Legal Question

JenniferBarker28

I bought a business last year and joined British Gas for Electricity supply. I agreed to a contract on the phone on the basis that I did would just compare with previous owners bills and make a final decision when the contract arrived, in the 'cooling off period'. As it happend the 1st correspondence I received was a bill. I have disputed the contract ever since and never paid a bill. Now they have started to chase me for the money. Can I get out of this situation? Can they leagally enforce a verbal contract?

Cardew

Yes!

Nobody signs a contract for gas and electricity these days, under the Gas and Electricity Acts of Parliament, the moment you use any of their electricity you have entered a legally binding deemed contract.

As a business you don't even have any of the protection afforded to domestic customers and even they don't have a 'cooling off' period - they pay for the energy they use.

Had you not wanted to have a BG contract you should not have used any of their electricity.

In any case in all fields a verbal contract is just that - a contract