Solved

Comical Direct Debit suggestions - how is it calculated?

C
Rank
has anyone here been asked to increase their monthly direct debits to something daft with these cowboys?
I live in a 2 bed apartment, with only myself living here, pay £60 DD a month.

Yesterday I got an email asking to increase to £2000 a month....

It isn't the first time this has happened, in fact last time, they changed the amount themselves to something daft like this, and I had to contact them.

With the amount of issues I have had since switching, I do wonder what kind of people run OVO
icon

Best answer by Nancy_OVO 15 July 2019, 17:05

View original

31 replies

A
Hello

This is not very good service from OVO, especially as its happened before. I assume the email from OVO is automated and has not been seen by a human...

Have you checked what OVO is suggesting your direct debit should be on the website under Payments - is it a realistic figure or not?

If you are concerned that they may increase the direct debit again then I think you will have to contact OVO again.

As this has happened before you may wish to complain see:-

https://www.ovoenergy.com/feedback

This may help ensuring the underlying cause is resolved this time and and that this does not happen again.
C
Rank
on their website it also recommends £2k 🤣

I really do not understand them. In June I used 66 kWh less than May, yet it says compared to last moth, I am using +23%
A
Hi

The usage part of the website has never really worked very well. The figures on your home page where is says you have used xx% more of less are not very accurate and on the usage page it has been saying:-

"Doesn't look right?
We're working on upgrading your usage graph to make it more accurate."

For as long as I can remember.

I think OVO have given up trying to fix this- they just dont want to admit it.

A graph to show how much energy a customer has used and a info box that tells you what the % change since last month cannot be that hard to figure out...?
Nancy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5

Updated on 03/02/22 by Jess_OVO

 

If you’re a Pay monthly customer on a fixed plan, you’ll pay for your energy by a Direct Debit, a month in advance. This is set up when you first join and amount you pay will be calculated based on the information you give before you switch.  If you’ve moved in to an house we supply, we might also use previous usage data for your new home to help suggest a suitable starting figure. Either way this initial Direct Debit amount isn’t fixed, even if your price per unit won’t increase on your current plan. As the amount of energy you use may change, we’ll regularly check that the payment amount is enough to cover your energy costs and leave you with a clear balance at the end of your plan.

These ongoing Direct Debit calculations are based either on your smart meter usage data, the meter readings you’ve submitted or the ‘Estimated Annual Consumption’ (EAC) figure that is held for your property by the energy industry. Really out-of-line Direct Debit suggestions, such as yours, could indicate an issue either with your smart meter communication, the readings you’ve submitted or your EAC figure.

 

If you haven’t already it’s worth logging in to  your online account or OVO app (download for Android or iOS), which could help identify the issue. The ‘Meter Readings’ page may show communication issues with the meter or your meter reading history  -

 

Exact appearance may vary

 

If this is the case, we’d advise completing a smart meter health check and contacting our Support Team with the results, or checking the meter readings you’ve entered are correct.

 

If something else doesn’t seem right, reach out to the Support Team, who can check this information can be corrected so your Direct Debit suggestions are accurate. :ok_hand:

Your guiding light(bulb)
M
Rank
Oh no ... not again.

I joined OVO thinking that they would be better than the last 2 mickey mouse energy companies I used. At least their websites worked whereas OVO energys website is utterly useless.

Will I need the Ombudsman or will OVO get its act together? Watch this space.

Perleease, can anyone tell me how to give them my meter readings using Windows 10? 😟
D
Rank
ohh really
Amy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 6

Hey @maingate welcome to the forum.

You can enter your readings on your MyOVO account here, your version of Windows should not impact this.

You'll need to work with us and our team to see if we can resolve your complaint before taking it to the Ombudsman, take a look at our complaints procedure.

You can send us a message on Facebook, Twitter or through webchat via the Help Centre.

Hope this helps!

OVO-Joyed to help!
M
Rank
Hi Amy,

I checked your link to My OVO Account. It has not changed at all, I still cannot input meter readings.
If I input meter readings regularly I get a discount on my Bill. I can not input readings so therefore I will not get a discount. Am I too cynical ... or not?😉
Nancy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5
Hi @maingate - have you managed to log in? If so, can you let us know if there are any messages or error preventing you from submitting a reading?
Your guiding light(bulb)
M
Rank
Hi Nancy,

When I log in to MyOVO all I get is the multi stage progress report of my joining OVO. The latest update is from June 7th, informing me that my Gas supply has now been taken over by OVO.

There is nowhere on the website to input meter readings.
Nancy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5
Ahhh, this sounds like a different issue then, @maingate. It sounds like your online account is stuck on the 'onboarding timeline' which could be for a number of reasons, but most likely because we haven't had all the details of your switch confirmed yet. If you get in touch with the team (0330 303 5063), they'll be able to clarify.
Your guiding light(bulb)
J
Rank
I am having a similar problem.

