token meters

PucaMama

can people still get the token meters installed and how?

Electric Ireland: David

Hi PucaMama,

Token meters (or 'budget-controller' meters) are only installed as a last resort, and at the discretion of our Credit Control teams. Unfortunately they are not available on request.

Customers who have them installed are usually in heavy arrears, and the meter enables them to gradually pay back what they owe. So essentially they are not really pay-as-you-go meters as is commonly thought.

If you would like me to have a look at your account or help with anything, please feel free to send me your details via PM.

Thanks,

David.

caroline77

Hi on new to boards just joined today Im not sure if I'm posting correctly but I have a card meter for years now with arrears that keep going up even though I'm buying cards weekly would you look into it if I send you my recent bill thanks Caroline

caroline77

Hi on new to boards just joined today Im not sure if I'm posting correctly but I have a card meter for years now with arrears that keep going up even though I'm buying cards weekly would you look into it if I send you my recent bill thanks Caroline

Electric Ireland: David

Hi Caroline77,

If you send me the following details via PM I can investigate it for you:

• Your account number, and the property address
• Your contact number and date of birth (for data protection)
• Confirmation that you are the named account holder

Just to make a general note, the card meter you have installed is designed to pay back arrears, but you still need to keep an eye on whether your usage is in line with the payments you are making. It's not a pre-pay meter as such.

Thanks,

David.

Electric Ireland: David

Hi Caroline77, just responded to your PM.

Thanks,

David.

wmpdd3

I dont really want to start another thread about a similar issue, Budget controller meters.

A friend has arears of €211. She had a bill of €400 since last December when her partner left her and her children. Since then she had only managed to reduce this to €211.

She was threatened with disconnection last week if she didnt clear this amount within 4 weeks or she could get this meter.

The meter is now installed.

In her area, there are only 2 stores that have the particular Paypoint machine (Waterford City) to add credit to the card.

My friend doesn't have transport, so our plan is for me to collect her card on Monday and Wednesday and put €10 on the card each time. She understands that as she has arrears, only €7.20 will be added to her meter everytime she tops up.

I am aware that you can't be cut off at nighttime during the week or at the weekend.

My questions are:

When will more stores be added so these cards can be topped up where the Bord Gais cards are topped up (5 stores in Waterford)?

When the €211 is paid off, can she revert to post payment, she has a serious illness and this arrangement would be too dangerous in the long term?

Are there any plans to develop a system to top up these cards online?

Thank You in advance.

EI: Una

Hi Wmpdd3,

Here is a list of PayPoint outlets in the Waterford City area and nearby.

Is the meter a token meter or pay-as-you-go meter? Token meter cards are the ones that are installed in the meter. A customer presents their token meter card at the store and it is swiped, and token cards exchanged for whichever amount the customer wishes to pay.

Unfortunately we are not aware of any plans to introduce an online top-up system. Perhaps it might be worth getting in touch with PayPoint itself, which has an office in Dublin? Its contact details are here. It may be a query for them all right as they would have further information on whether other stores are introducing the system etc.

Also, if your friend would like us to look at her account, we could do so no problem by private message here (if she is a member of Boards.ie).

All the best
Una

wmpdd3

Ah, thats the problem only 2 of those shops are in Waterford city. All the others are in Tramore or Dungarvan, which are 15 miles or more away from Waterford City.

At the rate set, it will take 42 weeks to pay off the arrears at €20 credit per week.

Can she pay a few extra off her arrears by bringing her account number to the post office?

When the arrears are paid off, can she have the meter removed and return to post paid? If she did would she have to pay a deposit?

Her doctor is appalled at this situation and is worried if she has an asthma attack she will not be able to call for an ambulance.

EI: Una

Hi again Wmpdd3,

Absolutely she can pay towards what is outstanding whenever it is possible for her, and whatever amount - at the post office, or in other ways, for example, if she has a debit card: online via our website, or over the telephone (customer service line is open between 8am and 8pm Monday to Saturday). Online/telephone banking is an option also, where the customer gives their bank their ESB Electric Ireland account number and they can then make any payments manually.

Once the arrears are cleared, yes indeed, we would encourage removal of the meter. Your friend would not have to pay a deposit. A security deposit is applied to an account when a customer cancels their direct debit or is new to ESB Electric Ireland and not opting to pay by direct debit.

Finally, your friend could perhaps enquire about the Household Budget Plan by telephoning 1850 50 40 20. I cannot advise as to eligibility or not in this case, but if her account was given a look, it could be ascertained.

Any further queries, do ask.

All the best
Una

wmpdd3

Thank you very much, hopefully after x-mas she can look at paying a few euro per week off the arrears. I'm glad she can revert to post paid.

I looked at the household budgeting option but looking at her bills she should be able to keep her bills in credit once the arrears were paid off. Her meter is read really often so she is usually paying for exactly what she has used.

Thank You again for your help and I'll direct others that have asked me about this set up to this thread for the information you have provided.

EI: Una

Thanks Wmpdd3. No problem - happy to help.

All the best,
Una

hdowney

small point - the poster above said that the machines can't/don't cut off at weekends or nighttime??? news to me, our machine cuts off whenever it runs out of credit - like we buy card, put it in, we get x elec, when that is gone elec goes off

Electric Ireland: Orla

Hi hdowney,

The new pay-as-you-go meters are 'credit-friendly'- which means they will not cut the electricity outside of normal business hours.

