shell gas meter not working and not being replaced for months

kazhawk

Hi all
I have a smart gas meter that stopped giving smart readings when shell took over from our bankrupted energy supplier. Shell advised they wouldn't come out to check it or replace it so I arranged for them to send a reminder email and I have been sending a reading in every month. Unfortunately, the gas meter is now not displaying anything. tried pressing/holding buttons etc. Shell now saying it will be January before anyone will come out and will probably be a new meter installed. I am assuming they will now work out the amount of gas we are using based on last year's usage. We have installed a new wood burner and are planning on not using our gas heating at all this winter so would be nothing like last year's usage. Really concerned how we can afford to pay the bill if they do this. 

ariarnia

so they will come out and replace the meter in jan (could be the battery in the gas meter has just died) then will use the time after its installed to estemate your use (someone on another thread has been told 2 weeks i think but ive read others its a couple of months). unfortunately jan and feb are often the coldest months so that might not be fair. but you will also know they are monitoring so they might expect you to intentionally use less in that time.  

if you disagree with there estemate you can explain why and push back (make it a formal complaint) a bit but you need to be able to give a good explanation why they should use a different number or time period. you might be able to show november and december temps in your area were more like october temps than jan temps so they should base on your last reading before it broke not your jan reading if you see what i mean?

if you can't agree between you then you can go to the ombudsman after 8 weeks and the ombusdan will look at the arguments from you both for your numbers and make a decision that might be one of you or something else. thats' why you need to have a number or monitoring period that you can give a good reason for not just 'that feels higher than we would expect'. 

Alnat1

Why not use the gas as previously and save the wood for next winter? They are going to try and charge you for it whether you've used it or not.

SAC2334

Sounds like the battery has finally died if the screen cannot be woken up. 
If it was a battery on the way out it normally displays an F or B  six months before it dies and if it was connected to the DCC the supplier should have advanced warning and replaced it as a digital gas meter is designed to shut the valve off and cut off the gas supply .
It does nt always do this so if you are still getting the gas through the valve has remained open .

Personally if the meter has stopped recording units I d be using  the gas and leaving the wood burner off and hoping Shell don t bother to turn up at all .
Very poor by Shell ( The old First Utility ) refusing to come out pretty quickly as you could just as easily be now without any heating approaching very cold weather nor hot water for showers and baths 

.Dreadful service from FU, they were always one of the worst and getting a respected name like Shell to front them is nt going down too well .