I am being recommended an increase which I think is excessive. I do want to increase it but by £15 a month not by £100 a month (so from £28 to £45, which is more than any month's bill so far, not from £28 to £134, which is £90 more than I have ever paid).

I tried to alter it, but the settings don't allow any change below the recommendation.
J
Rank
I've sorted this out now, thanks.
Darran_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 7
Thanks for letting us know you've sorted this @JohnPeters !
Did a reply solve your question? Then mark it as the correct answer!
L
Rank
I'm afraid I've had exactly the same problem - in May 2019, I received a notice from Ovo saying they wanted to up our direct debit from £74 per month to £117 for our gas & electricity... despite our energy usage not changing. So I contacted them, was assured that this was an error and it would not be changed and that a note would be put on my file with them.

Then, in September, I raised a query with their customer support after I noticed that their systems were predicting we would use more than twice as much volume of gas each month compared to last year (I've been with them since early 2018, and absolutely nothing has changed)... their customer services team first told me that it was because they were billing me on estimated readings (still doesn't explain why they thought we would use twice as much gas) and advised me to get a smart meter (no thanks); then told me it was because I'm on the standard variable tariff (pretty sure it's the price per unit which varies with tariff, not the quantity!!).

This morning, I got a letter from them saying they have now gone ahead and MORE THAN TRIPLED our direct debit to £234 per month... given that their own accounts payment page reckons the most we might use in the heaviest month (December) is £160 for gas + electricity, and in a quiet month £58, I think this is bordering on theft and in my opinion it's a gross abuse of the direct debit scheme. So I'm bringing this to the attention of their CEO and OFGEM, as well as putting on Twitter alongside their new campaign.

2 Attachments
Darran_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 7
Wow @Lxb that definitely doesn't sound right at all! Thanks for sharing this on the forum so we can try and help get to the bottom of this.

We'd need to get access to your account to check exactly what's going on here, but there is definitely something going here that we need to check and resolve. Have you had a faulty meter diagnosed by us, or had any changes to your home that may have changed the amount of energy you use? I'm just trying to understand if anything at home has changed that may have triggered this?

The best way to resolve would be to get in touch with our Care team asap. They'll be able to check your account and find out what's going on. If you'd like me to follow up with them, you'll need to send me a PM with your full name, address, postcode and account number so I can try and offer further help on this one.

Darran
Did a reply solve your question? Then mark it as the correct answer!
M
Rank

OK so when I joined I wanted to set DD around £85 as per previous provider, but was advised based on the info we provided and previous usage over a full year that we should set it to £70 per month, fair enough... 

We had a credit until this month when we are closer to breaking even, so in light of it getting colder and us having heating on wanted to up what we pay each month. 

I logged on to update the DD through the app by £15 per month to £85 but the app will only allow me to set it to between £107 and over £300 per month, surely this isn't right?! 

It seems crazy that I can't amend it to £85 per month, but CAN leave it at £70 per month, which will undoubtedly result in me being 'forced' to update my DD when it is reviewed as by then I will have been 'underpaying' for some time 

Nancy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5

Hi @MrsLG,

I’ve moved your post onto this topic - it sounds like you have a similar issue affecting your account. Check out the Best Answer at the top.

Thanks!

Your guiding light(bulb)
M
Rank

I’ve just received an estimate for year’s gas and electricily of £2751.97 and a suggestion that I increase my direct debit to £413 per month.

£413 * 12 =  £4956, which is 80% more than the estimated cost for a year.

I’ve tried to increase my direct debit to a more sensible amount, but it’s not possible to get it below £413.

Please explain.

Nancy_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5

Hi @Michael Hendry,

It might be best to get in touch with the team so they can look over your account. Unfortunately we can’t see your account details via the Forum, so we can’t see why this suggestion may have been made. 

Give us a ring (0330 303 5063), or send us a message on Facebook, Twitter, or through webchat via the Help Centre, with your account number, full name and DoB and we can look into this for you.
Cheers!

Your guiding light(bulb)
M
Rank

Thank you. I phoned the number you gave and was able to change my Direct Debit to £230 per month, which will come to £2760 per year - just over the estimated annual consumption.

S
Rank

It seemsova are really screwing things up. I am in credit, they asked me to increase my DD from £80 to £85, which I have now done but then I get a bullying email saying they will increase it to £91.  I live on my own. How can they do this?

Eva_OVO
Rank
Userlevel 5

This doesn’t sound right, @Suewest, if we’ve asked you to increase your direct Debit and you have you shouldn’t need to increase it again.

 

We’ll need to take a look into this, can you send us a message on Facebook or Twitter with your name, DoB and account number. If you don’t use social media, please get in touch through webchat, via the Help Centre.

My friend told me how electricity is measured and I was like Watt!
S
Rank

hello Eva   I have been trying very hard to send an email but with no luck. I copied your typing, am I missing something.

S
Rank

they have now gone through.  So I hope you can check things out for me

Reply


Terms & ConditionsCookie settings