July Case Study
Mary, in her mid-80s, decided to spend £13,500 for her energy supplier to install a brand-new solar panel and battery system for her home. She was pleased to have invested in technology that would make her home greener and free her from the burden of electricity costs, and was glad that her supplier had promised her a year of free electricity as a reward for the purchase. In an unexpected turn of events, however, she received a bill from her supplier for over £400 before her free period was due to expire, and discovered that her brand-new battery had not been storing any electricity for her to use, meaning she was still importing all of her electricity from the grid. To make matters worse, instead of resolving Mary's problems, her energy company stopped responding to her communications altogether.
Fortunately, our outreach worker Sian met Mary at an event. What followed was a joint effort; together, they embarked on a five-month battle with Mary's energy company to investigate her problems, regain control of her solar panel system, and secure compensation.
It turned out that a number of issues had never been properly addressed by Mary's energy company. Firstly, the problems with her battery had not been fixed. The battery appeared to be either exporting the energy her solar panels captured straight to the grid for free, before she had the chance to use it, or not storing any energy at all. Secondly, she had never received a warranty for her system, nor the proper documentation for her new equipment. Thirdly, her unexpected bill had been calculated from estimated readings despite her owning a smart meter, which had recorded her actual usage at less than a quarter of what the bill claimed. Finally, and most importantly, she had been charged for electricity that should have been free under the terms of her installation deal.
Thankfully, Sian was now on the case. She carefully noted each of Mary's issues and worked through them one by one. This was no easy task - poor communication from Mary's supplier made progress difficult – but after Sian collected all the evidence and submitted a case to the Energy Ombudsman, Mary's now-former supplier became far more receptive, and she finally received the help she needed. The supplier compensated her for the electricity she should have received free of charge and fitted her with a brand-new battery and inverter at no cost, once it emerged that both had been faulty. They also issued a formal apology and awarded additional compensation for her time and patience throughout the resolution process, with the renumeration totalling over £430. Mary's Ombudsman case was closed in her favour.
It had been a long journey but, with Sian's help, Mary now has a fully functional solar system. She can now generate electricity from her panels and either store it for later use or export it to the grid for a small return. She also has a new supplier and the money she invested into improving her home finally feels worth it.