The old token meters, which I believe is what you may have, do cut off if the credit runs out, and all emergency credit is used up.

Thanks
Orla

hdowney

hi orla, is there any chance of switching the meters to the new credit friendly option? cos the old meter cutting is very inconvienient, and particularly will be around christmas time

Electric Ireland: Orla

Hi hdowney,

You can certainly request one of the new pay-as-you-go meters. There is limited availability of them at the moment, so customers are being assessed to determine their eligability for one. If you want to PM me your account number, I can pass on your details for you.

Thanks
Orla

Hi Orla I have pm'd you my details. Could you please let me know asap. Thank you

wmpdd3

The was only 13 days from the point when my friend couldn't pay her bill to when the new machine was installed.

EI: Una

Deleted User wrote: »

Hi Orla I have pm'd you my details. Could you please let me know asap. Thank you

Hi Galwaygirlz82,

Could you PM me the details when you have a chance?

Thanks and regards
Una

davesangel

Hi, I moved into a flat in August, it was initially advertised as having all electricity bills included: it's electric heating, electric cooker,etc. However about a month later, pre-pay meters were installed (the type where you top up with a card). My query is that I think I am paying way too much and wondered what my options and rights are:

it is just me in this flat, and I work very long hours so I'm only using the supply at nighttime. At most, I'll watch a few hours of tv at night, cook and then go to bed, but it is costing me at least €15/€20 per week, and that is without even turning the heating on. It is bitterly cold but I can't afford to top up enough that I can pay for heating. My friends live in a house where they receive a bill each quarter and it works out at €30 per month for electricity AND there are 3 of them in the house and they use the elecriticy pretty constantly. My friends don't believe that my electricity should be costing me so much. Does anyone have any advice on what I can do? I really can't go on living in a flat with no heat

hdowney

davesangel wrote: »

Hi, I moved into a flat in August, it was initially advertised as having all electricity bills included: it's electric heating, electric cooker,etc. However about a month later, pre-pay meters were installed (the type where you top up with a card). My query is that I think I am paying way too much and wondered what my options and rights are:

it is just me in this flat, and I work very long hours so I'm only using the supply at nighttime. At most, I'll watch a few hours of tv at night, cook and then go to bed, but it is costing me at least €15/€20 per week, and that is without even turning the heating on. It is bitterly cold but I can't afford to top up enough that I can pay for heating. My friends live in a house where they receive a bill each quarter and it works out at €30 per month for electricity AND there are 3 of them in the house and they use the elecriticy pretty constantly. My friends don't believe that my electricity should be costing me so much. Does anyone have any advice on what I can do? I really can't go on living in a flat with no heat

is the esb in your name? or the landlords? cos it sounds suspiciously like you are paying arrears for whomever lived in the flat before you. i would get onto both the landlord and esb sharpish. you shouldn't be responsible for previous tenants arrears. you need to get it into your name, get the machine re-calibrated to proper settings etc

davesangel

hdowney wrote: »

is the esb in your name? or the landlords? cos it sounds suspiciously like you are paying arrears for whomever lived in the flat before you. i would get onto both the landlord and esb sharpish. you shouldn't be responsible for previous tenants arrears. you need to get it into your name, get the machine re-calibrated to proper settings etc

Hi, thanks for replying. The landlord arranged with the estate agents to install meters in all the flats in the building - the meter and the account that corresponds to that meter is in my name so I'm not sure that it relates to the previous occupant as he/she lived here while bills were still included in the price of rent and therefore I don't think I'm paying arrears, but it still feels like way too much for one person who barely uses the electricity supply

hdowney

davesangel wrote: »

Hi, thanks for replying. The landlord arranged with the estate agents to install meters in all the flats in the building - the meter and the account that corresponds to that meter is in my name so I'm not sure that it relates to the previous occupant as he/she lived here while bills were still included in the price of rent and therefore I don't think I'm paying arrears, but it still feels like way too much for one person who barely uses the electricity supply

i would still check it. just because the landlord said bills were included in rent - doesn't mean the previous tenant paid them properly. and if the landlord couldn't afford to, the esb would have built up. so when meters were installed, your property would be down as being in arrears and therefore the machine would have been calibrated as such. your best bet is to contact the esb with your mprn number and account info and get them to check the status of the meter

Electric Ireland: David

Hi davesangel,

If the account isn't in your own name we are limited in what we can tell you (due to data protection), but as hdowney advised above, if you can PM me the MPRN, the full property address and/or the meter serial number, we can at least check the meter configuration for you.

If pre-pay meters were installed in bulk in the building, it is unlikely that these meters are ESB owned. We do install what are known as token meters (or 'budget control' meters) if a customer requires extra assistance clearing arrears, but this would only be on an individual basis.

There are a couple things you can check yourself to gauge what you are being charged for the electricity. Firstly, to get a general idea based on the appliances you use at the flat, our Appliance Calculator (also available as an iPhone/Smartphone App) should do the job. I would also advise that you take a meter reading at a specific time each day if possible (just for a few days), to work out your unit consumption. Based on this, you can calculate the precise charges yourself using the rates outlined here (under 'Price Plan Rate Details').

I hope this helps, and remember please feel free to PM me if you need further assistance.

Thanks,

David.