Electricty giant halves £25k bill after Publican intervenes

A utilities giant has shaved £12,000 off a licensee's electricity bill after The Publican​ intervened on his behalf.

Neil Crampton, who runs the Bank House Inn, in Pudsey has been in a dispute with E.ON for four months after receiving a bill for a staggering £25,000.

The company initially refused to amend the bill until The Publican​ raised the issue.

Crampton got in touch after reading a similar tale in last week's edition.

Licensee Rob Wilson of the Sportsman in Arundel, West Sussex, was billed for £20,000 by the same company in a quarterly statement. He was expecting to pay around £800.

E.ON said the jump was due to it previously reading just five dials on his meter when it should have been looking at six.

The company had made the same mistake with Crampton's bill.

He said: "This has been going on for some time and if I had realised the amount I was supposed to have been paying I could have taken measures to cut the bill.

"By my own calculations I could have saved at least £8,500 with fairly straightforward steps and being more vigilant."

But he added that he was still in discussions about paying the bill back, with E.ON wanting it paid back in just two years.

And Crampton warned other licensees to make sure they are not paying over the odds.

"I am extremely grateful to The Publican ​for helping me get this result which makes a huge difference to my business.

"I would urge other licensees to fight this kind of thing if they are in the same situation."

Last week E.ON said it had been working with the Sportsman to reach a "mutually acceptable" arrangement regarding the payment of the licensee's bill.

Wilson feared going bust if he had been ordered to pay the full amount.

But a spokeswoman for the company denied there was a widespread problem regarding incorrectly billing pubs by misreading meters. She instead described the two similar cases as "a coincidence".

She said: "We have spoken to Mr Crampton to apologise for the concern this matter has caused. We have agreed to reduce the balance and have offered a payment plan for the Bank House Inn to pay the remaining amount."

Have you experienced a similar problem with a utility company? Email news@thepublican.com​ or call the news team on 020 7955 3714.