changing from gas and electric key and card

cakesryummy

i've lived in my flat/maisonette for just over 4 yrs and have a gas card and electric key for my gas and electric. I've spoken with British Gas to try and change to a normal meter and bill. The lady on the phone said i had to have a credit check before this (i have a mortgage and credit cards why would they need to do this) could be done. they say i havent passed this but why would they need to do this??
Can anyone tell me if they have tried to change over from prepayment meter to a normal meter who own there property.

SwanJon

The reason they run a credit check is that you are asking for credit - it is quite possible to run up £500 in a quarter which some people may struggle to pay off.
You can check with experian to see how to improve your score, but there are other options. Other suppliers may not do a credit check (or have different thresholds), some may ask for a security deposit:
MSE Article

macman

As above: a credit meter offers potentially unlimited credit, so of course you will be credit checked.
There will also normally be a meter change fee of about £60 per meter, although you may be able to blag these FOC if you switch supplier and request a meter change in return for your business.