British Gas balance in credit - what now?

Nile

Apologies if this subject has been discussed before, I'm not a regular reader of this board.:o

My very elderly father-in-law and mother-in-law showed me their British Gas electricity statement this morning, when I went to visit them. They were quite worried about it and couldn't understand what it meant.

I must admit that I was also puzzled when I first read the statement. Their balance is in credit by over £1200!!!!!!!! Twelve hundred pounds?:eek: How did this happen?

I'm guessing that their bills have been estimated (not a meter reading) and they've kept paying the bill every quarter...........despite them being in credit.

Can they (or can I on their behalf) get this money refunded now? Otherwise it will take them years to recoup that amount of money, judging by their usual quarterly electric usage.

I know that British Gas have a bad reputation for customer service, so I wanted to get your feedback and advice before I make a phone call to them.

Thank you

Nile

prudryden

The bill will state whether the reading was an estimate or not. Look for the little e by the units used. Take your own reading and call it in. British Gas will send you an updated bill. This can probably be done without even speaking to anyone - just punch the numbers in when the voice tells you to.

Once you have the new bill - you will know exactly how much is a true credit.
Then you can decide if you want the funds returned or left for future bills.

sare_2

I should hope so!!

I can't speak for BG, but when my account with London Energy went over £100 in credit, I got a refund when I called them.I've also had similar refunds from BT.

When the bill from BG has been arriving, it should have said on it that no money is required.I'm guessing maybe they haven't understood that and still paid the amount of charges.
Would have hoped BG would have contacted them, but like you say they aren't known for stunning service.

Tustastic

I was able to negotiate with British Gas (and other utilities providers) over the phone on behalf of my mother. I used to go round to her house, plan the conversation with her, get her to phone up and say that she wanted me to negotiate with them. Obviously best to do this with the paperwork to hand. The refund cheque normally arrived in 5-6 working days. That's a nice early Xmas present you will have obtained for them:)
If your in-laws pay by direct debit, negotiate a much lower monthly payment. Be firm on this - the advisers often try to tell you to leave the sum unchanged over the winter to cover higher use.
If they don't pay by direct debit (and I know many older people are not comfortable with this), do try and persuade them, because of the discount it provides. Might be best to do that when they are rolling around in bliss after the refund arrives....!

Nile

Thanks to everyone for your advice.:A

I've just rung British Gas to ask for a refund. They refused to refund the full amount without the meter reading now/today...................and as I'm not at their home I couldn't give the meter reading.:mad:

What I have managed to do is to negotiate a refund of £1000. So.......British Gas will have just over £200 of my father-in-law's money, instead of over £1200.:rolleyes:

Thanks again for your help

Nile

Nile

prudryden wrote:

Whoa! What if the estimate has been way too low? You could possibly have to send the money straight back. Can you not get someone to read the meter for them? BG usually will send a new bill right away.

Don't worry, the meter was read in September. There is no way that they've used £1200's worth of electricity in a few weeks.;)

pfpf

Nile wrote:

Don't worry, the meter was read in September. There is no way that they've used £1200's worth of electricity in a few weeks.;)

energy prices have just risen you know

well done....i wish i was in the same boat as you. my post, just one or two down from this one is completely the opposite, power supplier incompetence leaving me with a staggering balance to repay

ManAtHome

BG normally adjust monthly DDs (and give refunds) once a year. It's all a bit of swings and roundabouts unless your usage is VERY constant (and not skewed by estimated readings) - I've had DDs between £15 and £50 a month over the last few years!

They are (usually) pretty good at coming round to do an actual reading and sorting out the difference though.

dollarjon

all you do is call them give them a meter reading for that day they will then calculate an exact ammount your owed, from there you can choose to leave a little in credit or ask them to send you a cheque for the full ammount

Tustastic

Nile wrote:

Thanks to everyone for your advice.:A

I've just rung British Gas to ask for a refund. They refused to refund the full amount without the meter reading now/today...................and as I'm not at their home I couldn't give the meter reading.:mad:

What I have managed to do is to negotiate a refund of £1000. So.......British Gas will have just over £200 of my father-in-law's money, instead of over £1200.:rolleyes:

Thanks again for your help

Nile

Well done on being so helpful to your in-laws Nile. You lucky thing, being able to give a £1000 'present' to somebody who really needs it at no expense to yourself.:) From my experience with my mother, it is an important moment when an independent older person decides to ask for your advice regarding a financial matter. It shows that they trust you and also that they are now looking for help and moral support in dealing with their finances. You might like to volunteer to read their meters and check their utilities statements as a routine when you visit. With your support, they might have the confidence to switch suppliers to get the best deal.

Nile

Tustastic wrote:

Well done on being so helpful to your in-laws Nile. You lucky thing, being able to give a £1000 'present' to somebody who really needs it at no expense to yourself.:) From my experience with my mother, it is an important moment when an independent older person decides to ask for your advice regarding a financial matter. It shows that they trust you and also that they are now looking for help and moral support in dealing with their finances. You might like to volunteer to read their meters and check their utilities statements as a routine when you visit. With your support, they might have the confidence to switch suppliers to get the best deal.

Thanks for your comments Tustastic, I'm blushing.:o

You're right about them asking for my help. There are other family members they could turn to but they wait for me to visit. I've done things like their passport applications, set up equipment in their home like VHS player/DVD player/cordless phone (with preset numbers) ..........so they know that they can rely on me. It's a nice feeling.

I hope that I make them feel safer/more comfortable in their own home in their twilight years.

I know I can be pretty silly on this web site but I can also be very sensible and caring too.;)