Scottish Hydro prices

[Gandalf]

Like everyone else buying ridiculously high priced electricity from SSE I received my letter recently with the latest price rises. I have just discovered that you can avoid these rises by signing up for a year at the old prices that were in force prior to this increase which is about 8.2% less than the new price and this is available for economy 7 and THTC customers too. There is an exit penalty but they say that signing up for the fixed deal could save over £100 on the average bill for a year. Apologies if everyone was already aware of this but after reading Jim's appeal for more contributions to the board I thought I would share it anyway. Information on the fixed price plan available here: http://www.hydro.co.uk/GasAndElectricit ... PricePlan/

[jimcee]

Gandalf,
Your intervention is very helpful with the current hikes in energy prices.
However I decided to follow this up on the link in your message.
I nievely thought that by clicking a few boxes and giving my account number they would have me on board for this deal.
Unfortunately such is not the case, and by visiting their website, it is impossible to sign up for this relief.
However It is possible during working hours to speak to a person on the telephone (if you are prepared to wait in a queue, and as it is an 0800 number that is not a big deal if time is plentiful). So, I will try to follow up this loophole in the escalation of exorbitant price increases tomorrow, and hope to have more information at my fingertips in the near future.

[jimcee]

Update on the Hydro Board offer.
Phoned the Hydro at about 4.15 pm on their 0800 number.
After covering two sets of options I was put on hold (with music) for about 12 minutes
When speaking to a person told them I wanted to avail myself of their offer.
Gave my customer number and name.
A very convoluted explanation was then given of why this was not possible there and then, but it would be transferred to a different department, who would probabbly be able to accede to my request.
To facilitate matters I was asked to supply them with a current meter reading - which I did.
I am now in limbo waiting for some sort of communication, sometime, from Hydro, on whether this goes ahead - or not.
If anyone else tries to sign up for this offer, it would be a great help to others if they could relate their experiences here.

[jimcee]

For anyone who is still following this saga (136 hits so far) perhaps it is due for an update. After about a week's silence I phoned the Hydro Board and got through to speak to a person.
He seemed surprised that I had received no communication from them and offered to make sure that this omission was dealt with. He asked me whether I would prefer a phone call am or pm - I opted for pm , but although that was about 5 or 6 days ago they have never been back to me.
It does seem surprising that when I actually get to speak to a real live employee of the Hydro Board that they acannot deal with my request, but say that I will receive an answer by telephone (which, so far has not been forthcoming).
In the upcomming week I will once again contact the Hydro helpline to find out what has happened to my request, but please be aware that I doubt if I will be any the wiser at this stage in the proceedings.
Unless, of course, it is like water dripping on a stone (or waterboarding) and they will eventually give in, and accede to my request - but the omens are not good.

[jimcee]

As people still seem to be accessing this thread - perhaps an update is in order.
I got back to the Hydro board on one of their 0800 numbers - no messing about with 0845 or 0870 where I am paying to listen to music until an operator returns from coffee break.
Eventually (11 minutes later) spoke to a lassie who listened to my sad story about a lack of communication from them.
She tried to fob me off with the excuse that I was not eligible for their largesse. However, as a dour Scot, I insisted that I was, and even quoted their own blurb on the subject.
This must have struck a chord somewhere, because she left me in limbo (more music) while she spoke to a superior. When normal communication was restored, she said she was passing me over to their complaints department.
This time it was a man who spoke and he admitted that according to their literature they should grant me my request, but head office was in a complete shambles, and they had complaints unresolved since before I was born (and that wasn't yesterday).
He did say that he was going on holiday in a week's time, but that he would pass on my complaint and that I should get a response within a fortnight.
So officially I have a complaint in the pipeline, and I promise to keep everyone informed of any further developments.

[Gandalf]

My experience was not dissimilar. When I first telephoned to ask for the one year fix at last years prices I was told that I had the choice of applying by phone or email but if I chose to go for the phone option it would take about 50 minutes to take me through the various regulatory information and disclaimers etc. I had no wish to sacrifice nearly an hour and so chose the latter option. The email duly arrived and this directed me to a website with a personalised quotation and I signed up. I thought!
After that I started getting emails and letters from SSE welcoming me as a new customer and asking for meter readings. Further phone calls revealed that there had been a mix-up and SSE had taken over another customer in error instead of changing my tariff. They promised to get it sorted but have gone very quiet lately and I have no idea whether I am paying the new tariff or whether I have been fixed at the old cheaper rate.
I will update if it becomes clear although I believe the offer is now closed. I would also like to take this opportunity to appologise to any islander who has recently discovered that they have had their supply moved to SSE against their will, its probably my fault.

[NickB]

.
Has anyone on THTC managed to switch suppliers, and if so how difficult was it?

[jimcee]

Sorry to bring this back to the top of the leaderboard without a resolution.
Currently, my dispute (to them - a complaint) with Hydro, is that they have not lived up to a price freeze promised on their website - (see away back to Gandalf at the start of this thread).
I have had several telephone communications from a Hydro person (Graeme Flynn) instructed by them to deal with my dispute (complaint).
These have all stated that this problem is still in the pipeline, and to be patient.
However, Today I had a further communication to say that as they have not dealt with this issue for 8 weeks, I am now free to put my case to the Ombudsman for adjudication. The Ombusman's ruling is evidently binding on them but not on me. This is tempting to pursue.
The said (Hydro Board rep), Graeme Flynn says that he is still willing to pursue my dispute on my behalf and will get back to me by 23rd January.
As getting the case put to the Ombudsman would mean further work in preparing my case, and probably further red tape, I have decided to leave things in abeyance until 23rd January, for further communication from Hydro.
So. please bear with me on this confrontation with Hydro, and I promise to keep you informed with developments as and when they arise

[Gandalf]

Thanks Jim for the update. Just in case there is anyone else going through the tortuous process of trying to fix a tariff I will bring up to date my own experience.
After numerous phone calls and some filling in of web forms I received a welcome pack from Scottish Hydro and a contract showing the unit cost which was the same as last years pre-price rise cost. The contract was for one year from October.
Last week I checked my account on-line to input meter readings and found that I was in fact still on the standard THTC tariff which is nearly 10% more expensive. Cue more phone calls. This time I was told that I could not fix my prices as I was on THTC. I explained that I had been sent a one year contract which seemed to indicate otherwise and I was told that I would be phoned back. After a short wait I received the return call and the information that a decision had not yet been made on THTC customers being allowed to fix but as soon as this happened I would be informed. There was no explanation of why the contract was sent out except to say that it was an error.
The staff member that I spoke to was unable to tell me whether I was currently being charged at the new rate as given on my account details or at the fixed rate on my contract. I believe that all customers are entitled to know how much their electricity is costing and if I don’t get confirmation that I am fixed at the cheaper rate, backdated to September, I will be joining Jim on his visit to the Ombudsman.