Eon took its direct debit today and had to apologise to furious customers on social media who compared the firm to Scrooge.
The energy company came under fire on Thursday (December 24). A number of customers on Twitter complained about unexpectedly having money taken from their bank accounts.
What have Eon customers said about the direct debit issue?
On Twitter, one customer vented: “Gee thanks @eonenergyuk for taking £62 out of my account on Christmas Eve, almost 2 weeks before the DD is actually due!”
Another fumed: “Many thanks to @EONHelp who took the direct debit for my energy bill TODAY when they usually take it on the 1st of the month.
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“A lovely Merry Christmas from Ebenezer Eon, because they never actually informed me they were taking payment early!”
A third tweeted: “Eon energy has just wished their customers merry Christmas by taking money from customers’ account today. [That] will make it twice this month. I have incurred overdraft charges. Hope eon will be making contributions to the charges.”
A lovely Merry Christmas from Ebenezer Eon.
Finally, a fourth vowed to find a new supplier as they wrote: “@EON_SE_en my job today [is] searching for a new energy supplier, please answer live chat seeing as most people don’t have time to wait an hour and a half for you to answer phone calls.”
Gee thanks @eonenergyuk for taking £62 out of my account on Christmas Eve, almost 2 weeks before the DD is actually due! #eon #eonenergy #awfulcustomerservice
— The Purple Stitcher (@madscouser) December 24, 2020
Many thanks to @EONHelp who took the direct debit for my energy bill TODAY when they usually take it on the 1st of the month.
A lovely Merry Christmas from Ebenezer Eon, because they never actually informed me they were taking payment early!
— Hephaestus (@Hephaesteology) December 24, 2020
@eonenergyuk @TheSun Eon energy has just wished their customers merry Christmas by taking money from customers’ account today which will make it twice this month. I have incurred overdraft charges. Hope eon will be making contributions to the charges
— Eli (@Doracle1) December 24, 2020
@EON_SE_en my job today? Searching for a new energy supplier. Please answer live chat seeing as most people don’t have time to wait an hour and a half for you to answer phone calls.
— Naomi (@Draoeu) December 24, 2020
What did Eon say about the direct debit situation?
However, Eon’s Twitter account sought to reassure customers on the social media platform by confirming they would be getting their money back.
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Additionally, the company informed angry customers it was “aware of the issue” and apologised for the inconvenience.
We are aware of the issue affecting some customers’ Direct Debits and are working to resolve the situation and return the money on 29th December. We are sorry for any inconvenience caused.
— E.ON Energy UK (@eonenergyuk) December 24, 2020
A tweet read: “We are aware of the issue affecting some customers’ Direct Debits. [We] are working to resolve the situation and return the money on 29th December.”
Eon’s statement about the issue
A company spokesperson told ED that it was due to an “IT issue”. A statement read: “We are sorry for this error and are taking steps to contact affected customers where we can, as well as putting information about the issue on our website and social media channels.
“Customers do not need to do anything or contact us, and we ask that they bear with us while we work to refund them on the first available date, which is 29th December. [We will then take] customers’ Direct Debit payments […] in line with their usual payment schedule.
“If a customer has incurred bank charges as a result of this issue, we will of course reimburse this money to them. Any customer who is concerned should contact us to discuss their circumstances.”
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