The row over EPC company NextDayEPC is continuing, with the site continuing to display industry accreditation logos.
One of the bodies, Quidos, has sent out a warning about NextDayEPC to all its assessors, saying that it has repeatedly told them that its use of their company logo is unauthorised and prohibited. The warning says that to date, NextDayEPC has neither removed the logo from its site nor requested permission for it to remain.
Managing director Philip Salaman said: “We are very concerned about these type of operators taking advantage of hard-working DEAs by encouraging constantly lower rates. Ultimately quality will be affected by this downward pressure on fees, and we are concerned that the charlatan and cowboy DEAs will have a very detrimental effect on the future of energy efficiency.
“Quidos has long maintained a hostile view of ‘reverse auction’ panels, and we do not insure any instructions that DEAs accept through these channels.”
The warning about the firm, which advertises EPCs from just £19.95, also refers to alleged links between PayOnTheDayEPC and another firm, NextDayEPC, which Quidos claims is being investigated by Trading Standards.
Ironically, the latest set of emails from PayOnTheDayEPC to DEAs offering them the chance to bid for work in an EPC auction, contains the warning: “Anyone found to be placing ficticious (sic) bids on our system with no intention of completing the work will be reported to the relevant accreditation body in the first instance in addition to being placed on the DEA blacklist register.”
Paul Walker, of the Institute of Domestic Energy Assessors, says he is convinced about the links between the two EPC firms – links which have been strongly denied by NextDayEPC.
He says he took a screengrab from the PayOnTheDay website on September 15 – which EAT has seen – showing a tab saying TotalEPC. However, if you click on the profile tab, the screengrab shows it changed to NextDayEPC.
The website has now changed but Walker has also produced other evidence of links between the two companies, again seen by EAT, which he says is being passed to Trading Standards by a group of DEAs in the West Country, where yet another EPC company is thought to be under investigation.
Industry sources emphasise that with the Green Deal due to launch next year, it will be vital to ensure that the industry has no rogue operators.
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Comments
Hi "Paul". I think those of us familiar with your writing style know you're actually Paul Walker defending Paul Walker ;)
I am a member of IDEA and am proud of that.
Quote “Panel Beater”
“Has any body stopped to think why IDEA have such a token membership? Try taking a look at their forums - full of of people with nothing better to do than moan about how their lives have failed since taking a two bit training course.”
Mr PB. Only members of IDEA have access to the IDEA Forum. So for you to comment on the Forum content suggests that you are a member of IDEA?
However, I think not. Why? Because members do not, “moan about how their lives have failed since taking a two bit training course.”
In fact, the exact opposite. IDEA is a community that shares success stories, highs and lows and gives encouragement /advice to fellow Energy Assessors. It is a very positive community.
As to this other post from Mr PB;
“Inspector Walker will never be applauded by Panel Beater. He needs to get off his high horse and stop trying to represent the 13,000 strong energy assessor industry via an organisation that has 200 members.”
I have met the chairman of IDEA. I found Paul to be a very unassuming person, keen to help ALL DEAs, IDEA members or not. “High Horse”? I think more like a Shetland Pony! Strong and determined!
And Mr PB, why should IDEA and Mr Walker “stop trying to represent the 13,000 strong energy assessor industry”?
Is any other organisation doing that?
Panelbeater has got it completely WRONG, and obviously never been scammed by a rogue client.
Mr Walker, despite the poor membership, is still working for the 200 odd members as well as every other DEA by default. I applaud him and his organisation for doing whatever they can - more than can be said about Panelbeater.
Panelbeater, if you've nothing constructive to offer which will protect innocent DEA's from such bad intentioned organisations which offer nothing either to the DEA or the Industry as a whole, best you say nothing at all.
And yes, there is evidence the Panels in question have not paid DEA's - I have a CCJ against one of them.
Panels are not wanted. They have never positive to offer clients or industry. A cheap EPC today is just that - nothing which will add value or benefit in the medium or long term - and the sooner they are run out of business the better!
The two mentioned in this item are 100% connected - fact and evidence exists.
As for the DEA's being owed a living - well actually yes they are. They have honestly trained paid money, qualified and accredited, spent time and money advertising, and doing what they can to earn a living. I'm surprised panelbeater finds that distasteful or reason to insult good honest hardworking DEA's.
There is nothing 'two bit' about the course and his comments are unhelpful and worthless. (Perhaps the Panel himself) -
Panelbeater - Your on your own!
I actually paid for an EPC on Monday 26th September just after lunch, I paid through paypal and it cost £39.95 and the payment was made to a Neil Pottinger!
The website clearly states that an assessor will contact you within 24 hours of payment being made and as of 21.26 on Wednesday 28th September I still have had no call from any assessor!
I did ring the 0845 no and emailed but I got no response, I then raised a dispute with paypal and a ryan rang me within minutes of the dispute being raised!
He offered to give me the number to the assessor and then told me that the assessor would ring me! Still no contact!
