Removing an LPG tank

QuantumWarrior

We've recently had our LPG boiler removed and replaced with an ASHP as part of the ECO scheme, as such the LPG tank in the front garden is now redundant and needs to go. We had a contract with Avanti Gas which expired in January and they've quoted me £500 + VAT to take the tank away and an additional £280 + VAT to pump the gas out since it isn't below 5% (and since it's disconnected we've no way of using the remaining gas). We'd get half of the cost of the gas back but that wouldn't put much of a dent in the price.

Is having Avanti do this the only option available to us? I know they own the tank (which is part of why them charging me the best part of a grand to take their own property off of my property feels a bit ridiculous) but is there any other way around by, say, having another LPG firm buy them out then offering a cheaper service to take it? Has anyone had experience with doing this in any other way?

david29dpo

I have never known any LPG company charging to take there own tank away
You pay rent for the tank while in contract with the company so i would charge THEM rent now. Tell them this.
Write to them to take there tank away giving them a time limit.

35har1old

david29dpo said:

I have never known any LPG company charging to take there own tank away
You pay rent for the tank while in contract with the company so i would charge THEM rent now. Tell them this.
Write to them to take there tank away giving them a time limit.

Needs to read his contract 

david29dpo

35har1old said:

david29dpo said:

I have never known any LPG company charging to take there own tank away
You pay rent for the tank while in contract with the company so i would charge THEM rent now. Tell them this.
Write to them to take there tank away giving them a time limit.

Needs to read his contract 

Its expired, not reverent anymore
Been dealing with LPG for 31 years plus my wife is a solicitor 

QuantumWarrior

david29dpo said:

I have never known any LPG company charging to take there own tank away
You pay rent for the tank while in contract with the company so i would charge THEM rent now. Tell them this.
Write to them to take there tank away giving them a time limit.

While trying to research this I found plenty of people saying they'd been charged by their LPG firm, though they seemed to mostly get away with fees in the range of £200 or so, not the other side of £900. I'm thinking it's becoming more common to try and dissuade people from leaving because schemes like ECO are poaching LPG customers - or just to turn a few quid when they do leave.

As tempting as your advice is I'm hesitant to start making demands like that without very good reasoning, like do you have any legislation or cases backing this suggestion? It kind of defeats the object to get into a legal spat that ends up costing me more time and money.

david29dpo

QuantumWarrior said:

david29dpo said:

I have never known any LPG company charging to take there own tank away
You pay rent for the tank while in contract with the company so i would charge THEM rent now. Tell them this.
Write to them to take there tank away giving them a time limit.

While trying to research this I found plenty of people saying they'd been charged by their LPG firm, though they seemed to mostly get away with fees in the range of £200 or so, not the other side of £900. I'm thinking it's becoming more common to try and dissuade people from leaving because schemes like ECO are poaching LPG customers - or just to turn a few quid when they do leave.

As tempting as your advice is I'm hesitant to start making demands like that without very good reasoning, like do you have any legislation or cases backing this suggestion? It kind of defeats the object to get into a legal spat that ends up costing me more time and money.

So far 3 near neighbours and myself have had tanks removed out of contract and paid nothing. LPG companys are notorious TRYING to charge these fees.
I maybe lucky but after sending a well worded letter including a storage fee, tank removed for free. Thats money saving!!!

lohr500

Nothing surprises me after reading the horror stories on here about LPG suppliers.

But charging you money to pump the gas out and only then giving you half of the retail value of the gas cost back does sound like stealing your watch and then charging you to tell you the time !!

I presume they won't scrap the recovered gas. Just run it through their bulk tank filtration system and put it in their holding tank ready to sell.

I think a well worded letter as suggested above, along with an invoice for storage fees is well worth a try.

@david29dpo may even be kind enough to share the wording of the letter he sent and give some indication of what a reasonable monthly storage fee should be.