 views

 Thank you for taking the time to read our issue i do understand its very long with a lot of information but hoping someone can help resolve.

**Please note that my Mum is the account holder who is 74 and is becoming very ill and very stressed and worried about this and we have provided both written and verbal communication to OVO advising i can speak on her behalf , this has been ignored on every occasion we contact OVO***

We did start a thread on this back in December last year but thought it best to start a new one as i have more knowledge / information regarding the issue as its still not been resolved.

Back in Aug /Sept 2022 we had a  power cut in our area for around half a day , once the power came back on i went outside to check our traditional style meter to provide the readings for OVO and the LCD  display was blank and although our power was still working with no issues we were unable to provide a meter reading (our last submitted manual reading was in June 2022)

We contacted OVO who advised that they were unable to repair our old style meter and that a new smart meter would need to be fitted , we were booked in for a fitting early December  (7th)

Fast forward to December the engineer came and swapped our meter over and left a card 

 

A few days later we received our paper bill (we are on quarterly  statements)  and to our shock we had an eye watering bill of £3784.34 ,  we looked through the bills and realized form June 2022 to December 2022 we were charged based on estimations , we looked at this forum and found out we could log on the internet and view our account which we did.

 

The below charges have been based on our monthly ESTIMATED usage being 1874kwh - 2497kwh per billing month.

 

Prior to this date our bills were as below and despite providing meter readings over the OVO chat some of the below usage was based on estimations (around 800kwh per month) which is still way too high 

 

 

Since having our smart meter fitted our bills and usage has been as below

 

 

Now since December of last year we have been in contact with OVO how advised that once they have had a couple of months worth of smart meter readings our bill would adjust and settle , come January 2023 we started receiving emails and messages from OVO collections team so we jumped on the phone to discuss , this was a futile exercise as we were repeatedly told to just make the payment of £3784 and we will refund you once the smart meter data settles !!

As we were getting no where speaking to the call center collections team we jumped on the ovo chat and got through to an account manager who said not to worry the bills not real  “we will get this sorted” and she placed a 180day hold on the account :

 

Image Edited by Mod

Now we thought ok this is all now in hand but it wasn't , around 2 weeks later we started to get chased by the collections team for full payment and when we phoned they had no record or notes on the account and advised us to speak with account management / resolutions team which we did and sent them the above email and again a another hold was placed on the account (we have another email advising this), this seemed to turn into a trend between Jan - March ( being chased for payment).

On March the 18th we contacted OVO again via the online chat for an update on our enquiry and agent named Ian advised there was no record of our previous contact and advised that he would escalate the billing / meter dispute replace the hold on the account and gave us a case #14028326 and someone from the relevant team would be in touch within 3 working days to discuss .

2days later we received an email from a billing agent advising us that they would like us to send in a photo of our meter to ensure OVO are using the correct meter details when working out our billing we done this  only to receive emails and SMS from the collections team demanding full payment (27th March) , again we jumped on the online chat and was asked to provide our phone # to discuss and speak with the resolutions team.

The resolutions team did phone and listened to our complaint , they told us we would need to speak with the care team and would transfer us over … the call dropped and we tried to phone back and ended up on a 2.5hr phone call being passed from account management , care , resolutions back to collections and then back over to the care team … no one could help and just passed us around , in the end we gave up and ended the call.

Around the 5th April we received another letter from collections demanding payment within 14 days so again we called OVO and no body had any record of our contact and we spent a period of time being passed around until an agent in the resolutions team found some notes under the case # and said somebody would be in touch to resolve this hasnt happened.

Here we are 4months into our initial complaint with no progress only constant chasers for money and each time we call to discuss we have to explain the issue again and again.

Now i can just about cope with this but for someone of my mothers age and current mental state (caused by OVO) how would anyone be able to mange the constant chasers for Money which we just don't owe and how long will it take for the bill to settle.

Please let me know if anything is unclear or any other info is required to help advise us the best course of action.

 

thank you for taking the time to read

Ben 

    Best answer by Jeffus

    Updated on 20/07/26 by Ben_OVO

    Hi @Jammintunes

    Welcome to the customer forum, I am just a customer like you. 

