Warning: Door to Door energy salesmen

I was over in Quesada in April/May this year.

One afternoon, a guy came knocking on my door, asking me to sign up to a new electricity supplier. Loads of ID and all that sort of stuff. Normally I'd just run an unrecommended cold caller, but I was on holidays and my guard was down.

He came into my house and managed to convince me to change over to his company, Aliluz, which he assured me would be much much cheaper, than what I was currently paying to Iberdrola. I naively believed him and signed up for a new contract and a direct debit to Aliluz from my Spanish account.

At the time, there was a healthy balance in the account. We use to pay bills etc. over there. Unfortunately, I didn't keep track of what was coming out of it.

BIG MISTAKE!!!!

Near the end of last month, I eventually got around to checking the balance on the account and looking at the withdrawals. I was shocked. The electricity company had been helping themselves to a multiple, twice and 3 times, the monthly amount that I had previously been paying to Iberdrola. This had gone on for 6 months. The bills were being posted out to my spanish house, and I wasn't getting them. If friends were staying in my house, they wouldn't even look in the letterbox.

When I realised what was happening, and that I was being fleeced, I tried ringing Aliluz without success. I got on to my solicitor, and she tried but couldn't contact them either. At my request, she arranged for me to transfer back to Iberdrola.

Anyway, stupid and ashamed of myself as I feel, I thought I'd share my experience and warn some other unsuspecting non dom. of the very expensive dangers having anything at all to do with door to door energy salesmen.

From previous post on here

utilities-in-spain-electric-gas-water-recommendations-advice-f87/aliluz-t34290.html

quesada-general-discussion-f9/aliluz-contract-termination-t40347.html

Many thanks, Murt - good of you to acknowledge your error, whilst still sharing your experience for the benefit of others.

Happy new year and best wishes for 2020.

It is now I think illegal to have any form of cold calling to sell any engery product.