As someone who has permission to visit that office from time to time, let me say this much.

A placard and a megaphone will have little to no impact in that location - there’s very little foot traffic and far too much traffic noise to drown you out. There’s also a small chance that some friends of mine might give you some shiny silver bracelets to wear too… Apparently they’re very fashionable but not the most comfortable, or so I’m told. Still, they’re very secure so you’d hardly risk losing them...

Oh, and the building is sound insulated, so you wouldn’t be heard inside either.

You should try a giant concert speaker setup instead. :D

Strangely enough, that I can do.  I gig in my spare time and have a PA system that fits nicely on the back of a 7.5t flatbed ;D

@Firedog 

Nah….you will always be a tech guru in my eyes

Is it 100% definite that an E10 smart meter can be reconfigured to E7 AND correctly control the offpeak circuits in a dwelling?

May be yet another stupid question on my part, but read several articles today saying a change of meter may be necessary. Hope they are wrong

@JessicaRose 

OMG im so sorry! This threads one and only success has turned into yet another damp squib. Im beginning to think its actually impossible for a company to be this accidentally incompetent

On the other hand, your experience with the Ombudsman is mirroring mine. When all is said and done, if Ovo dont want to play ball, the Ombudsman is actually toothless

Ive now rung Octopus three times and each time was speaking to someone sensible inside about 60 seconds. Trouble is, I cant get away from Ovo until this debacle is sorted

So sorry to hear this. I’d really like to know precisely what you mean by this, though, because there are time settings all over the place.

• The basis, on which all else should rest, is your Plan. This is where the type of tariff (e.g. Economy 10), its TOU rates and its timings are given.
    
• The meter’s TOU settings. This is what tells the meter when to switch the registers from peak to offpeak and back again. You can really only find out what these are by looking at the meter to see what the Active Tariff Price is at particular times, e.g. 06:30, 09:00, 14:00 and 21:00. This will confirm which plan the meter’s registers are set up for:
    

  Time	E7	E10
  06:30	Offpeak	Peak
  09:00	Peak	Peak
  14:00	Peak	Offpeak
  21:00	Peak	Offpeak

  
  It would help to know what the two registers (TOU Rate 1 and TOU Rate 2) were saying each time. This would tell us which register is peak and which offpeak.
    
• The meter’s ALCS settings. This is what governs the times your heating circuits are active. The second little icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the meter’s screen (labelled ıı ) will tell you the switch’s state, with o´o indicating open, i.e. inactive, off. When the heating circuits are active, the icon should change and may show o¯o or perhaps  LC1  or  LC2  or both, depending on how the ALCS is wired up inside the meter. 

If you could post pictures of the meter’s screens at the times I suggested, we’d be able to see which bit of your meter is back on E7 timings. Any change must have been triggered by something, e.g. a remote configuration by the OVO smart team. Did anything else change at the same time? Anything funny about your readings history, for example?

The more we learn about these cases, the more likely it becomes that we’ll be able to help others in the same sort of situation.

Well I honestly dont know what to do…

1. No one from the Ovo ACR team is ringing back despite the in depth chat Monday when I spelled out they should not be marking my Ombudsman case as settled because I dont have working E7
2. Despite me leaving two voicemails and 3 messages on their website, I received this email today from the Ombudsan Service, marked “Case Resolved”

   Hello The company has confirmed that it has implemented all resolutions required on the case.  Please log in to your online account using the link below and check the evidence section, as this may contain new documents in relation to your resolution, for example; an apology letter or revised bill. If you have checked the evidence section of your case and feel the resolution is not complete in line with what we set out, please let us know. We will need you to be specific about what hasn’t been done as this will enable us to better understand and process your query. If you have a new aspect to your case you would need to raise this as a new dispute with your company.

   Basically Ovo can feed the Ombudsman any old incorrect information and they just accept it. Needless to say, I have already done the things mentioned in their email more than once. I cant even leave Ovo until the meter is fixed ready for a new provider

So frustrated its untrue

LOL are they taking the mick?

Just had an email from Ombudsman saying “As your case is now marked resolved, please complete the survey below and tell us how we did”

Jeez wept

I can understand your frustration, @MikeMilf. I’m confident the person assigned to your Ombudsmen complaint will be picking up your messages and reaching out about it. It might just take a few days as other customers who messaged in before you need help as well. We should be doing better though, I’m really sorry. Drop the Forum_Support team a message if you hear nothing by this time next week (it’s a bank holiday Friday and Monday so response times may be further delayed) and they can chase things up for you. 

