Wednesday 3 November 2010

EDF is coming to read the meter


In France, EDF come and read your meter twice a year.

If your meter is outside, you don't need to be present. However, if the meter is inside the property, you have to let them in.

It is always tricky when you have a holiday home and you live abroad.

You can either ask a neighbour to let EDF in or EDF will leave you a card in your letterbox. Next time you are over, just fill in the meter reading and send it back to EDF. You don't even need to put a stamp on it!

By law, EDF has to come inside your property and read the meter once a year. If they have not been able to get in for a year, they will write to you asking you to contact them to organise a visit. Their visit could cost you (around 25 euros).

If you have to go out the day EDF is suppose to come and you don't want to miss them, just leave a post-it on your front door with your EDF ref. number, your name and the reading. They will be happy with this information.

4 comments:

  1. What is EDF? This is a meter that measures electricity usage? It is interesting they check it so infrequently. Don't you pay a monthly electric bill?

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  2. EDF stands for Electricité de France. The meter indeed measures our electricity usage. We do pay either monthly or every 2 months but EDF likes to come and check the reading. Just in case we are not paying enough and after a couple of years there is a big bill to pay!

    I have had to help clients who had been underestimated and after 2 years they had a bill of 1500 euros to pay. Ooops!
    It was a holiday home and they were never here to let EDF in.

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  3. So, what you pay every month or two sounds like an estimated amount? What if people have been charged for more than they used, does EDF give a refund? ...or maybe a credit towards future bills?

    It is interesting hearing how such things work in Bretagne, what the differences are. Thanks for explaining daily life there.

    Cordialement,
    Michael

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  4. Hi Michael

    For new contracts, EDF goes through various questions with you (size of the house, type of heating, number of people, list of appliances, etc) and they do an estimation for a few months. Once they have been to read your meter, they will then review your bill.

    Once you have been in the same house over a year you have a good idea how much it costs for the year.

    EDF will split your bill into 10 installments. After 10 months of paying the same amount, EDF comes and reads your meter, and issues a final bill.

    If they owe you money, you get a refund straight-away (they credit your bank account), if you owe them money, the bill in split in 2 more installments.

    They then review your yearly consumption ie if you were paying €50 per month and it was not enough, they will increase the monthly installments.

    I have never had any problems with EDF, I call them on a regular basis for my clients. They are always very efficient and friendly.

    Voilà !

    Rachel

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