elec supplier and data protection

[dave]

A bit ot - but just to relate this... for 20+ years our electricity supplier has addressed the bills to Mr & Mrs A.B.Bloggs etc

but yesterday the latest bill arrived addressed to Alan Bloggs & Mrs Bloggs

where Alan is son's name. Now maybe is trivial but a) Alan is not the bill payer and never has been b) Where did they get his name from (electoral reg maybe) c) How come they decided he *is* the bill payer. (This could be serious if ever some legal matter arose). c) I can call and correct the error but I wonder what's going on here

- re data protection etc - any thoughts?

[dave]

The two c) are for net police :-)

[chrisj.doran%proemail.co.uk]

Has Alan ever contacted them on his parents' behalf? IME anyone contacting a utility for any reason re a particular account immediately gets themselves named as that account holder. Cue funny (and true) story about someone who helpfully wrote to tell gas co that the house next door had been demolished and was subsequently threatened with having their own gas cut off for failing to pay next door's bill.

Chris

[Scott M]

[snip]

To my mind it seems that most mailmerging is done as a two stage thing where an address is found and then a male adult name with an association to that address is glued to the top. Not known it with actual bills before but much other stuff seems to do that.

[hugh]

In message , dave writes

You're obviously dead :-)

[Andrew Gabriel]

Many years ago, my gas bill suddenly changed from being addressed to me, to being addressed to "The Occupier". I've never bothered to get it fixed. Actually, it would seem to very slightly reduce risk of identity theft.

[pcb1962]

That's rather foolish of them, I suspect that mine isn't the only household where any mail addressed to 'The Occupier' is filed straight into the recycling bin.

[Tim Downie]

So you're not on the electoral roll then? ;-)

Tim

[dave]

Well you do wonder sometimes - but then as I called them up yesterday that can't be the case. I think it is them that are dead - and it's all run by a ZX81 somewhere. Anyway when they did finally understand, (wait for it) they wanted my date of birth :-) Naturally I said 1066.

[dave]

Change name by deed poll to "The Occupier"! "Good morning The".

[charles]

I used to work in a building called "Henry Wood House" (after the proms founder). Regularly letters would arrive addressed to "Mr Woodhouse" and begin "Dear Henry".

[fred]

In article , dave writes

"Right Mr f, just a few questions to confirm your identity"

"Can you give me your DoB please"

"That wouldn't help as I've never given you that information"

"Errrr . . . ."