OCTOPUS are an absolute (bad) joke - beware of dealing with them

[thegruf]

Undoubtedly fine for many, but posting this to alert others that Octopus is not the super shiny best customer service supplier ever as their adverts would like you to believe.
Total BS in my experience and a massively frustrating disappointment.

Like many on here I signed up (technically was transferred when Bulb failed - I tried to switch earlier but they refused due to the tariff cap) to Octopus.

In spite of repeated promises they have taken over 9 months to install a "smart" meter, during which time I have been paying full tariff instead of one of the EV orientated tariffs.
During which time they have been utterly useless at responding to my inquiries and when they have responded it has either been to say something irrelevant or to make false assurances it would be sorted out.

Now I eventually have the smart meter I still cannot switch to any of the EV tariffs for some reason I have yet to determine.
So I am still paying OTT rates and for sure I am expecting a serious goodwill gesture to rectify.

It gets worse - they have recorded the reading on my previous 2-rate meter the wrong way around day<-->night so my bill is even more ridiculous than it should be (iro £8000!!!).
On top of which every time I tried to correct it with a manual meter reading they switched the reading back.
Before the meter change they even sent a meter reader person round - who managed to read the night reading as day, and the day reading was recorded as the date ffs.
(proof it is possible to have an IQ <1)

So I have a stupid bill, no EV tariff and nobody at Octopus prepared to sort this ridiculous mess out.

And .. if the above isn't enough, I had switched the Company provider to Octopus also so as to burnish our green credentials for electricity supply.

Trying to get Octopus to provide the meter and contract for an upgraded 3 phase supply (which should be routine) has been an utter farce.
More than a dozen phone calls - every answer different, pathetically clueless doesn't even half cover it.
We have now contacted British Gas for the Company supply who have been excellent, responsive and competitive - who'd have thought?

Hoping somebody here has a very senior level contact at Octopus they can PM me with please as I am at my wits end
as for some reason I'm not sure I can fathom myself I would still rather stay with them.

 

[Medved_77]

Hoping somebody here has a very senior level contact at Octopus

[email protected]

 

[thegruf]

Ha - didn't work for me.
Perhaps you could email him a link to the thread and see if that works?!

 

[browellm]

Perhaps you could email him a link to the thread and see if that works?!

Hello, it's your PA here

https://twitter.com/g__j

 

[Dilly]

I’ve found phone and email services somewhat lacking but Twitter (X) responses have all been excellent.

Hope you get sorted quickly

 

[thegruf]

Hello, it's your PA here

https://twitter.com/g__j

yikes (and thanks) - I'd have to join X (Twitter) which I've avoided for years

 

[NewbieT]

It’s a shame to hear but it doesn’t reflect my experience- Octopus are usually helpful and get there in the end. Have faith. You could do much worse. Anyone with NPower?

 

[Tony Hoyle]

Alas I've found their communication to be awful if anything goes wrong.

Don't bother with greg@ or issueresolution@, they're just forwarded to the hello@ email and get no special treatement.

I've had one case I had to take to the ombudsman to get it escalated (no billing for a year) and another that took about 6 months of feeling like I was shouting at a brick wall (when my FIT was transferred from bulb) - that was hillarious, bouncing between 3 or 4 'people'* each of whom got amnesia every couple of weeks meaning I had to start again.

Still, they're cheap.. no better deal out there right now.

* I think they're just named accounts with multiple people behind them, given the inconsistency in their replies.

 

[GRiLLA]

So, just playing devils advocate, how can you prove that the day and night were reversed ? I'm sure other people would try it on to get a cheaper bill, is it your word vs the paid meter readers word now that meter is removed. I can see why its going to be hard to get that changed to save £8K.

Mind boggles at how it could be £8k anyway, even at daytime rates that's a lot of kWh.

I would be sending them emails to state all the facts in a very clear way, phone calls sound too likely to lead to misassumptions.

 

[Cardo]

I’ve found Octopus’s support to be hit and miss. Either they’re great and sort the issue out straight away, or you end up in a black hole of support staff who simply don’t get the issue.

Seeing as it appears you’ve been struggling for a while, I’d suggest making sure a complain is lodged and when/if that doesn’t solve the issue, off to the ombudsman you go.

Though, one thing I would say, the grass isn’t always greener.