    It is truly painful reading that. It is difficult to comment on it all. So here are some initial thoughts. 

    I see you mention 4 months from your initial complaint. If that is the case i suggest contacting the Energy Ombudsman and ask them to help you. You usually have to wait 8 weeks from initiating a complaint or until OVO issue a deadlock letter if earlier.

    https://www.ombudsman-services.org/sectors/energy

    https://www.ovoenergy.com/feedback

    Some customers with on going issues have asked their local MP for help. They often take on case work like this. Some are better than others. You or your MP can write to the OVO CEO which some customers have posted they have had some success

    ***removed by Moderator***

     

     

    Make sure you sign the account up for the priority services register if you haven't already. You can be named as part of this. 

    https://www.ovoenergy.com/register-for-priority-services

    https://www.ovoenergy.com/help/priority-services-register

    If you look after someone vulnerable who’s eligible for the Priority Service Register, they can nominate you to speak to OVO on their behalf 0330 303 5063. 

    If you have a smart meter, but are being billed to estimates, then there may be a fault with your meter. Please use the guide below to check, and contact our Support Team if necessary.

     

     

     

    43 replies

    Show previous replies
    Emmanuelle_OVO
    Retired Moderator
    Emmanuelle_OVO
    Retired Moderator
    April 14, 2023

    Hey @Jammintunes,

     

    I’m really sorry to hear of the experience you’ve had, it sounds like a very stressful situation to be in.

     

    @Jeffus has already given some helpful advice here, I just wanted to add that it sounds like the issue is you’re still awaiting a re-bill. Although billing cases don’t always have set timeframe, the Complaints Team should have the power to speed this up given the situation. Also manual updates of your estimated annual consumption are possible where the consumption figures are incorrect due to a faulty meter. 

     

    Please keep us posted with how you get on. 

    Renewable Energy? Big Fan.
      J
      Rank 2
      JammintunesAuthor
      Rank 2
      April 18, 2023

      Hi @Jeffus  & @Emmanuelle_OVO ,

      Thought id keep you all updated with our progress regarding the above issue.

      Last Friday 14th April my Mum received a very apologetic call from a case officer named Stuart , Stuart had been passed the case and couldn't believe the length of notes on the account and how it had been passed around with next to no action since December last year. 

      While on the call Stuart advised that he had gone through our historical bills and estimated  usage and recalculated our bills based on a combo of previous meter readings and our latest smart meter readings  and to my Mums joy he raised a new bill and can you believe it we were £6 in credit ! , my Mum was obviously over the moon with this and instantly burst into tears (tears of relief and joy !).

      Stuart was not only apologetic , kind and very helpful but as a goodwill gesture he sent my mum a lovely bunch of flowers and a hamper filled with goodies which arrived yesterday (will upload some photos once i get home).

      I would like to thank @Jeffus for the great advice and support and also to @Emmanuelle for acknowledging and confirming the great advise given and also thanks to the case officer Stuart who was a great credit to OVO and dealt with the issue very professionally and treat my mum with great care .. Thank you all !

      We of course are very disappointed that it took so long for this to be resolved but are very pleased that everything is now sorted.

      I would suggest that if anyone is experiencing any similar issues  to log records of all contact with OVO and  get a case # from OVO at the earliest stage and push for the compliant to be allocated to an officer ASAP as it seems once it get allocated the team can get problems resolved and  please note the great advise offered by @Jeffus.

        V
        Newcomer
        vanagnost
        Newcomer
        April 20, 2023

        Thank you for this info.

        I am having exactly the same issue, OVO energy has billed me using estimated meter readings which are completely wrong. 

        My energy usage on Feb 24th was 13944kWh, and the bill estimates readings of 14490kWh on Dec. 19th 2022 and 15673kWh on Feb. 12th 2023. My energy usage on Mar 19th was 14259kWh, when I left OVO energy, which is still lower than their estimate from Dec. 19th. 2022!

