British Gas supply erroneously taken over by a tenant

Robin9

peterinreading said:

masonic I have already made a formal complaint to British Gas which they have rejected. I shall also make a formal complaint to Rebel Energy. If that is also rejected or ignored then I shall raise a case with the Energy Ombudsman.

I don't think BG are at fault here - all they would have is a transfer request from Rebel.

saajan_12

Do you charge an all in fixed rent amount including bills, or do you charge each tenant extra based on energy usage? 

Not that its right, but just trying to infer the tenant's rationale. If the latter, then maybe theyre reading some generalist advice and thinking they can switch for a better deal. If its all in then just crazy. 

peterinreading

tacpot12: The landlord pays for gas for the whole building. The tenant receives an email on moving in that they should not try and take over utilities they are not responsible for,.

masonic

peterinreading said:

masonic I have already made a formal complaint to British Gas which they have rejected. I shall also make a formal complaint to Rebel Energy. If that is also rejected or ignored then I shall raise a case with the Energy Ombudsman.

If BG did not notify you of the fraudulent transfer request, then they could have some liability, even though they were entitled to process it in good faith. Having rejected your complaint you are now free to raise it with the Energy Ombudsman. Had BG told you and given you an opportunity to block it, then you wouldn't be in this situation.

I don't think your complaint against Rebel Energy will be as strong, but they ought to let you take over the supply from the tenant. I'm not really seeing any benefit to you in doing so. Let the tenant pay for the energy.

Your main course of action should be to evict the tenant ASAP, if they have breached the tenancy agreement and are not cooperating.

peterinreading said:

tacpot12: The landlord pays for gas for the whole building. The tenant receives an email on moving in that they should not try and take over utilities they are not responsible for,.

An email request is irrelevant. What is in the tenancy agreement? In the OP you introduced yourself as the landlord. Is this not the case?

peterinreading

 masonic: Following my efforts to get British Gas to reverse the erroneous transfer, it  looks like the issue is now primarily with Rebal Energy because they apparently refused British Gas's request to reverse the transfer. So I have raised a formal complaint with Rebel Energy.

masonic

peterinreading said:

 masonic: Following my efforts to get British Gas to reverse the erroneous transfer, it  looks like the issue is now primarily with Rebal Energy because they apparently refused British Gas's request to reverse the transfer. So I have raised a formal complaint with Rebel Energy.

Rebel Energy are quite right to refuse the transfer if their customer tells them they still occupy the property and don't want to switch. This is what British Gas should have done when the tenant tried to make the initial switch, so your complaint is with British Gas because they failed to give you an opportunity to block the transfer to Rebel Energy. The only failing so far in Rebel Energy's case is a failure to respond when you contacted them to dispute the tenants right to claim the supply. They ought to accept evidence that the tenant is not entitled to claim the supply (i.e. the signed tenancy agreement stating the meter is communal and must not be transferred to the tenant's name).

BG has already rejected your complaint, so it can be referred to the Ombudsman now. Have you done this yet? Or am I incorrect that BG failed to notify the current accountholder prior to the switch taking place?

Who has the right to sign up an account for the property is not really a matter for the energy suppliers to arbitrate. If the tenancy agreement sets this out and the tenant is in breach, then you can also remedy through the court system if you cannot come to an agreement with the tenant.

Have you served a Section 8 notice on the tenant yet? It seems likely this will help to encourage the tenant to cooperate (or at least shorten your suffering at the hands of a malicious tenant), if receiving the first bill for the entire property in due course does not.

Chrysalis

There was a discussion on ispreview about the perils of the new switching system for broadband (vulnerable to rogue migrations).  Looks like this is such a case for energy.
Regulator wants it easy to switch as possible, because to them the ability to switch means a healthy market.
The best switching system I have seen is the PAC code system on mobile networks, so authentication required from existing bill payer.  But no such thing exists in the energy market.

Does the gaining provider see the details of the existing bill payer? so e.g. they could detected if the name doesnt match, it does  seem a bit careless to devise a switching system that allows switching, without a name match, that really should only pass if the previous bill payer has closed their account due to moving home or being deceased.

I dont know what to advise other than what has already being done, S8 eviction as its clear breach of agreement, send copy of tenancy contract to both suppliers complaint departments so its clear you are in control of the supplier and the bill payer, if there is no resolution from suppliers, then escalate.

Swipe

Maybe all it needs is a link in the notification email to confirm the switch, similar to when you sign up to a forum and verify your email address.

masonic

Swipe said:

Maybe all it needs is a link in the notification email to confirm the switch, similar to when you sign up to a forum and verify your email address.

It is not necessary to provide details matching the previous account holder to take over a supply. There are a number of scenarios where that wouldn't work in practice. The system relies on the existing provider emailing the account holder upon receiving a transfer out request. The account holder then has an opportunity to block it.

That system works when the existing provider plays ball. It is not clear in this instance whether or not BG notified the OP in advance of the switch completing.

peterinreading

After my complaint to Rebel Energy, Rebel Energy complaints department agreed to transfer the supply back to British Gas and have sent their Erroneous Transfer (ET) request to British Gas. But now neither they nor myself seem to be able to get any response from British Gas.