British Gas astronomical bills!

MzV

Hi, I could really use some advice as I am banging my head against a brick wall with the customer services of British Gas.
I have a two bedroom flat, middle floor with open plan living room. When I first moved in I paid £30 a month on gas and last year ended up with a debit amount of over £560. I called BG and said that this seems extreme as I work all day and the gas is on timer to come on around 7pm and is off at 11pm. It's on 1 hour from 6am - 7am in the morning. That's it! We don't put it on constant ever. They said that this debit figure was a build up as my current amount I was paying wasn't high enough in the first place. I said I still feel there is a problem, but they talked me round and confused me, so they increased my direct debit to £50 a month, but yet the amount unpaid got larger, so last year they increased it to £93 a month - and I now have still £288 to pay on the most up to date bill!!
In essence - they are saying for my flat and the amount of gas I use, I should have been paying £75 a month in the first place = £900 a year.
They then said they'd send someone out to remove the meter and put a new one, but if that shows that there's nothing wrong with it, I will get charged! I have had the boiler checked yearly so there is no leak. I am at my wits end with this! No one else that I work with pays that amount for gas alone and even my retired parents who are home all the time only pay £53 a month! Something is not right and I don't know how to get help.

jalexa

MzV wrote: »

I don't know how to get help.

To get meaningful help from the Forum you need to post the meter readings taken from your last four quarterly bills.

MzV

Thank you Jalexa.

Here we go:

22 Jan 2010 - 3149
08 May 2010 - 3171
£120 paid
£292.16 remaining

09 May 2010 - 29 July 2010 - bill missing online, but I have paid my DD - so £120 paid


30 July 2010 – 3431 (actual by me)
18 Oct 2010 – 3476 (actual by BG)
£120 paid
£374.62 remaining

19 Oct 2010 – 3476 (actual by BG)
28 Jan 2011 – 3690 (actual by BG)
£120 paid
£498.81 remaining

29 Jan 2011 – 3690 (actual by BG)
07 May 2011 – 3856 (est)
£153 paid
£548.93 remaining

08 May 2011 – 3856 (est)
03 Aug 2011 – 3862 (actual by VV)
£153 paid
£410.05 remaining

04 Aug 2011 – 3862 (actual by VV)
07 Nov 2011 – 3913 (est)
£279 paid
£226.24 remaining

jalexa

MzV wrote: »

09 May 2010 - 29 July 2010 - bill missing online, but I have paid my DD - so £120 paid
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30 July 2010 – 3431 (actual by me)

OK. My first comment is that your customer reading of 29/7/2010 is a huge catchup reading over the previous readings (which I assume are estimates though are not marked as estimates).

I think that has made it quite hard to understand the billing. I stand to be corrected (or asked to recheck the figures), but I think the readings show that in nearly 2 year (a good period) your consumption was 13,750kWhrs/year. "Average" consumption is 16,500 so that would not be obviously excessive enough to result in supplier comprehension of your concerns.

I also calculate an average gas price of 4.4p/kWhr, possibly not the cheapest tariff. I also estimate that £50/month would be about right. But that still leaves a running £280+ debit balance which first arose over 2 years previously.

OK, I think you need to get a handle in your consumption by taking daily readings for a week. You might be surprised just how much gas a boiler can use from cold and in a few hours.

Meter inaccuaracy is another matter but is extremely rare.

My conclusion is the single biggest problem is initial underestimating (and underpaying) on the account. Any major heating changes around that time?

dogshome

By using the End read of the May 2010 bill and the July Start read of the Oct bill, the gas use on the missing bill was 260 Units
The figures between the Jan/May bill and the Oct/Jan Bill give a good idea of your use over a full year - 541 Units.
This converts to just over 17,000 chargeable Kwh which is an awful lot for a 2 bed flat and costs around £750 a year - £63 a month to which you have to add money to pay off the accumulated debt

If your flat is poorly insulated and you are in a cold weather area of the UK there is not a lot you can do, but if you are not it would be as well to check that the meter No. printed on your bill is the same as that on the actual meter

MzV

jalexa wrote: »

OK, I think you need to get a handle in your consumption buy taking daily readings for a week. You might be surprised just how much gas a boiler can use from cold and in a few hours.

I shall do that - that's a great idea. Thank you.

jalexa wrote: »

My conclusion is the single biggest problem is initial underestimating (and underpaying) on the account. Any major heating changes around that time?.

No changes - as long as I have been in that flat (July 2009) I have been working at the same place, and out the house the same amount of time. It is me on my own in the flat.

MzV

dogshome wrote: »

By using the End read of the May 2010 bill and the July Start read of the Oct bill, the gas use on the missing bill was 260 Units
The figures between the Jan/May bill and the Oct/Jan Bill give a good idea of your use over a full year - 541 Units.
This converts to just over 17,000 chargeable Kwh which is an awful lot for a 2 bed flat and costs around £750 a year - £63 a month to which you have to add money to pay off the accumulated debt

If your flat is poorly insulated and you are in a cold weather area of the UK there is not a lot you can do, but if you are not it would be as well to check that the meter No. printed on your bill is the same as that on the actual meter

I think it's an awful lot which is why I keep calling them and asking them to explain it, but they just talk me in circles. I live in Streatham in London. All the heaters are on outside walls and there is no insulation between the walls and the paint - maybe cement- it's an old house conversion. Also I have very bad damp in the back bedroom. I have curtains on all the windows as well as blinds (although I know that doesn't make a difference) I am sandwiched between two floors and have carpets.
I will check the bill and the meter tonight to ensure they are one in the same.

dogshome

A futher thought - There are two types of Gas Meter - Metric which is marked m3 on the front, and Imperial which is marked ft3.
Looking at your figures it's a faint hope, but if your meter is Metric and BG have it down as Imperial, you are being overcharged by 181% Look at your meter to see how it is marked - m3 or ft 3 ?
On the latest bill, divide the meter units used into the Kwh charged - If the answer is close to 31.5 you are being charged for an Imperial meter, ( ft3 ), but if your meter is marked m3 get back onto BG immediately

MzV

This is what is on the bill before last (the most recent is confusing as it has split it in to two because of the price increase)

08 May 2011 - estimated 3856
03 August 2011 - actual 3862

Gas units converted = 6 imperial units over 88 days (actual)
= 188.59 kWh used over 88 days

188.59 kWh x 7.131p = £13.34

How would I work out this out to see if they have me on the wrong meter?

Thanks!

jalexa

MzV wrote: »

How would I work out this out to see if they have me on the wrong meter?

The bill has been calculated for an imperial meter. You need to look at your actual meter to ensure it is marked "ft 3" (and not "m 3")

mattcanary

Is there a 0 at the beginning of your meter reading? eg - 03913.

This would also tell you that the meter is metric and not imperial - meaning you have been vastly overcharged