        Very similar to the above case, the bill estimates an energy consumption of about 1000 pounds/month, for a flat that has a consumption of around 100 pounds/month.

        Coincidence? 

        Our meter has been a smart meter since moving into the property, so I can’t even see their excuse for this one.

        I have called multiple times since February, each time waiting for hours and being assured that a case has been raised, and then being told that there is no open case. I have also written at least 6 emails and I have not gotten any response. 

        Instead their credit team, and some debt collectors, keep calling on an almost daily basis.

        Hopefully somebody from OVO energy will be monitoring this and respond to my case.

        At any case, tomorrow is the 8-week mark since I first contacted them so I will be raising this with the Energy Ombudsman.

         

         

         

          Jeffus
          Rank 20
          Jeffus
          Rank 20
          April 20, 2023

          Thank you for this info.

          I am having exactly the same issue, OVO energy has billed me using estimated meter readings which are completely wrong. 

          My energy usage on Feb 24th was 13944kWh, and the bill estimates readings of 14490kWh on Dec. 19th 2022 and 15673kWh on Feb. 12th 2023. My energy usage on Mar 19th was 14259kWh, when I left OVO energy, which is still lower than their estimate from Dec. 19th. 2022!

          Very similar to the above case, the bill estimates an energy consumption of about 1000 pounds/month, for a flat that has a consumption of around 100 pounds/month.

          Coincidence? 

          Our meter has been a smart meter since moving into the property, so I can’t even see their excuse for this one.

          I have called multiple times since February, each time waiting for hours and being assured that a case has been raised, and then being told that there is no open case. I have also written at least 6 emails and I have not gotten any response. 

          Instead their credit team, and some debt collectors, keep calling on an almost daily basis.

          Hopefully somebody from OVO energy will be monitoring this and respond to my case.

          At any case, tomorrow is the 8-week mark since I first contacted them so I will be raising this with the Energy Ombudsman.

           

           

           

          Hi @vanagnost 

          Just to reiterate my conversations  above with @Jammintunes 

          You do definitely have to make sure a complaint case has been raised

          https://www.ovoenergy.com/feedback

          Make sure this is done rather than simply someone in Support has logged an issue that will get looked into. They may not actually log a complaint unfortunately. 

          The 8 weeks starts from when an official complaint has been raised.

          What email address were you using? The hello@ovoenergy.com isn't valid anymore and isn't replied to.

          Have they said a read dispute has been raised?

          Keep posting how you get on as i am sure it will help others. 

           

            Jeffus
            Rank 20
            Jeffus
            Rank 20
            April 20, 2023

            Hi @Jeffus  & @Emmanuelle_OVO ,

            Thought id keep you all updated with our progress regarding the above issue.

            Last Friday 14th April my Mum received a very apologetic call from a case officer named Stuart , Stuart had been passed the case and couldn't believe the length of notes on the account and how it had been passed around with next to no action since December last year. 

            While on the call Stuart advised that he had gone through our historical bills and estimated  usage and recalculated our bills based on a combo of previous meter readings and our latest smart meter readings  and to my Mums joy he raised a new bill and can you believe it we were £6 in credit ! , my Mum was obviously over the moon with this and instantly burst into tears (tears of relief and joy !).

            Stuart was not only apologetic , kind and very helpful but as a goodwill gesture he sent my mum a lovely bunch of flowers and a hamper filled with goodies which arrived yesterday (will upload some photos once i get home).

            I would like to thank @Jeffus for the great advice and support and also to @Emmanuelle for acknowledging and confirming the great advise given and also thanks to the case officer Stuart who was a great credit to OVO and dealt with the issue very professionally and treat my mum with great care .. Thank you all !

            We of course are very disappointed that it took so long for this to be resolved but are very pleased that everything is now sorted.

            I would suggest that if anyone is experiencing any similar issues  to log records of all contact with OVO and  get a case # from OVO at the earliest stage and push for the compliant to be allocated to an officer ASAP as it seems once it get allocated the team can get problems resolved and  please note the great advise offered by @Jeffus.

            Hi @vanagnost

            Good to hear things are sorted. 

