Read Disputes - What are they?

@temporary-new-name

 

Crikey! I feel for you. Sadly I don't have anything to say that can put your mind at rest other than to say you can contact OVO by email. Usually it takes about 1-2 days to get an answer. By all accounts you can also reach out to OVO via their Twitter or Facebook pages.

When you email them add your new OVO account number in the opening sentence so they can find your account.

As an additional suggestion could you contact BG and give them your correct meter reading?

Good luck at sorting it...

 

Just to re-iterate. I was informed by OVO to submit meter readings by the 5/12 for my transfer of service. I submitted readings on the 4/12. Yet the transfer used a completely made up figure then on the 29/11.

no one informed me of this. My account states I submitted this reading (I did not). So either your systems cannot distinguish between estimates and actual readings or someone impersonated me and submitted false information.

either way, it’s me having to mop up the mess.

Hey @temporary-new-name, I'm sorry to hear you haven't received any communication from us about this. It sounds like the industry have intervened and re-estimated your opening meter readings.

If you submit an opening meter reading to your new supplier, it's checked by the energy industry against your history of readings with your previous supplier. If it's deemed to be "out of line" at all, it may be amended before being send back to both suppliers to open/close your account. We can change this if they've got it wrong. We just need a backup set of readings, and we can send the information off.

During the course of a reading dispute, your billing with us will be 'suspended'. Your Direct Debits will continue to be paid into your OVO account, but we won't deduct any bills until the dispute has been resolved. If you've left British Gas completely at this point, you're perfectly entitled to cancel your Direct Debit with them via your bank. If there's anything outstanding ti pay once this is resolved, you can make a one off payment to cover it. They shouldn't chase you up for anything outstanding if they know there's a dispute ongoing.

It can take up to 12 weeks to resolved a reading dispute. Without your account details, it's difficult to be more specific than this. If there's anything that still needs clearing up, please drop the team on Facebook a message with your account number, full name and DoB and they'll be able to look into this for you.

Thanks.

Just to follow up on the Read Dispute that I submitted to OVO. I've heard from British Gas (my previous supplier) that they only received a correct reading for the Electricity meter and not both Gas & Electricity.

BG are blaming this on OVO for submitting the wrong readings to them on 29th November. All I know is that this seems to be getting deliberately dragged out and I'm caught in the middle.

I've submitted emails, online contact and used this forum. I've raised official complaints to both BG and OVO. Yet I hear almost nothing (at least BG have got in touch. Even if it is to deny it's their problem).

Can someone please just sort this out?

@temporary-new-name

Don't waste your time emailing or using Twitter, this is clearly causing you distress which needs prompt answers. Telephone the above number, they're usually very helpfully.

@temporary-new-name

Obviously I can't advise regarding debt collectors but I would think any such action would fail anyway under the circumstances. You've taken all the right steps to resolve the issue but either BG or OVO are preventing or delaying resolution.

Whilst I do understand how annoying this situation is for you it might be best to take @Tim_OVO advise, I know that means going out of your way but at least you can demonstrate you've exhausted every avenue of support.

I'll end on a familiar mock Latin aphorism, it seems quite fitting under the circumstances, you'll have to Google it's meaning...

'Illegitimi non carborundum'

@temporary-new-name

I'm sure it will be solved sooner or later, it's just a shame your stuck in the middle of the two companies while they sort it out and being powerless to do anything to speed things along must be infuriating.

If worst case scenario happens and neither company can resolve the issue you should eventually receive a letter of deadlock at which time you will have the opportunity to fight your case through Ofgem

I don't know if you've seen this video but it should help you understand the process.

See this link: Energy complaints procedure: A video guide

I am currently trying to leave OVO and although I had a smart meter fitted, they are still claiming after over 8 weeks that they have incorrect final meter readings. They have now advised me it may take up to 12 weeks to sort this out, whilst they are sitting on £290 of my money. I have reported them to the Ombudsman.


Sorry to hear this, @UnhappyOVOcustomer, unfortunately validating the final readings can take a little longer if there's industry issues.

It sounds like we've raised a read dispute, read through this topic for more help with this.

Here's some more information on our complaints procedure.

I have a read dispute going on.  This is based on an 'estimateed reading when starting my account.  This is despte being with Ovo previously,  having an ovo smart meter, briefly tryng a new provider and returning to ovo within a month,  where on doing so I provided ovo with the correct reading prior to leaving and returning with the addition of ovo being already connected to their smart meter to take a reading on leaving as well as returning which already matched mine.  My projected monthly statement is now nearly 3 times my monthly average despite having switched back about 4 months ago,  and having a steady no change in my usage per day which is nigh on exactly my same usage as the previous 13 months + i originally spent with ovo and the yearly forecast is double despite it beinging impossible to be so.

 

Am i now going to be dragged as a consumer through 12 weeks of 'your fault my problem' 

I'm in a real quandary with this too. We have a smart reader that automatically sends readings through to OVO. We've just left OVO (who, by the way, have been exemplary up to now) for a cheaper supplier. I've just received an email from OVO telling me that they're raising a read dispute with my new supplier as the final reading was an estimate even though we have a smart meter that sends accurate readings literally all the time. I don't get it? Why the need for estimates? They're sitting on over £800 of my money which I presume I now won't see for a further 3 months. I just don't understand this at all  Can anyone help me with this please? 

I have tried to switch from Ovo to Bulb as of March 2019. 10 months on, my Ovo account has not been closed due to an outstanding read dispute.

This has been rumbling on for many months where first Ovo say they raised a read dispute, and escalated it 4 times, but Bulb claimed it was not on the system. Bulb claimed they were missing some meter information, so would not upload my opening meter reading that I sent them. Once Bulb received this information from Ovo, they made it possible for me to see the meter readings they had uploaded on to my account. 

I saw Bulb made a typo on the opening reading, and I told them that they must change it. They then raised a read dispute.  I have been in contact with both Bulb and Ovo over the last 3 months since then and each say that the other has not responded to the read dispute and that I should chase up the other one!

Has anyone got a suggestion that I should try to resolve this? If I go down the route of official complaint, do I write two separate complaint letters to each company? It might be one of the companies is telling the truth, or there is some miscommunication between them somehow, but from my view point I cannot tell which! They both just tell me that they cannot do anything until the other responds!

 

Thanks,

nsmy17