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HSBC rant

You top up a card in a shop I believe same as with Oyster Cards on buses.

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Reply to
billy bookcase
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Indeed, and the small print almost certainly says that all the data on the phone actually belong to Google or Apple. I have a smartphone, but the only personal data on it are a few phone numbers, not more than a dozen. It's PAYG, so I don't do Internet over the phone, only wifi. I don't do anything involving money on it.

Certainly not. At least one bank will remain sane enough to see that cutting employees and other overheads can increase profits, but only if it actually has any customers left.

Reply to
Joe

It's a charity account.

Reply to
charles

Do all smart meters have a slot for a pre-payment card just in case they need to be switched?

Even if so, the user would presumably have to be sent the card and told how to use it.

I expect they just send a text message to a phone the user used to have or an email to a defunct address.

Reply to
Max Demian

It is misuse if the person isn't properly told it's happening and how to credit the meter.

Reply to
Max Demian

I've only had one of mine reduced. Bank of Scotland (which used to be affiliated to the MyTravel group of travel agents) reduced from £2500 to £1000 a while ago.

I would have thought a high credit limit would encourage people to overspend or buy a car or something that they can't pay off in one go.

Reply to
Max Demian

I take your point that the information may not have been put over effectively. However, the method of debt repayment under the old way would have been to similarly increase the tariff so an excess of funds would pay off an old debt. You would have gone to your PayPoint paid your money where the new tariff details and money would be transferred onto your key so the new tariff would be transferred to your meter.

In short I don't see the difference between new and old way. Was it a misuse then too? As I said before should customers not pay for the energy that have used? The alternative is for the user to be cut-off, and subject to court costs.

Reply to
Fredxx

No. When you buy credit in the shop and put it on the card, that amount is immediately credited to your account,. And then as the meter measures the leccy you use, it phones home and that money is immediately - in one nanosecond or less - taken from your account.

ISTR seeing these prepayment cards being around for a while so maybe *those* meters did have a slot or could be swiped

If so they're possibly in breach of some regulation or other. Not that anyone cares of course. Which was maybe your point.

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Reply to
billy bookcase

So don't carry it around. They do work indoors.

Reply to
Reentrant

Neighbours daughter works a couple of evening shifts in Asda every week.

Almost every week someone tries to leave the store with a full trolley of unpaid goods. They can't do anything until the shoplifter actually leaves the store and then hope the security guard can stop them. Only if the value of the goods is more than £200 will the police do anything so in this case the perps just bugger off and abandon the trolley.

Reply to
Andrew

And that is the point, not to be muddied with other considerations.

Reply to
Davey

But it's the fact that some were transferred without the company going through the correct procedure that is the point here.

Reply to
Davey

None of ofgem, uswitch, national energy action or the telegraph even guess at how many of those 150,000 homes may have been inappropriately moved to pre-payment.

Reply to
Andy Burns

Because the alternative would have been exactly the same except with higher costs for the debtor.

Or do you still think certain people should get energy for free?

Reply to
Fredxx

Except that pre-payment can mean people being short of energy at times of high demand or when their finances are temporarily low. Credit meters allow the users to spread the cost over 12 months and even out those problems.

Reply to
SteveW

That's not MISUSE, that is doing what is entirely appropriate in that situation.

Reply to
farter

If you don't pay what you owe us, actually. That's not misuse.

Reply to
farter

No evidence of them having agreed to any rules.

Reply to
farter

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