            Do keep a close eye on the next couple of bills. 

             

              V
              Newcomer
              vanagnost
              Newcomer
              April 20, 2023

              Hi @Jeffus,

              I have emailed at both the hello@ovoenergy.com and the complaints@ovoenergy.com addresses. I believe the hello address is being monitored, as I raised another issue recently through that address and they did respond. 

              I think at some times they did raise this as a read dispute with sse, as they claim that these readings came from sse.

              I am already in contact with the ombudsman and they said they can take on my case once the 8 week mark is met since the first time the complaint was raised on Feb 24th, which is tomorrow.

              I don’t know how to make sure that a complaint case has been raised if they say they did raise it on the phone, and then it’s not raised, and they also don’t reply at my related emails.

              How do you get the case allocated to an officer?

                V
                Newcomer
                vanagnost
                Newcomer
                April 20, 2023

                Going over the responses again, I don’t get the optimism...

                OVO energy is in the business of managing and supporting the energy bills of their customers. This is exactly the service that they need to provide in exchange for our payments. As such, there is no excuse for:

                1) overestimating by 10x the energy consumption of a simple household.

                2) allocating the enormous bill immediately to debt collectors

                3) doing so on multiple occasions

                4) doing so when the household has a smart meter

                5) making it impossible to amend the bill.

                They are just crap.

                 

                 

                  Jeffus
                  Rank 20
                  Jeffus
                  Rank 20
                  April 20, 2023

                  Hi @Jeffus,

                  I have emailed at both the hello@ovoenergy.com and the complaints@ovoenergy.com addresses. I believe the hello address is being monitored, as I raised another issue recently through that address and they did respond. 

                  I think at some times they did raise this as a read dispute with sse, as they claim that these readings came from sse.

                  I am already in contact with the ombudsman and they said they can take on my case once the 8 week mark is met since the first time the complaint was raised on Feb 24th, which is tomorrow.

                  I don’t know how to make sure that a complaint case has been raised if they say they did raise it on the phone, and then it’s not raised, and they also don’t reply at my related emails.

                  How do you get the case allocated to an officer?

                  Simply ask OVO for the complaint reference number and the name of the person handling the complaint.

                   

                    Jeffus
                    Rank 20
                    Jeffus
                    Rank 20
                    April 20, 2023

                    Going over the responses again, I don’t get the optimism...

                    OVO energy is in the business of managing and supporting the energy bills of their customers. This is exactly the service that they need to provide in exchange for our payments. As such, there is no excuse for:

                    1) overestimating by 10x the energy consumption of a simple household.

                    2) allocating the enormous bill immediately to debt collectors

                    3) doing so on multiple occasions

                    4) doing so when the household has a smart meter

                    5) making it impossible to amend the bill.

                    They are just crap.

                     

                     

                    Unfortunately the industry standard for a read dispute is set at 8 to 12 weeks, it can be a right pain. Sometimes it doesn't take that long. 

                    The bills should have been frozen as per the OVO website

                    During this process your regular monthly billing will be paused whilst we look to correct the opening statement. If you pay via Direct Debit these payments will continue, building up a credit balance in your account to cover the opening statement once it’s issued.

                    If you don’t yet have a Direct Debit in place, we’d recommend setting one up with our Support Team, to avoid a large balance to pay when your initial statement is re-issued.

                     

                     

                    J
                    Newcomer
                    JPTexas
                    Newcomer
                    April 29, 2023

                    My April bill you have estimated for 28 March to 31 March and 1-28 APril.  I sent the readings on the 27 of the month and you have not used them or even included my £207 DD payment taken on 28th April.  So you decide again I'm not paying enough despite the fact my usage has gone down considerably to last month and trying to increase my DD yet again. The charges are higher for 28 March to 31 March so as you have worked it out on your readings which are higher not my actuals how am I supposed to get the difference back. This is the last chance now if this bill is not going to use my actual readings I will be leaving OVO for good. Sick of trying to keep my account on track when you won't use my readings I don't hear this from friends and family with other companies.  You put people in to debt and don't resolve anything.

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