British Gas - Incorrect direct debits

KennyH1

Hi, looking for some advice as how to proceed next.

We moved into our house last Nov and set up fixed direct debits for Gas (£76) & Elec (£35). The first payment taken in Dec was for £72 and then the same again in Jan. In Feb BGas took the same £72 and an additional £111.

When I questioned this they admitted taking the wrong direct debit amounts and claimed the £111 was the amount of gas/elec used in that period, when it was in fact £136. They did agree to repay me the £111 and have now set up the correct debits.

The main problem I now have is that due to them taking the wrong amounts that we have now built up quite a debt which we are now paying extra each month to cover. I understand we have to pay for what we use but its now more of a hardship for us. I have also been promised an explanation as to how the error occurred and why they thought it was ok to take an additional £111 yet they still have not done so, despite telling me they have rang me (yes my contact details are up to date).

Would you escalate this to Ofgem or just leave it as it is?

spiro

You can not escalate anything until you have raised a Complaint (not just asked for an explanation) and they have 8 weeks to investigte the complaint. If you are not happy with the response you can take it to the Ombudsman, OFGEM wont be interested.

If you have online billing are you sure they did not send you an email about the DD? Check your spam folder.

KennyH1

spiro wrote: »

You can not escalate anything until you have raised a Complaint (not just asked for an explanation) and they have 8 weeks to investigte the complaint. If you are not happy with the response you can take it to the Ombudsman, OFGEM wont be interested.

If you have online billing are you sure they did not send you an email about the DD? Check your spam folder.

When I originally questioned the taking of the £111, I was informed that they would initiate a complaint. Do I have to start it myself? I have emailed them several times and still get fobbed off about them calling me.

They never once have said they have emailed me, but have at least 3 times said they have called me and one even claims to have spoken to me.

Wywth

KennyH1 wrote: »

Hi, looking for some advice as how to proceed next.

We moved into our house last Nov and set up fixed direct debits for Gas (£76) & Elec (£35). The first payment taken in Dec was for £72 and then the same again in Jan. In Feb BGas took the same £72 and an additional £111.

When I questioned this they admitted taking the wrong direct debit amounts and claimed the £111 was the amount of gas/elec used in that period, when it was in fact £136. They did agree to repay me the £111 and have now set up the correct debits.

The main problem I now have is that due to them taking the wrong amounts that we have now built up quite a debt which we are now paying extra each month to cover. I understand we have to pay for what we use but its now more of a hardship for us. I have also been promised an explanation as to how the error occurred and why they thought it was ok to take an additional £111 yet they still have not done so, despite telling me they have rang me (yes my contact details are up to date).

Would you escalate this to Ofgem or just leave it as it is?

The Direct Debit scheme requires the Originator (in this case BG) to advise the payer in advance of the amount and date of any collection.

Failure to do this will give rise to a valid claim under the Direct Debit Guarantee. Upon claiming, your bank are responsible for repaying you this amount (they claim it from the originator) immediately.
The originator should not settle such a dispute with the payer directly, but in the event the payer contacts the originator, should advise the payer to make a claim under the guarantee.

Consequential losses (e.g. bank charges) can also be claimed via your bank, but these are not required to be repaid immediately, but only when the originator pays the bank them ... which should be within a couple of weeks maximum.

Nada666

I am not sure what the problem is. Three payments of gas only so the electricity account is down by 3 x £35. The fourth month the debits have been corrected but you are having to pay an extra £8.75 or £17.50 per month to cover the electricity.

How can this cause hardship? Things are not so tight for you that you do not notice having an extra £35 in your account - as that is so you will not miss having to pay an extra £9 or £18 per month on an one hundred and ten pounds payment, surely?

The natural variation and adjustment from sixmonth to sixmonth is likely to be more than this. If you can't afford to accommodate such a small fluctuation then you may be better applying to have a prepayment meter fitted.

KennyH1

Nada666 wrote: »

I am not sure what the problem is. Three payments of gas only so the electricity account is down by 3 x £35. The fourth month the debits have been corrected but you are having to pay an extra £8.75 or £17.50 per month to cover the electricity.

How can this cause hardship? Things are not so tight for you that you do not notice having an extra £35 in your account - as that is so you will not miss having to pay an extra £9 or £18 per month on an one hundred and ten pounds payment, surely?

The natural variation and adjustment from sixmonth to sixmonth is likely to be more than this. If you can't afford to accommodate such a small fluctuation then you may be better applying to have a prepayment meter fitted.

As you're aware its been a particularly cold winter so the gas bills are higher than the £72 they were collecting and being winter we used more elec than BG estimated so we owe much more than your calculation. Plus being a typical big business BG have decided to up our monthly payments not just to recover the extra money but also basing the next 12months usage on 3months in winter.

As I've said before I have no problem with paying what we've used. My main point was them taking payments against the DD garentee as mentioned elsewhere and BG's inability to look at the situation and explain how they messed up in the first place.