British Gas / LCS

TonySimon1979

I cant believe after doing a search on LCS that i can find posts 6-7 years old and it seems nothing has changed..
It seems i am in the same kind of situation as most people.

British Gas trying to bill me for a previous tenant and even refusing payment for what i DO owe them..twice!!

Its quite straight forward...1st December i moved in, Jan 13th i gave them the final reading.
Not so simple when it comes to British Gas..
I tried to pay what i owed them on two separate occasions to which they refused because there was an outstanding balance and they couldn't tell me how much was owed?!...(even though they passed the debt on)
Each time i spoke to them i explained the situation and gave the solution.
Send me two bills 1 before December 1st and 1 bill for after, i will pay what i owe and i will pass the outstanding bill to the estate agent..after the 5th phone call chasing it up i am assured the bill/s will be sent out.
Two weeks go by ...a letter from LCS stating i owe £200+ ..at this point British Gas couldn't tell me how much i owed.
I emailed LCS and told them the account was in dispute and i wouldn't deal with them as the money was owed to British Gas and not to them any further correspondence would be seen as harassment.

Cutting the story short, weeks of phone calls and assurances the bill is split i pay what i owe and the outstanding bill is passed to the estate agents....but the threats don't stop from LCS.

So after a "72 hour notice?!" stating more fluff and threats i gave in and rang LCS and had a not so polite conversation with one of the managers telling him i welcome the prospect of going to court and i would be seeking damages but first i would like to make an official complaint or if he prefer we could discuss the matter in person.
Usually i wouldn't bother with bottom feeders but this parasite got on my nerves.

I'm told i can't log an official complaint over the phone i have to write a letter to Stephen Oyston.. quick search... works for
1st Locate UK Ltd
1st Floor West Wing,
Town Centre House,
The Merrion Centre,
Woodhouse Lane,
Leeds, LS2 8LY
...same company and not even an hour away from me

Owner : Darren Guest [EMAIL="darrenguest@1stlocateleeds.co.uk"]darrenguest@1stlocateleeds.co.uk[/EMAIL]
Director : Dominic Connolly
CEO : Andy Barclay
Customer Care Manager/Team Manager : Stephen Oyston

well that's as far as we go for today but lets see what develops from here....i do know i won't be backing down.

Fire_Fox

Use the formal complaints procedure, write a letter to British Gas they are the ones that employed debt collectors erroneously. If after eight weeks you have not had a reply or reached stalemate escalate to the ombudsman. Be careful not paying debt collectors, you don't want to end up with a black mark on your credit file.

Outstanding debt from a previous tenant is nothing to do with the letting agent nor landlord, all they can/ should do is supply a forwarding address if they have one.

TonySimon1979

I've already begun the complaint procedure with British Gas when i received the first letter from LCS.
The amount owed from the date i moved in was paid straight after i received the revised bill/s and the outstanding amount/bill was handed in to the letting agents for the period before my tenancy agreement.
I think it is owed by the landlord as he was doing quite a bit of work on the property before we moved in.

I notified British Gas of the continued harassment from LCS and that i wouldn't drop my complaint until i had in writing from British Gas and LCS that the matter (as far as i am concerned) is resolved.

I sent an email to LCS outlining everything that has gone on up to now of the continued harassment and the fact i made it clear the account was in dispute pointing out that CSA Code of practice states that in the event of a dispute every member shall "cease recovery activity whilst investigating a valid dispute"
Along with making an official complaint through LCS themselves the CSA Code of conduct states the same "cease recovery activity whilst investigating a complaint"

British Gas have said that my outstanding balance is £0 and that the matter is closed...i am still waiting for it in writing

As far as my credit file i am not in the slightest bit interested, i don't borrow money and never will...if i cant pay for it upfront i cant afford it.

To be honest i want it to go to court.

Fire_Fox

TonySimon1979 wrote: »

I've already begun the complaint procedure with British Gas when i received the first letter from LCS.
The amount owed from the date i moved in was paid straight after i received the revised bill/s and the outstanding amount/bill was handed in to the letting agents for the period before my tenancy agreement.
I think it is owed by the landlord as he was doing quite a bit of work on the property before we moved in.

I notified British Gas of the continued harassment from LCS and that i wouldn't drop my complaint until i had in writing from British Gas and LCS that the matter (as far as i am concerned) is resolved. If you think the landlord is liable send him the bill not the estate agent. Organ grinders not monkeys.



I sent an email to LCS outlining everything that has gone on up to now of the continued harassment and the fact i made it clear the account was in dispute pointing out that CSA Code of practice states that in the event of a dispute every member shall "cease recovery activity whilst investigating a valid dispute"
Along with making an official complaint through LCS themselves the CSA Code of conduct states the same "cease recovery activity whilst investigating a complaint"

British Gas have said that my outstanding balance is £0 and that the matter is closed...i am still waiting for it in writing

As far as my credit file i am not in the slightest bit interested, i don't borrow money and never will...if i cant pay for it upfront i cant afford it.

To be honest i want it to go to court.

Your dispute is not with LCS, they are acting for and on behalf of British Gas so your complaint is with BG. If you are eight weeks out from the initial complaint go to the energy ombudsman. If you think the landlord is liable send him the bill not the estate agent. Organ grinders not monkeys.

You don't want BG or LCS to take you to court, they will just look at your liability, you won't be able to whinge on about the harassment by LCS. If you desperately want to waste your time in court you will need a paper trail so start sending recorded delivery letters and keep the receipt, it is difficult to prove e-mails were received and printouts can easily be falsified.

If this is a vent thread about debt collectors and not a help wanted thread about BG, I don't see why you have posted it here - should be in on the 'praise vent & warnings' board.

TonySimon1979

I know the dispute is with British Gas they instructed LCS to chase the debt before they even knew what the amount was.
Even the letters from LCS make no sense as the amount owed keeps changing.
Until i have it in writing my complaint won't be dropped and the Ombudsman will be next ..the complaint to LCS was to stop them from sending out letters.
If they continue i intend on contacting the CSA and the OFT and anybody else i or anyone can think of...

The complaint with BG hasn't quite run it's course yet but it's not far ahead.

So far i have a copy of my tenancy agreement which states the initial meter readings, correct bills from BG stating the dates and amounts owed (meter readings that match the tenancy agreement) and a bank statement to prove i've paid what i owe...along with the usual fluff demand letters and emails from LCS and BG.