Here is a copy of the response to my dispute through paypal:-
Hi Mr Richards, We have spoken with the assessor who will call you this afternoon to arrange an appointment. It is disappointing to learn that you have been unable to get through to us however, we have been experiencing a few issues with the routing of our 0845 contact number today. Regards.
I will be going to the business address tomorrow as I work only 5 minutes away from Enderby and if there is no one there I will be ringing the police as this is obviously obtaining money by deception!
=============================================
since reposting through the paypal dispute site I have now received a full refund! Probably because I threatened to go to trading standards because the are false advertising!!
Inspector Walker will never be applauded by Panel Beater. He needs to get off his high horse and stop trying to represent the 13,000 strong energy assessor industry via an organisation that has 200 members.
Has any body stopped to think why IDEA have such a token membership? Try taking a look at their forums - full of of people with nothing better to do than moan about how their lives have failed since taking a two bit training course.
In reply to “PanelBeater”
After reading this and the previous article, about Payontheday”, I would say “Inspector Walker of the (Back) Yard has shown proof of the links between the two companies.
“Inspector Walker” has not made any allegation (nor anyone else) about Payontheday not paying DEAs. Nor any allegations of non supply of EPCs to homeowners by Payontheday.
I think Mr Walker (IDEA) is trying his best to bring rogue companies to light and should be applauded, not berated/insulted?
I for one dont need any panels to keep my business going. Ive done the ground work, have established a good working relationship with 10 local agents. I also have run google adwords which top up my income and local advertising in various local newsletters help. I am very happy with the fees i charge as the agents and people I carry out inspections for. I provide a same day service and in alot of cases, I can produce the EPC at the end of the inspection for some clients. Im not the cheapest with my fees, nor am I the most expensive, but my clients would go no where else as they know they are receiving a quality service which is guaranteed to give them an accurate EPC before the close of business on the same day as the EPC.
Panels are just middlemen, no qualification in the business. They secure the work and use the reverse auction system which just drives the fees down to unacceptable levels. I for one cant understand why a qualified Assessor would undertake work from a panel for less than £30.00. Fees alone cost anything from £7 to £10, leaving the assessor with £20 and then take petrol costs out which could be anything from £3 to £5, bringing it down to £15 and I know some inspections with travel time involved can take 2 hours, so thats £7.50 an hour. Which some might say isnt bad. But I think thats just above the minimum wage of around £6. They would get more shelf stacking in tescos. Al of that is assumming a minimum fee of £30. I can name at least 5 companies which dont pay their assessors and most of them are/were run by Chris Whatcott. Im not saying all Panels are bad. But if DEAs got off their back sides and did the ground work, we wouldnt need panels and at least then we could maintain a sensible price for our fees which would be set.
The chances are that these companies are linked but does Inspector Walker of the (back) Yard actually have any evidence the Pay on the Day has not paid any assessors or not provided EPCs to the public who have ordered them?
The business model that Express EPC / Next Day etc adopted is exceptionally clever and is used by at least two other panels in the UK. These panels stay out of the news because they run their companies properly and pay assessors.
Energy Assessors need Panels to survive and will do so until they all realise that this industry does not owe them a living. Paying 3 grand for a training course doesn’t mean that work will fall in their laps. When was the last time any assessor caught out by Express or Next Day actually paid for advertising, ran a google adwords campaign, or cold called an Agent?
Being an Energy Assessor is not a "badge" it’s a business and until such time as assessors realise this they should be content with accepting the fees that panels pay.
And Chris Whatcott still manages to run phoenix companies dispite trading standards, companies house, CCJs, etc being involved. When is this guy going to get what he truely deserves. Surely with all these investigations into how this man runs a business should come to a head somewhere and this man gets what he truely deserves.
For general interest all the panels mentioned, Next Day EPC,Pay on the Day EPC and Express EPCs are all run by the same person Mr Christopher Whatcott he is also a Director of SAVI online in Hitchin Hertfordshire
Its good to see Quidos taking steps to warn their members not to use these types of companies who are taken this industry somewhere where we dont want it to go. All this bad publicity and the general public being scammed into paying for a service they may/maynot receive. Also the silly DEAs who still continue to use these companies and then realise they wont get paid.
Quidos are the only accredition body I know of that have mentioned anything. When will the other bodies start to take notice and warn their members or advise them they wont be insured if they undertake instructions from these companies.
I have on may occassions emailed my accredition body asking them to include something in their monthly newsletter, but they wont. Ive even spoke to customer support who advised me due to legal reasons they could not get involved????? This is stupid. they need to be involved to protect their members and the industry.
IDEA and DCHI have agreed an information sharing protocol with a number of AB's in order to crack down on these type of rogue traders websites.
By pooling our information resources with AB's we can apply more pressure on the ASA, TSO and others to act quicker.
At last accreditation bodies getting on the side of energy assessors to rid the industry of these parasites that have caused so much distress for consumers and assessors