Utility accounts in credit - refusing to refund

benhill1984

Quick brief of the situation:
As of mid-last year, we (my wife and I) were getting stumped for around £60pm for electricity (and £20pm for gas) from British Gas. This was because they had messed up our direct debit details when we switched and only took the £20pm for gas, and nil for electricity. As such we ran up a debit balance on our electricity account of around £120. They put our direct debit up to recoup that, and recoup that they did. Despite being in credit throughout the winter months and then performing calculations regarding our average daily spend throughout a year and being prudent in our estimates, we thought that they could lower our monthly DD down to around £20.

When I phoned them to discuss this, they said that their 'system' would not *allow* them to put it to less than around £40pm, and could I phone back in 2 months when it would be up for review. Annoyed, but acceptive, I went away making a note to ring them in what would be about a week's time.

Today we receive a letter stating that our DD would be going down to £11 - about half of what we advised them we NEEDED to pay. Oh, and no, we wouldn't be getting the £130 credit on our account back, because it is policy to only refund when it hits £150.

Sorry, I did say quick and brief...

So, I am thinking that this was a tactical move to retain our funds and keep us in credit for the next 14-15 months. Small change to them, but the interest could be accruing in our account instead of theirs. More to the point, we could move away from PAYING interest on our account.

So, short story long, what are the rules on utility companies holding onto money? When do they turn into deposit holding entities, and can I charge them statutory interest on the amounts owed, given that originally it arose because of their stupid system and errors in processing?

I want my money back, basically, and I'd like to go at them quoting references to legislation (a personal favourite technique of mine - usually scares them into getting their manager...) - any help?

Thanks very much in advance!

Shonk_2

£150 is operating balance for these guys

im £600 in credit and they dont want to cough

spiro

What interest on £130? You'll be lucky to get £1.30 per year. By operating this way round they can minimise your DD and still ensure you stay in credit which must be better than the other way round for you.

jimexbox

spiro wrote: »

What interest on £130? You'll be lucky to get £1.30 per year. By operating this way round they can minimise your DD and still ensure you stay in credit which must be better than the other way round for you.

Your DD payment should cover what you use. There should be no need to have a 'float' in each account. If you usage remains constant, any discrepancy between DD payment and quarterly bill is down to your energy supplier not calculating your payments correctly. If prices rise or fall over the year they can and do alter your payments to match, they have with me.

The £130 is spiro's, end of story. If he/she wants it back then is should be given back. I dont walk into a bank and they tell me my last 130 quid cannot be removed because that's their operating balance. Its total nonsense.

1carminestocky

spiro wrote: »

What interest on £130? You'll be lucky to get £1.30 per year. By operating this way round they can minimise your DD and still ensure you stay in credit which must be better than the other way round for you.

Why is it 'better' for the OP to be in credit instead of having that £130 in his bank account?

jimexbox

I should add any credit in your account will not be given back until your Spring bill next month. This is when your account should be at zero, so any float can be returned and new DD payment set.

david39

It took me a year, after I had left them, to get a £93 credit back from British Gas.
Eventually, they rang me to see if I would go back to them and I said I would as long as they paid me my £93. They sent me the cheque, quickly followed by their contract, but I didn't sign it!

Cardew

benhill1984 wrote: »

I want my money back, basically, and I'd like to go at them quoting references to legislation (a personal favourite technique of mine - usually scares them into getting their manager...) - any help?

IMO legislation does not apply in this situation.

Without being BG specific,(as this applies to all utility companies) you do not have to pay by Direct Debit.

Companies give you several choices to pay for energy - pre-pay, quarterly billing, standing order or Direct Debit.

The latter(with BG at least) attracts the highest discount on their prices. A major reason for this discount being given is to reduce the company's administrative costs.

If you agree to pay by DD you sign to agree that the company can take what monies they see fit from your account.

If you do not agree to the level of the DD the company wants you to pay, you have the options of paying by another method or leaving the company.

From what you say, BG have a policy of not returning credits under £150. If you feel this is unreasonable, then you can exercise the options above.

All Utility companies have conditions that some of us find unacceptable. One Utility company has a 10% surcharge on its quoted prices if you do not pay by DD. BT charge extra unless you have paperless billing. etc etc

In essence you want the DD discount, but do not like the conditions attached to that discount.

Have BG 'got you over a barrel'? Yes of course they have!

1carminestocky

Are we to assume that the £150 lower limit before a refund can be initiated is a flat rate figure applicable to all accounts? If so, that's ridiculous because for someone with low usage that could represent a large %tage of the annual bill. Surely this figure should be based on a %tage of the punter's annual bill? Maybe it is?

jimexbox

Cardew wrote: »

In essence you want the DD discount, but do not like the conditions attached to that discount.

If Eon can do it.....

Eon wrote:

If your account is in credit at the time of your Spring Annual Review statement we would like to refund it. We will automatically refund it to your bank account if your Spring statement or previous, was based upon actual meter readings and if the value is between £5.00 -£1000.00, otherwise we will ask you to contact us to provide an actual meter reading.

Why does BG apparently insist £150 is a operating balance, when a fiver will do for Eon.

1carminestocky

Cardew wrote: »

IMO legislation does not apply in this situation.

Without being BG specific,(as this applies to all utility companies) you do not have to pay by Direct Debit.

Companies give you several choices to pay for energy - pre-pay, quarterly billing, standing order or Direct Debit.

The latter(with BG at least) attracts the highest discount on their prices. A major reason for this discount being given is to reduce the company's administrative costs.

If you agree to pay by DD you sign to agree that the company can take what monies they see fit from your account.

If you do not agree to the level of the DD the company wants you to pay, you have the options of paying by another method or leaving the company.

From what you say, BG have a policy of not returning credits under £150. If you feel this is unreasonable, then you can exercise the options above.

All Utility companies have conditions that some of us find unacceptable. One Utility company has a 10% surcharge on its quoted prices if you do not pay by DD. BT charge extra unless you have paperless billing. etc etc


In essence you want the DD discount, but do not like the conditions attached to that discount.

Have BG 'got you over a barrel'? Yes of course they have!

AFAIK there's only Ebico that doesn't charge extra for not paying by DD...isn't there? And I believe the company you are referring to give you the option to input your meter readings online each month and receive a bill based on that monthly usage and a DD to match it, thereby avoiding the problem the OP is having?