My switch away was rejected as I have a 'profile class 0' (commercial) supply - how do I get database updated?

I have the situation whereby I moved into a property over 10 years ago and have had several gas and electricity suppliers and no problem switching between them. However, I applied to switch away from OVO  recently and have been told by the supplier I’ve applied to that, because of the way my electricity details are recorded on the industry database they’re unable to make any changes to the way my details are stored, as my current supplier is responsible for keeping my details up to date. They have advised that my electricity meter is currently showing as non domestic, profile class 0.

Last year I gave up trying to switch for the same reason, but this year I wish to get this issue resolved. Do I need to provide the same information detailed above* bearing in mind this was not an issue in the early years of my owning the property and appears to result from, perhaps, a meter change.

*Specifically: 

a. Your full name and address
b. The date you moved in
c. The name of the previous occupant
and preferably the address they've moved to
d. The gas meter number
and the meter reading for the day you moved in
e. The electricity meter number (which can be used to verify the address)
 

Well I’m unsurprised that the new Energy Supplier rejected the switch. Meter Profile Class 00 is a commercial user with peak demand in excess of 100kW

Historically this won’t have been a problem, but the National electricity meter database, ECOES, are continually honing the rules in order to clear out just such anomolies.  Energy Suppliers must register with Ofgem according to the types of customer contracts they provide. So a Supplier registered for Profile classes 1 & 2 can’t take over a meter that’s Class 0.

Yes, just email OVO with the suggested proof of identity and ask them to get it changed. hello@ovoenergy.com

Thank you. Interestingly, they are the second supplier to reject this switch for the reason outlined. Thank you for taking the time to respond.

HI @HelsTC 

I’ve moved your back and forth with @Transparent over to this topic. Please see the ‘best answer’ (at the top) for info on the likely cause of this issue, and how to resolve. 

Could you also consider coming back here to update us on what happened and in what time frames? It will be useful for anyone with the same query :)

Happy to provide updates. I've just requested the amendment via Facebook messenger and provided the information required.

Update: having contacted OVO regarding the need to amend my meter details on the national database they have advised me the amendment should be done in 4 weeks, from tomorrow. Information provided to them: my account no., name and date of birth.

That seems quite a long delay, doesn’t it?

I guess it’s not entirely within OVO’s control. They must allow ECOES sufficient time to go through all their checks.

After all, there are probably several commercial users who would be very keen to have their meter re-classed as domestic if it was easy enough to do!

Yes, it does seem like a long time but no doubt there's a reason. It's enough time to estimate any loss of savings resulting from the delay to the switch and to work out who 'sold' me the smart meter. 

Yes @HelsTC this time is for the administrators of the database (ECOES) to get round to the update. We might take a day or two to pick up the request and send it over, but then it’s on them. 
 

Check back with the Support team in 3 weeks in case the update’s ahead of schedule :)

Unfortunately that remains unacceptable in light of the fact I flagged this issue 1 year ago in an attempt to switch away and neither OVO or the supplier I wished to switch to had answers other than ‘it’s a commercial meter’ or ‘it’s not a commercial meter but other suppliers don’t understand that’. So 1 year later,  I attempt another switch away and find I am now unable to complete that switch before the OVO announced price increase due to the same issue (the switch should, under normal circumstances, have completed on 26.9.20). Pennies it may be, but that is not the point. OVO will know exactly which suppliers customers go to and which suppliers their new customers come from: that ought to make it easy to resolve this issue in a communication to other suppliers, or do suppliers not communicate for the good of customers?

That’s not a good background story @HelsTC. I wish you’d posted here last year and I could’ve advised then how to get this resolved in time.

Whilst I appreciate all the checks that ECOES need to go through, they, like OVO, are still subject to the authority of the Energy Ombudsman. If you don’t have a satisfactory resolution within 8-weeks, you are able to take an issue to them whether or not you have been supplied with the proper Deadlock Notification.

This is the sort of advice that we can help with, here on the Forum.

Actually OVO have an excellent record in resolving matters before there’s any need to approach the Office of the Energy Ombudsman. That’s why they repeatedly score highly in the annual Which? customer survey.

So I’m pretty sure you’ll get the required action from them… but we could’ve done so ten months back.

Yep as @Transparent mentioned, a bad background story/experience for you @HelsTC 

If we can find some kind of trace to suggest that you flagged this to us earlier then the few weeks ago that you mentioned, I’m sure the agent, or their manager, would be able to consider this in a resolution. Having worked in the ‘Complaints’ team for years, I would suggest (assuming we can confirm evidence of you contacting us about this issue last year) that we could look to cover any difference in prices from the supplier of your choice at the time.  

One bit of defense for OVO here: it’s the new supplier that has rejected this switch. It’s their prerogative to reach out. But even if they did, you’d need to restart the switch directly with them. 

Hope this gets resolved quickly. Feel free to send the URL of this topic to any agent you speak to on the web chat team

Just been catching up on the situation @HelsTC and it doesn’t sound ideal to hear you mentioned this a year back. 

I’m hoping the process here on is a smooth one, but please keep us posted.

@Transparent. Thank you. Unfortunately I just did not have the time to see it through last year as it was evident to me from the responses of both suppliers last August that neither recognised it was unacceptable to expect me to spend time convincing the other supplier that they were the party in this situation that needed to address the issue. In fact neither recognised a dead end / stale mate had been reached. This was probably not reflective of OVO organisational culture, but clearly this one individual did not recognise the situation I was being put in.

I agree, OVO are a great provider in my experience and I am confident the people with the right problems solving skills now have this on their radar, and would be highly surprised if I found myself in the position in which the Ombudsman was the next step.

Yes, I don’t think this one will end up with the Energy Ombudsman either.

But for the sake of others who come to read this in future, you don’t actually require a Deadlock Letter in order to take a matter to the Ombudsman. You merely have to demonstrate that you’ve exhausted the (Ofgem approved) complaints process for your Energy Supplier.

And that’s why I always recommend that such communication is done by email. You get to retain a time/date-stamped copy of what you wrote. Simples.

Even if the actual issue rests at the door of ECOES, the route to a resolution starts with the Complaints Procedure of the Supplier.