 

[Mark89052]

yikes (and thanks) - I'd have to join X (Twitter) which I've avoided for years

+1 to message them through X, I tried to sign upto IOG many times yesterday and today but always same error before test charge screen, messaged them on X at 4.30, a few messages later at 6.20pm received a message to say tech have looked at it and to try now and it worked first time

I have same as you my night and day readings still being wrong way round, they told me it would make no difference although I used to be on a single rate tariff on OVO before switching

 

[BushFox]

+1 to message them through X, I tried to sign upto IOG many times yesterday and today but always same error before test charge screen, messaged them on X at 4.30, a few messages later at 6.20pm received a message to say tech have looked at it and to try now and it worked first time

I have same as you my night and day readings still being wrong way round, they told me it would make no difference although I used to be on a single rate tariff on OVO before switching

I had same after I switched and upgraded main fuse. Meter person got day/night wrong (prev ECO7) and first bill was through roof. Put real readings in to app manually, sent helo an email explaining and Octopus sorted it.

 

[Mark89052]

I had same after I switched and upgraded main fuse. Meter person got day/night wrong (prev ECO7) and first bill was through roof. Put real readings in to app manually, sent helo an email explaining and Octopus sorted it.

Thanks, I bet that is what has happened to me, had the fuse switched to 100amp about the same time as switch

 

[pdk42]

I’ve had mixed experiences with them. It took them about 18 months and lots of chasing to install a 3 phase meter and at times I felt like pulling my hair out. I’ve also had endless problems with my billing being screwed up, including the electricity part being missed off entirely for a year (I was wondering why I had a grand in credit on my account!). But my experience recently with Octopus EV leasing has been very positive, incl the installation of a 3 phase Zappi. Different parts of a big organisation for sure, but still part of the same brand.

 

[Ticked]

They are just another energy company. I am currently stuck with EDF and no one else will currently accept me as they installed a meter in 2017 which has never worked correctly. Going through the time consuming and frustrating complaints process….

 

[Wybrook]

[snipped] …off to the ombudsman you go.

Though, one thing I would say, the grass isn’t always greener.

Having been to the ombudsman don’t hold your breath. Managed to get British Gas to admit in writing that they are technically incompetent, but beyond that a chocolate teapot would have been more useful.

Changed to Octopus and they fixed the issue without even being made aware of it. As you say, grass isn’t always greener.

 

[thewishy]

For general billing, they used to be a *really* exceptional supplier, on top of things, everything by email. I think they stretched themselves a bit thin taking on Bulb and they're struggling with service consistency, which I think I could let go if they hadn't just acquired shell energy.
They installed by Solar and they did a really good job throughout. Obviously Octopus ES is a different team.

I'd still rate them better than the big-6, but not outstanding. The tariffs are certainly attractive enough to keep me as a customer when you look at it as a whole (Eg decent export rates, decent import rates, Octoplus)

 

[kuruma]

Ha - didn't work for me

Emailing Greg did work for me... But then I know his sister so...

 

[SaffaT3sla]

I have only one thing to say - go to the Ombudsman.

Last July we suddenly got a bill from Octopus for over £8,000 (in addition to the monthly direct debit we were paying and despite never going more than £600 in debit over winter). When I called them I was told that they had been unable to get ratings from my smart meter for over 9 months - so instead of contacting me and getting it fixed, they just decided to change me the standard rate for all the kw I had used for the last 9 months - coming to an additional £8,788!

They assured me that they were sorting out the issue and would get back to me shortly.

To cut a long storey short - I called them every 2 weeks for an update and every call was pretty much the same. Them telling me that it's in the contract that if they can't get a reading then they are entitled to charge the standard rate, me agreeing that this made sense BUT it was unreasonable to only let me know 9 months later that they had not been able to get any readings, them agreeing that this was fair and saying they were sorting it out and promising to get back to me and then hearing nothing more before I called again 2 weeks later - and repeat.

In December I decide to go to Ombudsman who ruled in my favour and told Octopus to change me 60% and the cheaper rate and 40% at the day rate, to give me a written apology and £125 compensation.

4 months later I'm still fighting with them. They reduced my debt to approx £6,000 . When I asked for evidence how how they had come up with this figure I was promised a statement (which never came). Instead they reduced it to around £4000 (still with no explanation of how they had come up with this fiigure). When I still refused to accept the figure without a statement of how they had come up with this figure they reduced it to around £1800. Repeat again (I refused to accept) and to cut an already long story short then I went back to Ombudsman to say they were not complying with the judgment they suddenly produced a statement showing I was actually almost £1800 IN CREDIT.

So don't even bother trying to work with them. Go straight to Ombudsman and let them deal with this bunch of crooks.

 

[Goatex]

You will need to provide evidence that you have tried to resolve with the supplier before the ombudsman will accept your case. I’m just out the other side with my issue with OVO however if it wasn’t for the ombudsman I suspect I’d still be banging my head against a brick wall.