5 hours ago
3
I am living in my first home since coming out of foster care. I moved into the flat in 2020, and topped up my credit meter with £50 a month, as instructed by my housing association. I understood that this covered my gas and electricity use.
In 2023, I received a demand for more than £2,700 from EDF, stating that I had not been paying my electricity bill. It has since had me on a payment plan of £108 a month. I’ve now been told that it should not have billed me for more than a year’s worth of arrears.
I feel that it is taking advantage of the fact that I don’t know how the system works.
LRE, London
It’s hard to imagine how it must be for young people in care to be flung into the adult world as soon as they come of age without the support most of us take for granted.
I established that your housing association flat is on a communal heating network, which means the costs of heating and hot water are divided among residents and included in the service charge. Those on low incomes can pay incrementally on a prepayment meter, which you have been doing.
Unbeknownst to you, a second meter, supplied by EDF, recorded your electricity consumption. It is locked away and accessible only to the housing association and, since you didn’t know about it, you didn’t inform EDF that you had moved in.
Backbilling rules mean suppliers can’t charge for more than 12 months’ supply if they haven’t previously sent bills.
EDF tells me it did send bills addressed to the owner/occupier since it didn’t have your name. That means the backbilling rule does not apply and you are liable for the electricity you have used since 2020.
EDF does offer grants and deals to help customers on low incomes and it told me it would look into what support it could offer you.
The meter was replaced with a smart meter in 2023 and it has now belatedly discovered that your actual consumption since then shows its previous estimates were too high.
It’s therefore reduced your debt by £105 and moved you to a better tariff that reduces your monthly payments. You can’t access the smart meter, but you can track your consumption on the EDF app.
Your housing association, Wandle, tells me it was unaware that you were vulnerable and that its support team will now be in touch with you. It also says that it will now produce an energy information sheet for new residents to prevent your situation recurring.
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