electricity

Hi Foxbat,

Try logging in to Endesa with a zero in front of your NIE e.g. if it is X1234567Y then try X01234567Y.

However, remember the saying commonly used in Spain - "Mucho ruido, pocos nueces".  That seems to go for most (all) Spanish activities.

Max

Max Hi,

Tried that during a much earlier attempt to register...Same result!

Everywhere else my NIE is acceptable but not with Endesa!

Ah well, dont really need it anyway.

Since I started my spreadsheet I know more about my electricity uses than they do!

i know almost to the minute what my next bill is supposed to be but I think ours is an estimate next time around which shold be anytime now!

fb

Hi Foxbat

Well, you are doing all the right things. 

I am now wondering what Endesa and Iberdrola will do when the Spanish stop paying their bills (which is on the cards).  I was in the bank the other day when a little old lady couldn't raise enough to pay her electricity bill (there was a DD outstanding).  Will the lights go out over Spain???

It's happening already!  I have recently heard that the community areas in an apartment block have had their electricity cut off because of insufficient funds in the Community fees account.  This means that not only do the lifts not work, but there are no lights in the corridors,  Since the emergency lighting is on batteries, they have exhausted and residents are resorting to carrying a torch everywhere with them (also, if the water pressure fails the water storage pumps will not run).

Luckily, this has yet to happen in our block (I hope, as we are in UK at the moment).  We are lucky enough to be close to the front entrance and in daylight could probably see sufficiently well, but what is the community liability if someone falls over and seriously injures themselves, who is then held to be negligent?

Luckily we are able to keep our Community Fees / electricity bills up-to-date, but clearly there must be many who cannot do so under the current economic circumstances, but it may make you feel a little cross that your physical and financial well being could be put in danger because someone else has failed to meet their obligations, no matter how sympathtic you might be to their position.

I have to say that non-payment of community fees is a problem that has yet to surface in its full enormity.  There were plenty of people (including developers who still own empty apartments) who failed to pay as it was and relied on the good payers to fund the essentials, but now it's going to get worse and when the habitual non-payers find they have got away with it, much worse.

Mike

Perhaps someone should look at the law regarding electricity suppliers and the cutting off of electricity.

I understand that in the UK the electricity board cannot cut you off for non-payment.  What is the situation in Spain / Europe?

Can the utilities just cut people off for non-payment?  Perhaps it is time for a test case!

FRIENDS OF OURS IN RIVIERA DEL SOL WERE CUT OFF WITHOUT WARNING OWING ONLY 120 EUROS. 

Cutting off  rights are regulated in the electricty contract ( which of course needs to be acording to Law 17/2007 on Electricity Sector, which is a Law fo adaptation of Spanish Electricity Law to european standards).

If you are a " Final consume client", the cut off  will be done after two months since a irrefutable request to pay by the company.

Having never lived in an urbanization or an apartment block, I don't understand the system that they are using.  Surely each apartment / property has its own meter? 

Shouldn't the government be getting involved in this at this difficult time?

Maria del Castro - hi, surely there are means of remedying this before people are cut off.

I can't speak for urbanizations, but in apartment blocks, the community electricity (for common parts and services) is on a separate meter, paid for out of the community fees.  We live on the ground floor and not affected by the lift, but feel sorry for those residents on the upper floors, who may be old or infirm and have fully paid their community charges, but are unable to use the lift because insufficient money has been collected from other owners.

Mike

All I can see is all of this is going to get worse and worse.  Surely not having lighting on stairwells is illegal in a "public" building.  How would this affect the insurance if someone fell and was crippled?

As of Jan 2009 every body get a monthly bill.

Hi

I can confirm that Iberdrola also cut you off, which they did to me, which i was unaware off because the english tenant that was renting my property, left with no warning or paying any outstanding bills!! it was 2 months later I found out, I had to transfer funds from UK direct to Iberdrola before they reconnected me. (Quesada)

Nerwilly.

Hi

Is this billing every month for every area, as I was last billed in December by Iberdrola and have not been deducted since

not that I am complaining.

Pat 

We are in the same situation in Almeria with Portillo.

Our bill was debited in mid December & our February bill was paid as expected yesterday.

No surprises with the amount either given that we didn't scrimp on the air con heating when we were there for 9 days over Christmas & New Year.

Noreen

Max Kite:

Some Local Councils ( within the Social affairs department) offers help to pay electricity.

Pat, I was suprised to read that you have not been charged monthly. We are just over the road from you and we were charged 25.39e on 29/12/08 and then 59.67e on 29/1/09 !!! During that entire billing period we have only been out for 10 days in Dec/Jan so it does seem quite high to us.

Gloria and Mike

Hi Gloria and Mike,

No have not been charged monthly, I do not believe anyone else has either. I do get email.s from some that live in the community and it is still every two months.

February has not gone out of our Bank Account as yet but should be anyday now though.

Perhaps it will change after February, but I would have thought if they were going to change, it would have been better from the begining of the year.  

But who know's it is Spain we are talking about anything could happen.

Pat  

Thanks Maria de Castro.

However, my heart sinks when you talk about "Local councils" and "social afairs departments".  I imagine a little old lady (Spanish, English, whatever) trying to navigate through the form filling minefield of council benefits and sorting out her electricity bill before they come to cut her off. 

Sorry, but Spain just doesn't work like that.  She will be in the dark and cold long before the paperwork even gets looked at.

Sorry for the cynicism but I have learnt something from 12 years in Spain.

nerwilly - have a look at our web site - perhaps this will solve your problems!

Here's a question! - Why are they billing monthly????  Must cost more, in paper, admin., bank charges, postage etc.  Logically, it is not good business sense.  The answer,of course, is simple - CASH FLOW - times are hard and even the big boys need to have cash flowing in.  A bit worrying, that.

Thanks Max,  I have taken a look and it is something worth thinking about for the future!

Thanks again

Nerwilly