For a long period, the ongoing issues have only heightened my mother’s distress, particularly when she simply wished for the feed-in tariff payments to be deposited into her account.
ScottishPower’s Lack of Empathy Adds to Grief
Following my father’s death last year, while most companies showed compassion and understanding, ScottishPower was a notable exception.
The company had been transferring feed-in tariff (Fit) payments for electricity generated by the solar panels at my parents’ home into my father’s account. Despite the panels being a joint purchase by my parents in 2011, and my mother being listed on the certification and frequently interacting with ScottishPower, transferring the payments to her account proved to be anything but straightforward.
A Four-Month Bureaucratic Ordeal
The subsequent four months of bureaucratic nightmares have deeply troubled my 82-year-old mother, who is still mourning and now feels like abandoning the effort and allowing ScottishPower to keep the funds. She was forced to fill out three extensive forms to confirm her residence, and to submit multiple documents, including, quite insensitively, a copy of the will, which ScottishPower then misplaced.
Moreover, she has been overwhelmed with emails asking for information she had already provided, and these emails were distressingly addressed to my late father.
Her attempts to communicate via email were ignored, her complaints went unaddressed, and it appears that customer service agents are not communicating with one another. The lack of consideration for her age and her state of grieving has been apparent, and it’s fair to say that this experience with ScottishPower has shattered her.
TM, Cromer, Norfolk
You reached out to me last September, a year after the payment was mistakenly sent to your late father’s account. By then, your mother was owed over £1,000.
When I brought this unacceptable situation to the attention of ScottishPower’s press office, they quickly issued an apology, acknowledging that the handling of the case was far below their usual standards and promised to investigate both the causes and the prolonged resolution time.
However, their apology did not immediately ameliorate the situation. Shortly thereafter, another email, cheerfully intended for your late father, was sent.
When you raised another complaint, ScottishPower finally recognized the loss of your parent—though, embarrassingly, they sent condolences for the passing of your mother instead.
In November, after much delay, your mother received the Fit payments accumulated over the year. However, the interest you demanded was not included, and they offered a mere £75 in compensation, which you found insultingly low.
Two weeks later, the saga continued with a company representative calling to speak to your deceased father, and despite being informed of his passing, followed up with an email addressed to him.
You expressed your frustration, questioning if ScottishPower understood the meaning of ‘deceased’. Emphatically, you reminded them that your father could no longer read emails or answer calls.
Another month passed, and after repeatedly promising to calculate the interest due on the late payments, ScottishPower abruptly declared no interest was due, blaming the delays on your mother—a stark contrast to their earlier apologies. They increased their compensation offer to £150.
Last month, ScottishPower finally acknowledged wasting two months on unnecessary paperwork and delaying essential processing. They also recognized the slow response to the notification of your father’s death the previous May.
They increased the compensation to £300, including the interest payments, which your mother has reluctantly accepted.
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