@Tim_OVO 

Im still waiting for a call back from the ACR team whom i spoke to on Monday. Will probably chase this up after Easter, as chasing this today will probably put me in a poor mood ahead of Easter.

Thank you for the response though

Hope everyone had a good Easter!

Needless to say, no responses from Ombudsman or Ovo ACRt team. Having elderly relations to stay reallu highlighted the extra cost when off peak heating circuits kick in at peak rate times of day

On a separate note, can any guide me to the current on demand E7 tariff rates? Yes my rates have dropped, but my old mum in High Wycombe is paying less despite being on an identical tariff.

PS - Isnt it lovely how the standing charge gets quietly jacked up? Mine has gone from 53.35 to 66.34 exc VAT. I make that 24.3%!

Forget the part of my last post asking for current tariffs - found the relevant Ovo web page.

It appears Im being  charged the correct E7 rate albeit with a meter thats not properly controlling my flat

It also appears that I should move in with my mum lol. Her rates are noticeably cheaper in High Wycombe than mine in West London lol

Any update on if you have heard from the ACR team @MikeMilf? If you haven’t heard anything by this afternoon I will ask our Forum_Support to reach out so we can raise this internally. 

@ChristopherS_OVO 

Well this afternoon I tried yet again to get a response from the ACR team re the post-Ombudsman issue I originally raised on 25.03.24

Phone was answered by a very young sounding girl who didnt exactly inspire confidence as she was really nervous. Twice she put me on hold for 10 minutes while she tried to find a case handler who could escalate matters.

Yet again I had to give details of the problem despite having done so before. I know this to be the case as she read back the notes of my previous phone call.

By the end of the conversation I was struggling to keep my cool as its such a waste of time on these calls, but ultimately not the girls fault. She then left me on hold for another 15 minutes, by which time I had to hang up and go out to an appointment.

Oh well….only another 43 minutes of my life wasted with Ovo. Very effective tactice though….leave people on hold so long they hang up in disgust

All I know is, if I treated my clients like you do your customers, I would have none left

What next?

I think you need to chill about a bit tbh. That particular agent was probably new and still training. It’s unfair to put pressure on them like that.

I beg your pardon?

I was perfectly respectful and polite even after being dumped on hold for the second time with no explanation. I said in my post it wasnt the girls fault and I certainly didnt put her under pressure as you put it

As for “chill out a bit” I best not answer that. This was supposed to be the Advance Complaint Resolution Team, whom Im only having to deal with as Ovo didnt do their job properly since August 2023

Tell you what…..you ignore me and I will return the favour

I was merely advising you. Forum_Support is the last resort option we have here - after that it’s the end of the road.

Use it wisely.

Well ultimately Ive got to do all again next week for the third time, or just sit back and accept that Ovo can just get away with leaving me with a wrongly configured meter.

Theyve told the Ombudsman all remedies have been completed, and he just sits back and accepts their statement without getting confirmation from me. Consequently the case has been closed.

I cant even get away from Ovo because a new supplier wont take on another supplier’s problems…...so excuse me if Im peeved

Mike… I’m a econ 7 customer who’s meter is faulty .. I asked for an econ 10 meter to be fitted which they duly have arranged at the end of May. The engineer told me that ovo don’t have the software but would fit it anyway .. I’m disabled and at home all day and have storage heaters which charged me £500 per month in Jan my first month at the house .. I’ve been here 3 months and have an £800 + bill with no cooker or washing or drying as we have a communal laundry .. also just one person.. is it worth me getting the econ 10 and then going to another company or shall I stay with my econ 7 .. sorry to ask but these electric stuff just makes my head spin .. we have solar panels belonging to our housing association but as far as I can see is just giving free solar to the grid .. do you mind helping me understand all this please ? Many thanks from bamboozled customer on universal credit used to nice easy cheap GAS heating 

You can’t just go from E7 to E10 in one fell swoop, that’s not how it works I’m afraid.

Hi @kerryelaine100,

We have a really handy article here that explains economy 7 and if it’s right for you. I would also highlight that you can speak with our Support Team and they can review your account and advise what could be best for you. 

I hope this helps and if you speak to them let us know what the outcome of the conversation was 

@kerryelaine100

Sorry I couldnyt reply sooner but have been away for a few days. Others can probaby advise your better but speaking as an E10 customer that ended up at the Ombudsman and still isnt sorted I would raise the following points:

(i) You say the meter is faulty. Has that been agreed with Ovo and what were the symptoms of it not operating correctly?

(ii) Does your meter switch between peak/offpeak at the correct E7 times of day?

(ii) E10 will probaly deal with night storage heaters better, but be aware, Ovo continually told me throughout my case that they dont support it.

