WHEN Kath Talbot bought her cottage in Stone, Staffordshire, in January 2022, she couldn't have prepared for the two-year ordeal with her energy bills that was to follow.

Retired Kath, 75, moved from Scottish Power, the existing supplier for the property, to Octopus Energy, her energy company of choice, as soon as she moved in.

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An account was quickly set up with Octopus and she started paying the company for her gas and electricity bills without any problems.

That was until she received a huge bill for almost £2,000 from Scottish Power a year later in January 2023.

Kath immediately contacted Scottish Power and told them she had changed suppliers a year ago and didn't owe them any money, even sending copies of her bank statements showing her payments to Octopus as proof.

But after months of back and forth, Scottish Power continued to insist it was in arrears and continued to send increasing bills, culminating in a demand for £2,989.

After a year of this and with no resolution in sight, Kath finally contacted Sun Money and asked us to help liaise with Scottish Power on her behalf.

She said at the time: “I am extremely frustrated and just don't know what else to do.

“I've called, sent emails and spent hours on their chat lines with no success.

“I'm so afraid that I could end up in court, something I really don't have to think about at the age of 75.”

When Sun Money spoke to both companies, it emerged that Kath found herself in an extraordinary – and thankfully rare – situation where she was charged for two separate meters.

When she tried to switch to Octopus Energy two years ago, a 'mix-up' resulted in the wrong energy meter being linked to her account.

This meant that it had effectively been paying the bill for a different address to Octopus Energy since February 4, 2022, while Scottish Power had remained a supplier for its own property.

As a result, she had been indebted to Scottish Power for almost two years, which could have had devastating consequences for her credit rating.

Octopus Energy acknowledged to Sun Money that an “erroneous transfer” had occurred when Kath attempted to transfer to them.

An incorrect transfer occurs when a switch to a new supplier does not proceed correctly or occurs without the customer's permission.

In Kath's case, the transfer did not go smoothly because the incorrect address details were present in the industry database used by energy companies.

So another address was transferred to Octopus Energy and Kath set up a direct debit to pay this bill.

Scottish Power was unaware that it had requested a switch to another provider.

Kath cannot now be moved to Octopus until her debt with Scottish Power has been repaid.

So to make up for the mix-up, Octopus has credited her account with £2,989 so she can pay off her debt to Scottish Power and start over.

This is more than the £2,650 Kath was actually owed by Octopus Energy for paying for the wrong meter.

Once her account with Scottish Power has been settled, Octopus will arrange the transfer.

A spokesperson for Octopus said: “We are pleased to say that we have spoken to Kath and agreed a resolution with her.

“We will be closely monitoring Kath's account until the transition is complete. Once done, Kath can continue with us.”

Kath said: “I don't think the issue would have been resolved if Sun Money had not been involved. Thank you very much for your help.”

Sun Money has requested that the late payment be removed from Kath's credit file.

Our Squeeze Team has recovered £162,646 for readers so far.

What can I do if I think my energy bill is incorrect?

If you're unhappy with your energy bill, the first thing you need to do is make sure you're paying for the right property.

Please check that the serial number on your energy meter matches the serial number on your account as this is a common cause of mix-ups.

Also make sure you take photos of your meter readings and write them down each time you call your supplier.

It is best to follow up any complaints in writing, placing the word 'complaint' in the subject line of your email or letter.

Check your supplier's website for the correct email or address before shipping.

Energy companies have eight weeks to respond to a complaint with a decision, so don't give them a reason to delay.

If your company does not respond within this period or if you are not satisfied with the response, you can submit your complaint to the Energy Ombudsman.

The ombudsman will make a decision based on the evidence provided by you and the company. If you accept this, your supplier has 28 days to comply.

What if my bills were wrong?

If it turns out that you have been wrongly labeled as a debtor, you should ensure that your credit file is not affected.

Ask the company you are dealing with to have any late payments or missed payments removed from your credit file as a matter of urgency.

You can also contact credit agencies and ask them to issue a “notice of correction.”

This is where you make a note on your credit file visible to lenders, explaining the context surrounding any missed payments.

The main credit reporting agencies are Experian, Transunion or Equifax. Go directly to it to add any comments to your credit report.

You can check your credit reports for free by signing up for free with Experian, ClearScore for Equifax, and Credit Karma for Transunion.

Do you have a money problem that needs to be solved? Get in touch by emailing money@the-sun.co.uk.

Moreover, you can join us Sun Money chats and tips Facebook group to share your tips and stories.

Wham! has secured the coveted Christmas number one position with Last Christmas, 39 years after it was denied by Band Aid’s Do They Know It’s Christmas?

It’s a remarkable success that will delight fans of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, but it’s not the only festive hit with an unusual journey to the top.

For example, Jingle Bells is one of the most popular Christmas songs of all time, but it wasn’t even meant for the holidays.

Meanwhile, there is confusion over whether the famous text from 12 Days of Christmas was really intended to refer to a partridge in a pear tree.

Here, Femail reveals the surprising stories behind some of the hottest festive favourites.

Jingle Bells

The song, written by Boston singer James Pierpoint in the 1850s, was initially called The One Horse Open Sleigh, as a Thanksgiving song, but it became so popular that it was used at Christmas.

The new name took place in 1857 and certain texts were adapted to the holidays.

The song is so iconic that it became the first song played in space by the crew of Gemini 6, who put bells and a harmonic in their spaceship.

12 days of Christmas

There is consensus among historians that this fun Christmas carol started out as a simple memory game after it was composed by Englishman Frederic Austin around 1909.

And linguists have noticed that there may also be a funny translation error at play. As you sing the song, you will notice how the list grows longer with each verse.

One of the lines: ‘A partridge in a pear tree’ is the source of this confusion. The English breed of bird typically ranges in fields, while the French partridge is often found in trees.

Since the French word for the bird is perdrix, they suspect that this word was mistaken for pear tree, which sounds almost identical to the first.

This left people wondering if the partridge was actually in a pear tree or if this was an English speaker’s poor command of French.

Sinterklaas is coming to town

This song was first written by James ‘Haven’ Gillespie in 1934, when it was also performed on a radio program.

The inspiration behind the song is said to be the songwriter’s grief for his brother after his death.

As soon as James found out his brother had died, he received a call from Eddie Cantor, a well-known radio host, asking him to write a Christmas song for his show.

Initially, the Kentucky singer, too deeply affected by grief, canceled the performance, but later returned as he learned how to channel a positive memory of his brother into the hit.

Inspired, he managed to write the song in just 15 minutes, and the song became an overnight sensation.

Silent Night

This hit is a Christmas carol and Joseph Mohr, an Austrian Roman Catholic priest, is often credited as the one responsible for writing the religious song.

It is said that the father was fond of music during his Christmas Eve service, although his church organ was broken.

To remedy this, he wrote a simple poem and asked musician Franz Gruber to compose something that did not require an organ.

But it turned out that a Catholic priest wrote the poem while stationed in a church in Austria, before asking Franz to write accompanying guitar music.

The pair sang the carol on Christmas Eve 1818, 40 years before they decided to translate the song into English, and it gained worldwide fame.

Fairy tale of New York

The well-known party hit was written in 1987 by the Irish band The Pogues, starring Kirsty MacColl.

This fun song has less of a religious undertone than some others, but is inspired by booze.

Elvis Costello, a friend of the band, suggested calling the song Christmas Eve in the Drunk Tank.

However, they didn’t really like this for whatever reason, so frontman Shane MacGowan, who tragically died last month, decided to name it after a 1973 novel by JP Donleavy.