Imperial Meter

Provchap

pochase said:

Have you checked that all old suppliers used the imperial format?

We have seen in most cases that this started after a switch between suppliers, especially recently when people came from busted suppliers there was incorrect information handed over.

My present and previous 2 suppliers were using the imperial formula. Still intend going further back

[Deleted User]

Hi,

have you had the metric meter with all suppliers, and copies of all bills?

jbuchanangb

This will prove quite a challenge. Check the meter serial number on the meter matches the one on the gas bills from your current supplier, and take a photo of the meter to send to your supplier; they should then recalculate all your gas charges since they became your supplier.

Do the same with the gas bills from the previous supplier. Depending how long ago it was they might take some convincing. All you can do is work your way back as far as you can. Do it all in writing so you have good records. You may reach the date when your old Imperial meter was taken out and the metric one was installed. You may find previous suppliers actually billed you in metric units already. Best of luck.

SAC2334

I have come across this plenty of times as a meter reader. One old lady was so afraid of putting the heating on because her charges even in the summer were ludicrously high. 
She had an odd looking meter make which I d not seen before  which at first glance did look like an old imperial meter being brown but it had the 13 digit serial number and M 3 on it . Imperial gas meters start with an S  (or end ) and usually have 8 digits

This had been going on for over two years since the meter was installed. I telephoned British Gas there and then in her house so I could confirm the correct meter. I could see on my hand held data collector  that they were billing her as if she had Imperial units , so not far off three times the bill . Winter bills would have been insanely high for her 

.
British Gas accepted it once I d read out the 13 digit serial number which matched her property .

British Gas returned all the excess money they owed her . 
OP, you must have been shocked at the size of the bills. 

When these mix up s happen its more often that an Imperial meter gets billed as if it was a Metric meter . Then occupiers get very low bills and are more likely not to question the billing .

jimjames

SAC2334 said:

When these mix up s happen its more often that an Imperial meter gets billed as if it was a Metric meter . Then occupiers get very low bills and are more likely not to question the billing .

That was exactly what happened for us. I was telling everyone how efficient our old boiler was because the bills were so low. When the meter got swapped out I found out it wasn't very efficient after all!

bagand96

Provchap said:

Deleted_User said:

You have a dispute between yourself and your supplier.

You complain to your supplier to get this resolved.

Only if they can't/won't resolve it can you go to the ombudsman - and you have to prove that you have tried the supplier first.

OFGEM don't deal with customers.

I don't think you can try going back 15 years for this issue.  Why (and how) have you just discovered this now?

There is a document on this site from 2016 saying that OFGEM are aware of this issue and that suppliers will be contacting customers to rectify the situation. If someone had contacted me I would have been able to go back to 2010!

Who would contact you? Ofgem and the industry being aware of the problem means exactly that... They are aware that some people are being billed wrong. It unfortunately doesn't mean they know who. If the industry systems show you as imperial then that's what they'll show, it would be very hard to know its wrong other than by knocking your door and seeing your meter.