Gas sub meter help!!!

gaz0987

Hi there.
Im really hoping that somebody can help as i am in an awkward position.
Right where do i start lol??

I currently rent a flat which is above a mortgage centre and have done for the past six months, but my gas is used through a submeter with the company below me.We both have seperate readings but all gas bills are out of my hands as it is the mortgage centre below that has the account with british gas.
I have just recently had a bill for £300 for twenty weeks which half of this time me and my partner are at work.The company below have used on average of 70Kwh a week and i have used an average of 80 Kwh a month but they are claiming that we owe more money.
I feel that i am being robbed as i have no documentation to prove otherwise.
This property is managed by a letting agent and when i have spoken to the manager to ask what the meter reading was when i moved in they had no record of it so there is no way of knowing.
At this moment in time i am refusing to pay as i know the company will claim back VAT and i am not entirely happy with the figures they have given me.

We also had an annual gas safety check last week and to my horror there was two gas leaks. The first one was in the kitchen and the second was with our gas fire in the living room. The gas fire was giving out three times more gas than it should have so would this have payed a factor in this gas bill.We had both been to the doctors in january suffering from carbon monoxide symptoms but at the time we were unaware and the doctor put it down to stress.The fire has now been condemned as it is no longer safe.

If there is anybody out there that can help me and tell me if what they are doing is allowed as i have been told it is illegal and if im right to refuse to pay it.
When speaking to the letting agent manager he said he would sort it but over a week on i have still not heard. I since handed my notice in on this property as it causing alot of distress for me and my partner.

Any help would be much appreciated/

jd87

I don't know about the actual bill and what your rights are, but I just wanted to say that a Carbon Monoxide leak and a Gas leak are two completely different things. Both are very dangerous things, but only a Gas leak can cause your bill to be higher than it should be. Carbon Monoxide is something produced by faulty equipment (boilers, fires, etc) but the actual Carbon Monoxide doesn't affect your meter reading.

The whole problem you are having is probably just because you don't know what your start reading was when you moved in, so they are using an estimate and they are getting it wrong. You need to agree on what a sensible start reading was, but somebody needs to pay for the gas that was used before you moved in.

gaz0987

Thankyou for your reply. Im aware that they are two different things and that the gas leak is different. It was the gas fire that was causing the carbon monoxide when it was on. These were just another two thing to rub the salt in the wound.

As with the gas meter reading .There is no recorded gas meter reading since may 2009 when the previous tennants first moved in.We can only go by what the company is saying and also the company below is owned and run by the actual land lord himself.

Do you not think there is something fishy going on with this whole meter reading thing.

thanks gaz

gaz0987

Also they are refusing to negotiate!

jd87

Who do you actually have to pay? Do you personally get a bill from the supplier, or do you pay the letting agent and then they sort it out?

gaz0987

its the mortgage centre below me that post how much i need to pay them. British gas will not talk to me as the account is in the companies name.

Ive been recording the meter readings for the past month and i used 71kwh they used 286Kwh.This goes to show that they are using by far more than i am.
I only have 4 radiators, a combi boiler and an electric shower. I am just so puzzled why no one can see where i am coming from.

jd87

Sounds like a totally illegal set up. Refuse to pay anything and seek legal advice, maybe starting with citizens advice bureau.

gaz0987

thats what im intending to do on monday. i am going to get a letter written up with all the information i have taken and the conversation i had with the letting agent as they manage the property.Ill take that to the CAB and hopefully they will guide me in the right direction.

I have said from the very beginning of all this i will pay but only for the gas i believe i have used. But if this is an illegal operation they will not get a penny.

Im glad you can see from my point of view that something just aint right with this whole procedure.

Thanks.

KimYeovil

£63 per month over winter hardly seems excessive for four radiators.

You say you use 80 kWh per month. I assume you mean 80 meter units. On a metric meter that is 896 kWh, imperial 2560 kWh. That would cost £27 per month plus standing charge or £80 plus standing charge. So if an imperial meter then a £300 bill would be a bit low (assuming your 80 units is a higher winter quote.) If a metric meter the figures makes no sense.

Do you have actual readings? Is there any dispute over the meter reads?

How was the initial £300 determined - you are entitled to see original bills. Did they read the readings and ask for an approximate amount and revise it after receiving an actual bill? On the face of it, if your assertion of 80 units is a correct average over four and three quarter months you are due to pay more than £300.

gaz0987

hi kim yoevil.
The gas meter is measured in metric units. The only original reading that i have is the one that the mortgage centre is claiming they took even though they are not sure who took it, very confusing.

ON OCTOBER 1ST 2010 THE READING WAS- 1584 Kwh
FEBUARY 18TH 2011 THE READING WAS- 2176 Kwh

TOTAL-592 Kwh in 20 weeks or 4 and half months

Does this make any sense.

Thankyou garry

PNPSUKNET

Its not ilegal, it is perfectly legal for a landlord to resell gas or electric via submetering infact the council do it for my office. Ask the landlord when the meter was last colaborated, however not obliged to.