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My parents have been charged £10 'site visit' for reading a meter?


My elderly parents have been charged £10 for reading their electric meter.

Best answer by Jeffus

Updated on 23/01/25 by Abby_OVO

 

@deenahowells yep, definitely get them signed up as they are entitled as they are pensioners. They then get lots of things, including asking for free quarterly meter readings. 

Here is a list of the things in case you miss it. 

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

Personally i have never heard of meter readings being charged anyway. I suggest you contact the OVO support team with your parents and ask OVO if they will remove the cost in this situation. 

 

It can be difficult to contact OVO sometimes. I often suggest if you struggle, send a private message via the OVO twitter or Facebook page. The OVO staff their have access to accounts. You would need to include the name, address, account number and date of birth of the account holder. Explain the situation and the fact they are pensioners etc and that they have now signed up to the priority service register. Ask for a refund and an explanation. They always get back in a day or 2, often much quicker in my experience. 

Worth a try i think, but up to you. Let us know how you get on and if we can help with further queries. 

 

You can fill out the form for the Priority Services Register directly from here: https://www.ovoenergy.com/register-for-priority-services, or you can print out the form and send it back to us via Post; https://www.ovobyus.com/m/e66803421b73b59/original/ovo-psr-form-for-web-feb-2020.pdf.

 

If it’s easier for you to call us: 

  • If you pay monthly for your energy, call us on 0330 303 5063 (Monday to Friday 8am-6pm) and we can register you over the phone

  • Or if you pay as you go for your energy, call us on0330 175 9669  Mon-Thu 8am to 8pm, Friday 8am to 6pm, Sat-Sun 8am to 5pm.

 

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12 replies

Blastoise186
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 7867 replies
  • October 25, 2022

That’s a bit strange! I’ve never known OVO to charge for that.

You might want to consider a Smart Meter upgrade for them though. It should avoid this kind of issue happening again.


Jeffus
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 2553 replies
  • October 25, 2022
deenahowells wrote:

My elderly parents have been charged £10 for reading their electric meter.

Hi @deenahowells did the charge appear on their bill?


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter***
  • 5 replies
  • October 25, 2022

Hi, yes it appeared as “Site visit Two hour Time slot”

My parents live in a small block of flats, where the meters are housed in a cupboard inside the communal entrance. They were totally unaware of this visit, and were definitely not informed beforehand.


Jeffus
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  • October 25, 2022
deenahowells wrote:

Hi, yes it appeared as “Site visit Two hour Time slot”

My parents live in a small block of flats, where the meters are housed in a cupboard inside the communal entrance. They were totally unaware of this visit, and were definitely not informed beforehand.

Hi @deenahowells Are they pensioners? 


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter***
  • 5 replies
  • October 25, 2022

Yes they are. My mum is caring for my dad also.


Blastoise186
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 7867 replies
  • October 25, 2022

Hmm… That’s still rather strange!

I’d definitely recommend getting them on the Priority Service Register, since that should prevent further charges for any future meter reading visits, even if they don’t get a Smart Meter. You can do that via https://www.ovoenergy.com/register-for-priority-services

It might be worth disputing that charge as well.


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter***
  • 5 replies
  • October 25, 2022

Thank you for your reply and link.  I have sent an email of complaint, and asked for an explanation regarding the charge. I will definitely get them on the Priority Service Register too. Thanks again.


Blastoise186
Plan Zero Hero
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 7867 replies
  • October 25, 2022

No worries.

It’s not much, but I’d like you to have this as well. I believe your parents may benefit from it.

https://ovoenergy.com/winter-support-delivery/sign-up .

It’s OVO’s Customer Support Package. There’s bound to be something it can offer, so it’s worth a shot!


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter***
  • 5 replies
  • October 25, 2022

That’s great. I will look into that as well. It’s the first time I’ve posted and I really appreciate the advice. Thank you so much. 


Jeffus
Plan Zero Hero
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  • Plan Zero Hero
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  • Answer
  • October 25, 2022

Updated on 23/01/25 by Abby_OVO

 

@deenahowells yep, definitely get them signed up as they are entitled as they are pensioners. They then get lots of things, including asking for free quarterly meter readings. 

Here is a list of the things in case you miss it. 

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

Personally i have never heard of meter readings being charged anyway. I suggest you contact the OVO support team with your parents and ask OVO if they will remove the cost in this situation. 

 

It can be difficult to contact OVO sometimes. I often suggest if you struggle, send a private message via the OVO twitter or Facebook page. The OVO staff their have access to accounts. You would need to include the name, address, account number and date of birth of the account holder. Explain the situation and the fact they are pensioners etc and that they have now signed up to the priority service register. Ask for a refund and an explanation. They always get back in a day or 2, often much quicker in my experience. 

Worth a try i think, but up to you. Let us know how you get on and if we can help with further queries. 

 

You can fill out the form for the Priority Services Register directly from here: https://www.ovoenergy.com/register-for-priority-services, or you can print out the form and send it back to us via Post; https://www.ovobyus.com/m/e66803421b73b59/original/ovo-psr-form-for-web-feb-2020.pdf.

 

If it’s easier for you to call us: 

  • If you pay monthly for your energy, call us on 0330 303 5063 (Monday to Friday 8am-6pm) and we can register you over the phone

  • Or if you pay as you go for your energy, call us on0330 175 9669  Mon-Thu 8am to 8pm, Friday 8am to 6pm, Sat-Sun 8am to 5pm.

 


  • Author
  • Carbon Cutter***
  • 5 replies
  • October 25, 2022

You’ve been a huge help, and I will definitely let you know how I get on.   Gone are the days that you can call a company and submit your meter readings without waiting for ages, but this is how it is now! I’m trying to convince my parents to have smart meters installed, but that’s proving quite difficult at the moment. I’m new to facebook, but I will also send them a message through this route, as you’ve suggested.  
I appreciate all your help. 🙏🏻


Blastoise186
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  • Plan Zero Hero
  • 7867 replies
  • October 25, 2022

No worries. Glad we could help!

We’ll be here if you need us again. :)


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