[Jimbo1467]

Hi, earlier today I received an email from Utilita saying you were sorry to see me leave.

Ofc I was bewildered and at first thought it a scam mail. So I opened up my Utilita app and sure enough it also says they were sorry to see me go. I didn't leave you and I am the only person on the account who can authorise leaving you who I have been with for the past 8 years or so.

So I went onto Chat Now and spoke with someone called Evelyn who told me she couldn't tell me as she could only put me through to the correct department in a phone call. So i gave Evelyn my number and she called me apologising for what happened. I also asked her why my electric and gas were still on if I had left and she said I was now with British Gas, and couldn't tell me who set that up either.

She phoned me and said she was putting me through to the department who could help but she must have pressed the wrong button because she then cut me off instead of putting me through.

So i thought it may have been a scam because I did mention calling Police Scotland about what had happened but that still wouldn't explain how the app also says I had left.

Can anyone help me please ?

... oh and I have not had any message from British Gas saying i was with them now and no money has left my account either, this is all very strange, has this happened to anyone else too ?

[Jimbo1467]

@Jimbo1467

Now I've had a text today from Utilita telling me about the warm home discount applications opening soon, why would I get this text if I had left them, this is all very strange, I hope someone can help me please ?

[Rebecca]

@Jimbo1467 Hi there! 👋

I will send you a private mail requesting more details so we can take a look into this for you and see what's happening.

Thanks,
Rebecca

[Dean]

Hi @Jimbo1467

Rebecca Has had me looking into this for you.

We appreciate how upsetting and frustrating it can be to find that your energy supply has been switched to another supplier when you don't believe you gave permission for this to happen.

From what you've described, this sounds like it may be an Erroneous Transfer (ET), which is the industry term used when a supply is switched incorrectly or without the account holder's valid agreement. These situations can occur for a number of reasons, such as address matching errors or incorrect information being used during the switching process.

While we completely understand your concerns, it's important to clarify that the supplier losing the supply is not automatically at fault when an erroneous transfer occurs. Energy suppliers are required to process registration requests received through the industry switching network, and in many cases the original supplier is unaware that a transfer may be incorrect until it has already taken place.

Ofgem's guidance is that where a customer believes a switch has occurred without their consent, they should contact the supplier that has taken over the supply to understand why the switch was completed and to establish whether an Erroneous Transfer investigation needs to be raised. The gaining supplier will be able to explain what information was used to support the switch request and work through the industry process if an error has occurred.

For that reason, we'd recommend speaking with British Gas directly to ask:

• Why the supply was transferred.
• What authority was relied upon when processing the switch.
• Whether they believe this is an Erroneous Transfer and what steps they are taking to investigate.

Of course, we'd be more than happy to welcome you back to Utilita.

If your priority is returning as quickly as possible, the fastest route is often to contact our Sales Team and complete a new sign-up, rather than waiting for the ET investigation process to conclude However While this is the fastest way to return this way will result in a new account and account number - if you wish to keep your original account number then the ET process will need to be actioned.

We genuinely appreciate that this situation is concerning, and although the switch itself would not have been initiated by Utilita, we hope you're able to get clarity from British Gas regarding how it occurred and get back with us as soon as possible.

Kind Regards Dean

[Jimbo1467]

Hi Dean thanks for getting in touch.

I have got onto British Gas to see what they had to say and they told me its utilita who have to do the investigating as they were my supplier and that way I'll be able to keep my original contract with utilita.

This is absolutely so stressful for me as I was in hospital for an operation when utilita messaged me saying they were sorry to see me go and would refund me what was in my payg electric and gas accounts, even though I knew nothing about a change of supplier.

I think it was you who I was speaking to around June about how I could not get the below £2 warning alerts on my phone, and you said something about my meter had been upgraded to something else which meant I couldn't get alerts or even change to alerts through the utilita app.

You said it would take around something lik 15 working days to sort out then you would get back to me, that would have been some time in July but you never did, i was on holiday at that time too so forgot all about it.

Maybe this has something to do with the Erroneous Transfer when utilita was sorting my account so i could get these alerts that the error occurred, couldn't that be it.

Oh and I have a copy of the chat I had with British Gas if that's needed ok.

[Dean]

Hi @Jimbo1467

Thank you for coming back to me.

Firstly, I'm genuinely sorry to hear how stressful this has been, especially given that you were recovering from an operation when you received notification that your supply was leaving Utilita.

Just to address one point you've raised, any work relating to meter updates, meter configuration, firmware updates, or app notifications is completely separate from the supplier switching process. These activities do not trigger a change of supplier and cannot result in a supply being transferred to another energy company.

A supplier switch can only take place through the industry registration process when a gaining supplier submits a request to take over the supply.

Regarding the switch, Utilita did not initiate the transfer. Under industry rules, when a registration request is received through the national switching process, the existing supplier is required to process that request in accordance with market regulations. The request to take over the supply originates from the gaining supplier, which in this instance is British Gas.

As your supply has now transferred to British Gas, they have access to All details that were used to support the registration. For that reason, they are best placed to explain:

• Why the registration was submitted.
• What information was used to support the switch.
• Whether they believe the transfer was completed correctly.
• Whether an Erroneous Transfer (ET) investigation should be raised.

To be completely transparent, I'm not sure why British Gas would be suggesting that Utilita is responsible for explaining why the switch occurred. As the supplier that gained the supply, they should be able to explain the basis on which they took over the meter points and what authority was relied upon when the registration was submitted.

For that reason, my advice remains to pursue this again with British Gas first and ask them to provide a clear explanation of how and why the switch was processed. If they believe this is an Erroneous Transfer, they should begin the appropriate industry process. Ofgem's guidance explains that erroneous transfers are investigated through formal supplier processes where the circumstances of the registration are reviewed,

I would also raise an official complaint with BG about this so that the issue is not simply ignored and BG take proper accountability instead of sending you back and forth.

You may find the following information helpful:

• Ofgem: Erroneous Transfer Customer Charter
  https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/consultatio...stomer-charter
• Citizens Advice: If you didn't agree to switch energy supplier
  https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/co...our-agreement/

Finally, regarding the warning message issue, because the supply is no longer registered with Utilita we're unable to investigate or make changes to metering services on the account at this time. If British Gas starts an Erroneous Transfer process and the supply returns to us, or if you choose to rejoin Utilita through a new sign-up, we'd then be able to revisit the warning alert issue and investigate why those notifications weren't being received. At present, however, the supply is registered to another supplier, so we don't have the ability to carry out those checks.

I appreciate this isn't the position you expected to be in, but I'd encourage British Gas to explain the basis of the registration and address this fully and if they try to send you back to us without providing any information on why they initiated the switch then to escalate this with there complaints team.

Kind Regards Dean