SAUR - WATER BILL - ENGLISH SPEAKING HELPLINE

[belu]

I sent a cheque to Saur in June for payment of the water bill - 3 weeks ago I received a duplicate bill saying they had not received payment.  I sent another cheque immediately having noticed that the first one had not been cashed.  Today I have received another bill which now includes a penalty for non-payment.  The second cheque has not been received either.  The payments were returned in the pre-addressed envelopes supplied to us but in addition, our address appeared incorrectly on the first invoice so I included a note with the first payment amending the address.  The address has now been amended so I cannot understand how they received this letter but not the cheque which was enclosed with it?

Although I do not speak very good French I did intend to try to speak to them but I have been telephoning Saur continuously today since they opened at 8.00 a.m. but no-one answers.  Does anyone know if there is an English speaking helpline as obviously we do not want our water cut off!  Thanks in advance.

[gosub]

If you can't contact them by telephone, try on their website

[belu]

Hi Les

Thanks for this prompt response.  Unfortunately I sent them 2 emails via the website last week and also gave them all my bank details via this so they could take the payment direct.  However, according to my account the amount is still outstanding and they haven't replied to either of my emails.  Couldn't see a link for English clients.  Will have to keep trying by phone. 

[Will]

Telephoning is generally much better than e-mails, faxes or even letters (other than accuse de reception, i.e. recorded) which are all too easy to ignore.

If you feel language is a difficulty, do get a French speaker to call on your behalf. Errors like this are all too common, among all officialdom - not only French, and are generally easy to sort out. Although it might sometimes take two or three attempts before you speak to somebody who has the desire, and the knowledge, to solve the problem.

[anniefromwales]

I had a similar experience with my first SAUR bill, they sent the bill to my UK address where I picked it up a couple of months later along with a second bill which included a late payment penalty. All very stressful at the time but I wrote back providing bank details and explaining I had asked them to write to me in France not the UK, hence the delay. I followed the letter with a phone call a couple of weeks later, and eventually spoke to a very nice lady who apologised and said everything was now in order. And they didn't take the late payment penalty. So don't despair, my experience is that SAUR make mistakes but do sort things out eventually.

[belu]

I have now managed to sort this out in fact, as you say Annie, SAUR have proved to be very efficient and helpful.  I finally got through to a nice lady in the office who spoke English and she arranged for me to pay the outstanding invoice immediately by direct debit - this was taken a few days later. 

[anniefromwales]

Glad it's all sorted Belu. Isn't it a relief when everything finally falls into place!

[Mikefromessex]

Does anyone one know the correct banking details for Saur ?

I am finally getting there and want to settle as soon as possible. I have taken some details down but the telephone line was not very good !

 

Thanks in anticipation,

 

Mikefromessex

 

[Frederick]

I also find with SAUR that you must give them access to the counter so they can read it.....I sent the reading to them on the card they put in my mail box but they only accepted me doing that once ......They took no notice of the second time I sent one in and went on to estimated my water use as 40 cubic metres which is the standard number they seem to use if they turn up and your gate is like mine locked to them ....Their estimates are based on constant use of the property .