Gas bill over 2 years old

nmb1

We've been in our rented house for 27 months and have only just received a gas bill. I've made many attempts to try and find out who our supplier was, to no avail. I seem to remember something about only having to pay for the last year. Is this true, and if so, how do I go about challenging British Gas?:snow_grin

crafty*kate

I've never heard of this?

You always knew you were going to have to pay for it one day...have you been putting money aside for it?

nmb1

Yes, I've got it all but if there is a chance of paying less..........!

crafty*kate

Have you spoken to them about it?

Just seems a bit unfair on the rest of us who always pay our bills, that's all. There's moneysaving, and then there's being dishonest.

nmb1

I greatly resent the "dishonest" comment - in fact I've just looked at the British Gas code of practice (I think that MIGHT be a LEGAL document) and it does say that they can only bill for a maximum of 1 year if it is their fault. Also, you will see in my original post that I have made many attempts to ascertain who my supplier was. What a welcome to the wonderful world of Money Saving Expert -thanks!

Cardew

There is a voluntary billing code(not a legal ruling), that the suppliers have signed up to, where they will not back-bill more than 12 months where they have not raised a bill and it is the fault of the Utility company. that a bill has not been raised.

However the code specifically excludes situations where the occupant has moved in and not notified the company they are in residence. The Gas and Electricty Acts(of Parliament) lay down that when you move into a property and use any gas/electricity you have entered a legally binding deemed contract.

In the case of a rented house - which could be unoccupied for years, or even derelict etc- the companies have no way of knowing if it is occupied. If you have documented proof of attempting to find out who is supplying gas(letters to letting agent with their reply) you should be OK. Just saying I have made frequent attempts without some proof is not sufficient.

You might still 'get away' without paying all you owe if you contact the company - depends on their attitude.

The moral justification is down to you!

crafty*kate

Honestly? I'm surprised I'm the only person whose said it was dishonest. MSE can be a wonderful place and is full of great support for people, especially those in difficult circumstances. But to me, saying you've got a perfectly legitimate bill and you just want to wriggle out of paying it, is not what this site is about. SOMEONE will have to pay, and if it isn't you then it'll be the rest of us.

Thank you Cardew for your informed answer.

echoecho_2

Hi nmb1,

I'll try and give you the best advice I can without getting into any of the "morals" of it.

Your situation is certainly not uncommon. This issue occurs a lot in new build properties where the developer takes ages updating the energy company with the correct details and as such they couldn't find a record of your property when searching for it. It is also possible that your property was not listed properly on the National Grid database and as such, when searches were done it was unable to locate your property and thus inform you who your supplier was.

You are right that suppliers can only bill for the last year, however, as Cardew mentioned there are certain criteria for this to be applied which British Gas will have to look at. Unfortunately, the onus will be on you to prove that you attempted to find out who your supplier was and I expect unless you have copies of written correspondence, this will be difficult for you to do. If you believe that this applies to you, I would call British Gas complaints, register an official complaint and ask them to investigate whether the Billing Code of Practice applies to your situation.

lucylucky

crafty*kate wrote: »

Honestly? I'm surprised I'm the only person whose said it was dishonest. MSE can be a wonderful place and is full of great support for people, especially those in difficult circumstances. But to me, saying you've got a perfectly legitimate bill and you just want to wriggle out of paying it, is not what this site is about. SOMEONE will have to pay, and if it isn't you then it'll be the rest of us.

Thank you Cardew for your informed answer.

I am surprised you think the OP to be dishonest.

I don't.

davidgmmafan

To be honest I have some sympathey where people have made reasonable efforts to find out who the supplier is. I have seen posts where this has gone on for five years or more.

There is the argument that the OP may have missed out on getting the best rate since the outset, but the supplier could counter with well if you were that bothered you should've gone online and changed supplier.

To be honest they may just be glad of getting some form of payments in, so you may get a result.

bristol_pilot

The OP will pay for this gas at BG's standard rate. If they had gone online and changed supplier (you don't need to know who your existing supplier is to do this), they could have saved 20% or so.