Debt and payment

The dispute

The consumer was concerned with meeting their ongoing energy payments and discussed with their supplier what they could afford, resulting in the agreement the supplier would allow them to pay the debt off over the next 12 months. However, the consumer had other pressures, including credit card bills and council tax arrears which he had mentioned to the supplier. He also added that he was self-employed and work wasn’t regular, which made finding money to meet energy payments difficult.

The supplier confirmed it had worked with the consumer and had agreed a payment plan. It felt this was reasonable and reiterated that it would have to follow its debt path if payments weren’t made on time. Whilst it sympathised with the consumer, it felt it couldn’t assist any further and that had been generous with the 12-month payment period.

The outcome

From our review we determined that the supplier had initially done the correct thing regarding the payment plan. We could see that the supplier had fully considered the consumer’s ability to pay, assessing incomings and outgoings to reach a suitable payment plan. However, during the follow-up conversations, the supplier had missed opportunities to review whether the payment plan remained suitable in view of the consumer’s changing circumstances. We therefore required the supplier to reconsider what the consumer was being asked to pay.

We also felt that the supplier could have offered alternative cheaper tariffs and provide energy efficiency advice. These measures could have assisted the consumer in saving money and avoid problems, and we required the supplier to offer such support. In conclusion, the supplier could have done more to assist a consumer who found himself in an extremely challenging situation, and therefore required the supplier to apologise and make a time and trouble award to recognise the upset that could have been avoided.

Find out how we can help you with disputes with energy suppliers.