(iii) E10 may well tie you to Ovo (if it works) as very few providers now offer it. If you wish to switch in the future your choices may be very limited.

Given your personal circumstances I would be speaking to Ovo, Universal Credit and Citizens Advice to see what help is available. Those sort of bills would be eye watering for any person, let alone somone suffering from disability. If you dont ask you definitely dont get.

Keep us informed and best wishes

@MikeMilf - I don't want to jinx things but it could be that this is actually now resolved.

So, as I think I said, my meter reverted back to the E7 timings after being ‘fixed’ for a couple of weeks.  After a whole heap more emails back and forth and my solicitors beginning proceedings against Ovo for breach of contract, I have ended up with this response today;

(For clarity, Ovo updated my meter again to E10 timings about 3 weeks ago but I didn't have any contact from them to say that toyed done it, I then sent a chase email over this weekend)

I haven’t been in touch until now because I was waiting for confirmation that the smart meter has not only changed back to economy 10 but will stay as economy 10. I received this confirmation late last week, and I was going to email you this morning. I can see you beat me to it with the contact. I am sorry if you feel you have been chasing me; that was not my intention.

The billing system’s ability to send tariff updates was disabled until later in the year when OVO should have fully updated its systems to support this contract type. 

Regarding the additional goodwill for the service shortfalls that occurred after the implementation of your Ombudsman case REDACTED, I mentioned it would be significantly more than the £80 previously offered, and I would like to award £200. This can either be added to your OVO account or refunded to the bank account you pay your Direct Debit from. Please let me know, and I will implement this. 

Don't get me wrong, £200 is a welcome gustier and more than I thought I might get but Im more relieved that they've actually admitted that they screwed it all up and have found a way to resolve this whole debacle.

I hope you can reach out to someone who can see some of this internally and be able to apply the fix to your meter and account too.

@JessicaRose @MikeMilf  I am really pleased that you appear to have had some success. I myself am still waiting for OVO to implement the Ombudsman's requirements. They have a week left and all I’ve had is a call saying he would sort it out and and an email that showed he had no idea what we were talking about! I’ve had £200 ‘goodwill’! I won't hold my breath that I get it resolved!

I had an email today saying;

We’re sending you a revised bill

We wanted to let you know you're about to receive a revised bill from us.

A technical error meant we haven’t sent you a bill recently and your previous bills may have been incorrect. We're very sorry about this - the error has now been fixed.

We'll be sending a revised bill which will cover the time since your last accurate bill. This bill may be quite long but it'll accurately show any charges and payments you’ve made so far.

I really don't know what this is about! My bills have been monthly.  And apart from the inconsistency between my heating changing on E10 times  and charging E7 times, broadly correct!

Yet another example of OVO not having a clue about what is going on!

@JessicaRose @pegem 

Hi guys...truth to be told, I had to take a break fr om thinking about Ovo Energy and wasting endless hours on the phone for no end result. Was beginning to get me too stressed and at the end of the day, they arent worth it

It seems that £200 is their standard “shut up and go away” offer as that is also what I received (albeit they laughingly offered £100 to start with

I think Im in the same position as @pegem. They have put me on E7 as requested and the tariffs are correct. However needless to say it doesnt match with my offpeak circuits which still change according to E10 times. Only reason I havent ranted is my night storgage heaters arent in use and my bills have dropped markedly due to the recent energy cap reduction

They were very quick to tell the Ombudsman that all his remedies had been implemented, at which point my case was closed. When I follwed up six times with phone calls to the complaints team, I either got a staff member way out of their depth, or a promise of a return call which never came.

If there are any definite remedoes to the meter/E7/E10 problem I would love to know. Im past phone calls now - its recorded delivery letters and a vain hope this can be sorted before I need my heating on again.

Best Wishes to All

After receiving an email saying we had to change our economy 10 meter to an economy 10 smart meter. We booked in and had one installed last week. 

I queried several times it definitely would be economy 10 hours, was promised it would be and now trying to speak to someone who can help as we have economy 7 hours.

I've so far been told economy 10 smart meters dont exist. We must have been economy 7 before they cant move us to economy 10 from 7. I was told we had to wait 6 weeks for it to be validated. 

Been told we have never been economy 10, sent them the email and have got nowhere with it. And just want to cry to be honest. We didn't want a smart meter, we were happy with taking readings.

I've been on an online chat for an hour and it feels like he isn't even listening to what I've said or read the email I forwarded that ovo sent us. 

Sorry for ranting, but any advice how to get this fixed? Really can do without a big bill, our boiler charges automatic in economy 10 hours.