British Gas Issues

AriGold

Hi everyone.
First of all, I would like to say I have been a fan of this website for years and the advice you guys give is amazing, which is why I have come here to ask for help.

A little back story first;
I moved in to my current property in April 2014. Both the gas and electric are on pre-payment meters. The electric was is debt but my landlord spoke with British Gas and asked them to clear the debt as it belonged to the previous tenant, which they did.
The gas on the other hand wasn't cleared and I have been paying the previous tenants debt for 2 years.
I have spoken to BG numerous times about this, but because my landlord is also a BG customer, they asked that my landlord prove that I am the tenant of my property, which my landlord has done.
British Gas swear that my landlord have not filled out any information and I am still paying this debt.
I phoned them again this morning and spoke to a gentleman who said that they have a record of all payments made since April 2014 and that they should be able to pay a refund but I will need to speak to the 'Moving House Team'.
He put me through to them, and I explained everything to them about being here for 2 years and being fed up paying this debt at a silly sum of £8 a week and would like to be refunded ASAP.
They fed me the same line as I have heard before;
"We are waiting for some information from your landlord before we can discuss any form of refund. Speak to them and get them to fill out the form we sent them 2 years ago(!)"

Again, I spoke to my landlord who states this information has been filled out and all should have been sorted.

I am getting seriously stressed out with this and pretty much stuck as to what I can do.
If there is any advice you guys can offer, I would be so grateful.

molerat

The first problem was allowing the landlord to contact the energy company. It was your responsibility and you should have done it and been issued with a new key and the meter reset. That is past now and too late to do anything about it.

You need to write to BG a proper pen and paper letter boldly headed FORMAL COMPLAINT stating what you want them to do and attaching a copy of your tenancy agreement. They then have 8 weeks to sort it to your satisfaction or you proceed to the ombudsman.

AriGold

Thanks for replying.
Let me first explain why my landlord made the call. He was unaware his previous tenant had these meters installed and notified them of this, and of the debt on the meters. This is why they cleared the electricity meter. According to my landlord when I moved in, all I had to do was await a new card to clear the debt on the gas meter which I did wait for and never got.

Second, my landlord is apart of British Gas's home care or home cover plan and wishes for me to keep his property a British Gas home. This is where I believe the issue becomes.

If I were to write a letter to British Gas with Formal Complaint, then would it be unfair of me to ask to be refunded the amount I have paid over the last 2 years?

Autumnella

It would be unreasonable to ask for all of the money back you have paid over the last 2 years for energy used. They should refund you any debt you have paid and maybe a small goodwill gesture, or ask for the meters to be changed to credit meters for free as a goodwill gesture so you can go onto a cheaper rate and pay by direct debit.

Changing supplier should not effect your landlord's homecare plan. I think it's unfair for landlord's not to allow people to change supplier.

spiro

Regardless of what your LL said it is you who should have phone the supplier and tell them you had moved into the property and wanted to open new accounts. Your LL doing it could look like to BG that he was trying to get out of the debt.
Hopefully you have the meter readings from when you moved in, you should write to the supplier with a copy of the lease showing the date you took responsibility for the property. This along with the readings should get any old debt you repaid refunded.
I would query why you have left this to continue for 2 years.
Hopefully this will act as a lesson learnt for the future.

dogshome

As already advised, WRITE to BG heading the letter Complaint, enclosing a copy of the relavant page of your lease showing starting date, and a copy of your Council Tax bill.

Also point out the astounding anomoly that BG have accepted that the previous tenant vacated the premises on XX date regarding the Elec meter debt, yet maintain that tenant is still in residence so far as the gas meter is concerned.

These are your accounts and you are entitled to move to any supplier you want to, but that you don't wish to to upset the landlord is understandable.
Best to have a friendly word about finding a cheaper supplier, ( The move should not affect the maintenance contract ).
As the previous tenant had Utility bill problems, it's highly likely the the Landlord was owed rent as well - Worth pointing out that lower Utility costs for the dwelling lessens the financial burden on the tenant, which reduces the possiblity of defaults on the rent.

[Deleted User]

OP, there are two types of debt on the prepay meters.You can clearly see them yourself in seconds if you had consulted Google to understand the meters. Screens S/ T on the electric meter and 26/27 on gas meter show all debt and weekly repay rate.They can only be viewed with card/key inserted. The first screen on the meter will show any standing charge debt which can build up if no one , including the landlord, has nt been crediting the meter in between tenancies . I have seen standing charge debts alone build up to many hundreds of pounds when the meters are either faulty or more commonly bypassed so just make sure that the meters themselves have`nt been tampered with.

AriGold

Hi again everyone. Thanks for the advice and help.

The previous tenant had paid via direct debit and ran up the debt which is why BG had the meters installed (again, without the landlords knowledge), and this is where the debt is being paid from. Having checked the debt on the meters (thanks sacsquacco) the previous tenants ran up a debt and there is still over £700 left to pay at a level of £8.49 a week.

As for why this has been going on for 2 years is because I have been trying to resolve it for that long, being passed from pillar to post without a straight answer from both BG and my landlord which is why I am here asking for advice

I am in the middle of writing to BG with the complaint. It is a little difficult to try and find the original tenancy agreement as that was 2 years ago, but I shall try and find it. I do have my payments to the council from DD and have all payments listed from my bank statements.

macman

It is no concern of your LL as to which supplier or tariff you use, and his bumbling advice has got you into this mess in the first place. He cannot prevent you switching. Switching suppliers does not affect his Homecare policy, which is entirely separate. Had you supplied a copy of your tenancy agreement to BG 2 years ago the matter would have been resolved then.