Meter readings

[antongould]

Groundhog Day? What puzzles me about this sort of thing is that on the one hand companies whinge on about how much it costs to provide a service(especially when it involves "expensive" humans) and hike their prices accordingly, and yet seemingly simple cost saving measures, such as effective record-keeping and communication are ignored. It isn't much fun for the engineers( I would have thought they are technicians these days?) sent out repeatedly either; they get the customer's ire direct and to rub salt into the wound don't seem to get any functional support.

That says it all in a nutshell OOO - they have paid me £50 in compensation ........ I wonder how much in total all these chaotic companies have paid out in compensation since privatisation .....

[antongould]

That says it all in a nutshell OOO - they have paid me £50 in compensation ........ I wonder how much in total all these chaotic companies have paid out in compensation since privatisation .....

I think, although I can’t be sure having had so many battles, I have “won” my highest ever compensation - £100 for a friend of Lady Gould’s. She came off a wonderful fixed price deal in March and E.ON Next, sensibly, increased her monthly instalment as she had now, like the rest of us, to suffer much higher tariff rates.
The figure they came up with was in the ball park I expected …. but on her behalf I asked what tariff rates they had used over the year …. unbelievably after nearly 100 emails they have failed to show in detail how the instalment was calculated …. So the Energy Ombudsman has said they must within one month as well as paying the £100 ….

[eighthobstruction]

huzzah....

[Pulcinella]

Rather bizarrely, I have to give a meter reading (uploaded photograph) on 1 August to get my SEG solar panel payment for the year, though the rate changed midyear (from 3p per kWh to 16.5p per kWh) and I didn't have to submit a reading at that changeover date!

[Dave2002]

Rather bizarrely, I have to give a meter reading (uploaded photograph) on 1 August to get my SEG solar panel payment for the year, though the rate changed midyear (from 3p per kWh to 16.5p per kWh) and I didn't have to submit a reading at that changeover date!

Darn - I always forget these things. I'm not sure whether I missed the slot for sending in a reading or not - thanks for prodding my memory. I'll check.

Why is it that some meter readings are now done automatically, yet solar panel meter readings have to be done by the end user? Really not helpful at all.

In the past I found that if I didn't send in any readings for long enough, someone would come round to check and do it for me, and then I'd get a payment.

[Dave2002]

Even odder - yes I did (presumably) miss the date for readings to be sent in, but now it seems I'm supposed to send the readings to OVO energy. How did that happen?

I have no dealings with OVO energy. Is this genuine? Round here the DNO is SSEN and our electricity administration is handled by Octopus.

[antongould]

Whilst I have absolutely no knowledge of solar panels or the associated administration processes, I cannot help feeling it would all work so much better under our former nationalised structure …….

[Dave2002]

Whilst I have absolutely no knowledge of solar panels or the associated administration processes, I cannot help feeling it would all work so much better under our former nationalised structure …….

I'm not sure that you are right, but that said, I think that a lot of the fractured systems we have, which "do their own thing" - maybe independently - are close to chaotic. Trying to find out "who" is doing what is really hard, as companies and organisations change their names, and get taken over, or buy out other companies.

There ought to be better ways to get things done, but in the UK we sure haven't found them.

[oddoneout]

I'm not sure that you are right, but that said, I think that a lot of the fractured systems we have, which "do their own thing" - maybe independently - are close to chaotic. Trying to find out "who" is doing what is really hard, as companies and organisations change their names, and get taken over, or buy out other companies.

There ought to be better ways to get things done, but in the UK we sure haven't found them.

I'm sure better ways are known about but they don't serve the political purpose, so are rejected.

[DracoM]

...................and is that SO, so right!!

[antongould]

I'm not sure that you are right, but that said, I think that a lot of the fractured systems we have, which "do their own thing" - maybe independently - are close to chaotic. Trying to find out "who" is doing what is really hard, as companies and organisations change their names, and get taken over, or buy out other companies.

There ought to be better ways to get things done, but in the UK we sure haven't found them.

Given your uncertainty can you name any area of energy supply that works better in the privatised world ….. ?????

[Dave2002]

I'm sure better ways are known about but they don't serve the political purpose, so are rejected.

But what political purpose?

The ultra cynical would suggest just keeping useless and greedy politicians fed and watered, but maybe those are only the puppets - who or what are the puppet masters?

[oddoneout]

But what political purpose?

The ultra cynical would suggest just keeping useless and greedy politicians fed and watered, but maybe those are only the puppets - who or what are the puppet masters?

The right people rewarded and the coffers full.

[antongould]

The right people rewarded and the coffers full.

indeed - if I remember the hype/plan for privatisation it was that competition would bring greater efficiency and better customer service ….. scores out of 10 …. ?????

[Dave2002]

indeed - if I remember the hype/plan for privatisation it was that competition would bring greater efficiency and better customer service ….. scores out of 10 …. ?????

In some cases scores could go negative.

However it is very easy to surmise that this is due to privatisation, or some other aspect of capitalist economies, but it may actually be a totally misleading linkage.
Currently we have some privatised companies with lousy service. So applying post hoc ergo propter hoc it must follow that the lousy service is a result of privatisation.
Not only that, but some people are trying to turn this into a general and universal rule.

In some cases organisations, or their precursors, were appallingly bad before privatisation, and may have improved somewhat after privatisation, but are now taking a dip.

[antongould]

In some cases scores could go negative.

However it is very easy to surmise that this is due to privatisation, or some other aspect of capitalist economies, but it may actually be a totally misleading linkage.
Currently we have some privatised companies with lousy service. So applying post hoc ergo propter hoc it must follow that the lousy service is a result of privatisation.
Not only that, but some people are trying to turn this into a general and universal rule.

In some cases organisations, or their precursors, were appallingly bad before privatisation, and may have improved somewhat after privatisation, but are now taking a dip.

I may be wrong but you seem to be widening this to look at privatisation in general - I was talking specifically about energy supply …… I have yet to come across a new supplier who provides, what I would rate as, good billing and/or customer service. And to return to where I started, I have no doubt that the nationalised structure would cope much better with the intricacies of solar panel administration …….