On the verge of taking British Gas to court

chronic8000

Hi everyone,

I hope someone here can help because I don't know what to do about this apart from take them to court and fight for myself.

We have had debt with British Gas for about the last 8 years on a post payment meter. They have repeatedly said in this time they would come out and fit a prepayment key meter in our house and every time they made us an appointment we waited in all day for them not to turn up. When we phoned them up and questioned why they said they cannot fit a prepayment meter in our property as the meter did not belong to them. I phoned round a few places and found out who owned the meter and they said they had no problem with british gas fitting a key meter all they had to do was ask. I told British Gas this and they just stuck to their guns saying they couldn't do it.

We then had a visit from a British Gas person who tried calling them on our behalf and setting up a payment plan. We are on benefits we said and the bloke was trying to say to them we can afford about £20 a week. The person on the other end of the phone wouldn't have this and demanded £100 a week from us which we said we could no way afford. In the end the person who came to visit us ended up hanging up the phone on them!

I have tried calling British Gas back up recently after 50+ threatening letters from them demanding payment and they still won't budge from their position.

Surely they have knowingly let someone on benefits get into a high amount of debt which must be against the law somehow. They have also charged us for every single letter they have sent us plus charged for the person to visit our home. Plus can they not only claim back the last 6 years of debt?

Now they have passed it onto a debt collection agency who I contacted this morning and told them I want to contest the amount and I am planning on taking them to court. I feel I could fight for myself as their is no way I can afford a solicitor but I think with enough research I would be able to tell the court myself what has happened but hopefully someone on here might be able to help me before I go to court.

Surely this is not allowed to happen British Gas is a joke of a company and I hope a judge see's it from my point of view. I have tried so many times to sort this out and they just don't care.

Me and my partner have just had a new baby and we don't need this stress from British Gas but I feel court is the only way to get it all resolved properly.

Thanks for your time everyone.

alfiesmum

Why would they repeatedly arrange to fit a pre payment meter I wonder, when after the first failed attempt they discovered it wasn't their meter to change?

What is it specifically that you wish to take them to court for? Is there a main point you will be focussing on in any potential court case?

chronic8000

Hi, It wasn't after the first attempt they told me it wasn't their meter to change it was after the third time of booking the appointment. My main point would be that they let us get in such a high amount of debt with no way for us to repay it. They charged us probably £400 or more for threatening letters and let it go on so long. I am not sure if taking them to court is the best way forward but what am I supposed to do I can't afford £100 a week like they want????

chanz4

What were the exact words, is your site an IGT

undaunted

There isn't enough detail in your thread for me to form an opinion on your case but the courts aren't as easy / quick / reasonable an answer as you might think / hope - have a look at the thread Npower versus the vulnerable.

If you're on benefits fuel direct may provide you with an alternative solution - ie you pay for your usage plus about £3.60 p/w off any debt.

You could possibly also look at applying for an energy trust grant

Good luck

Joyful

Are you talking about gas or electric? As Chanz4 says if it is an IGT supply for gas that may be the problem. If you are on benefits tell the benefit agency that you want to apply for fueldirect. They will take £3.60 towards your debt plus your consumption off your benefits weekly.

chronic8000

Yes our meter is on an IGT network but according to Ofgem's report this shouldn't prevent them from installing a prepayment meter on our property.

I refer to section 6.20 of Ofgems Debt Review Report PDF of which I cannot post a link as it won't let me.

kirkbyinfurnesslad_2

So what exactly will you be taking BG to court for ?

What will your claim be for exactly

Please do spell it out as per your title

Joyful

British Gas do not have any agreement with most IGT companies which means they will be unable to fit a prepayment meter for you. Your only other choice is Fuel Direct coming out of your benefits.

chronic8000

My point is why have British Gas let the debt get so high when they know we are on benefit. Also Ofgem's "Review of suppliers' approaches to debt management and prevention" from June 2010 states the following:

6.21. We note that the other suppliers are either still in the process of trialling the installation of PPMs or are no closer to resolving their inability to install PPMs on IGT networks. Given Scottish Power and SSE have demonstrated that this can be done, we expect all suppliers to work to offer PPMs on IGT networks. We will write to the remaining suppliers and will monitor progress.

So if other suppliers have successfully managed to get PPM's installed on IGT networks what is British Gas's problem with doing it?

Furthermore why have BG left it 8 years when Ofgem's report also states this:

3.2. We expect suppliers to make efforts early in the process to identify customers who may be experiencing payment difficulty, as required under their licence conditions. Segmentation of customers into different debt paths, for example tailored debt paths with appropriate communication for vulnerable customers, is a key part of the debt follow-up process. However, any segmentation policy must be appropriate and reflect compliance with the licence conditions. For example, suppliers must take customers‟ individual circumstances fully into account in any „fast track‟ process.

They have failed to prevent the debt mounting up to an unmanageable size and have failed to attempt to make contact with us or accept any reasonable offers of repayment when we have made contact with them. British Gas have just sent threatening letter after threatening letter with no attempts to make contact with us in other ways like Ofgems report also asks for here:

3.8. Proactive contact with customers is a key element of the debt process. Suppliers‟ literature typically asks customers to contact them if they have problems. However, we are particularly keen that suppliers should not rely on customers making contact but should proactively identify those customers who are having Office of Gas and Electricity Markets 15 Review of suppliers' approaches to debt management and prevention June 2010 difficulty in paying their bills as early as possible in order to provide customers with an appropriate solution and help prevent them falling into or further into debt. Suppliers have indicated that they are taking an increasingly proactive approach and are trying to contact the customer, particularly by telephone, much earlier in the bill follow-up process. Many suppliers have increased their outbound call activity using either call centre staff or automated reminders, varying contact days and times in order to obtain a response. For example, EDF Energy and SSE target up to 100,000 outbound calls per month.

Leaving it 8 years does not seem like "proactive contact" to me.

Joyful

British Gas have been trialling with more IGT's but it's a big job to get the infrastructure right in case things go wrong so it is being done in a controlled way.

The only way that your debt will have been getting higher is if you have been using more gas than you have been paying for. This is not BG's fault. What is your annual consumption amount for gas? If it is more than £20 pw this is why that figure will not have been accepted.

When was the last time you made a payment and have you made this consistantly over the last few months? How much is your debt?

You may be able to get the charges reduced if you write in because you have been given incorrect info re the fitting of a PP meter but if you were advised it was not possible a while back and did not pay then the onus for them will be on yourself.

You mentioned 3 times of trying to get the meter fitted. When was the last time? Three times in 8 years does not sound much.