E.ON Next is receiving negative press for its handling of a billing dispute. This matter concerns a substantial check made payable to the estate of a deceased account holder. Foxtons meanwhile produced an invoice for nearly £13,000 in the name of a woman who had passed away in 2015. They even go on to assert that her business account had a credit balance of £6,000. This issue may create doubt about E.ON Next’s adherence to energy regulations and its overall billing practices.
The row started when energy provider E.ON Next issued an eye-watering £12,960 demand to the deceased mother’s account. This estimate included energy usage from as far back as May 2021. The tenant’s utility company had indeed only moved to a smart meter in early 2022, which had sent more frequent readings for the last 20 months. The contested bill has since seen the intervention of the Energy Ombudsman. They found that E.ON Next had back-billed an outstanding balance exceeding the back-billing limit set by their energy regulatory body. According to NPR’s reporting, under these rules, energy providers cannot charge customers for consumption that was never billed over 12 months.
After investigating the Ombudsman’s findings, E.ON Next withdrew the £12,960 bill. However, for some reason, the firm subtracted £3,360 from the credit, using the energy usage logged starting in early 2022. Even after applying this credit adjustment, E.ON Next has so far not repaid the rest of the amount owed to the estate.
E.ON Next accepted that their automatic billing process had been inconsistent. An agent photographed the existing meter readings and installed an in-home display smart meter. The company further later stated that the £6,000 credit on the account was due to incorrect estimated meter readings. This irregularity has caused deep frustration for everyone working on it.
“We have applied back-billing protection to both the old and new accounts, cleared all outstanding balances, removed any negative credit reference data and issued a goodwill payment.” – E.ON
Things only intensified when E.ON Next tried to recover the debt from the estate through collection actions with knowledge of the ongoing dispute. The Energy Ombudsman stepped in to ensure E.ON Next upheld the back-billing policy. Without these regulations, consumers would be subject to outrageous costs.
Consumer advocates have raised concerns about E.ON Next’s billing practices, noting that “charges are repeatedly reversed and reapplied. Balances wildly fluctuate.” This patchwork of experiences has left both customers and often their attorneys in limbo — especially in matters with deceased account holders on the account.
E.ON Next’s billing crisis led to a debate about the actions and practices of energy providers. All too often, these discussions are limited to their regulatory compliance with standards. Consumers have a right to demand simple, straightforward, and clear billing processes. This is all the more critical during sensitive times, such as when an account holder has died.
To this day, the estate is still waiting for the balance of £3,360.00 taken from its account to be repaid. And energy providers should be held to the laws that are already on the books. Finally, utility companies must thoroughly inform customers about their account balance and billing practices and policies.