An Electrifying Discovery!

Morning Everyone, 

So after last weeks postings subjecting organ donation and life generally I feel like mine is being tested to the max right now. Since last week I have been dealing in some issues that very well might end whatever I have planned for the foreseeable future and may well break me financially. 

A few months ago I was told by my current Electricity and Gas provider, British Gas, that I was more than two-hundred quid in credit with them - Meaning I had money owed to me, and so being thrifty I thought that I would leave the money with them so as I could release it and use it to fund a holiday or some much needed cash-ola towards me getting my Motorbike licence. So you can imagine my surprise when I was to be told that not only am I not in credit at all, but I now owe them a outstanding debt of over two-thousand pounds!

It all started when I first moved into my little, town apartment in January 2014. I called the current supplier of energy, British Gas, and explained to them that I was looking to join as a new customer and after going through the hundred-and-one questions I was soon set up and registered with what is a renowned and well established company in the UK. In the first three months of that year I should have had a meter reading but was just simply put on an estimated bill instead roughly guessing what the my usage as a single gal in a one-bed flat could or would use. I awaited an appointment and an engineer to arrive but they never came. I set up and continued to pay my direct debits as instructed for a prearranged amount and did so with no hiccups until August that year when I was told via a letter I was paying far too much for my Gas and Electricity. With little or no explanation and already seeing I was well within a large credit note already I continued to pay with my smaller estimated bill. I asked for someone to come and either read my meter or to help me read it but again with no avail as I held out for yet again more appointments or engineer visits but with nothing happening I gave up. 

That was until I learnt from Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert.co.uk that you can actually leave your current energy supplier up to forty-nine days I think before your contract is to be renewed. So as I was approaching this crucial time I started looking into way I could release the money tied up with the energy company and close down my account ready to switch. But it was never to be that easy. I subsequently found out after a engineer finally came round to read my meter, after being told countless times that the reading I was giving was incorrect, that what I was reading was correct and in turn I had been underpaying for my electricity for months. Ever since I had moved in I had been put on an estimated billing allowance and instead of having meter readings at least twice a year I had none and as a roundabout result had an massive outstanding balance to pay. 

This has left me wondering now what to do. Not only has this situation left me wondering the work ethic and even the humanity of these energy companies but how I was able to get into such a position. As I had explained to the adviser, I would love to pull a massive wad of cash out of my arsehole but sadly my Daddy doesn't work in banking and I don't have any savings so the likelihood of this all getting resolved quickly is virtually none. It makes me sick to the stomach thinking about all of this and how it has now impacted my life. Two-grand may not be a lot to others but for me is a massive amount. I don't know how or even when I am going to be able to pay it all off and the stress of it all is sometimes unbearable. Holidays, Motorbikes, Thailand, Puppies and nice new flats are strictly off the menu until this debt has been cleared. But rest assured, I will not be going down without a fight. I feel wronged by, British Gas, and whilst I don't dispute the energy use and the probable bill, I feel that as a result of their lack in communication, poor customer service and complete lack of empathy I will have to fight this battle with everything that I have. Tomorrow I will be investigating further avenues on legal advice, consumer helplines such as Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) and technical errors within the network to check if there are any faults with the wiring and finding out where and how I move forward from this horrendous debacle.

I am putting my case forward to some people who may be able to help me in the consumer/energy provider sector however I would be very much appreciated if anyone with the same or similar problems with this provider in particular could get in touch I would love to hear your stories, with or without closure. Get in touch the usual ways, through my Facebook and Twitter handles or simply message me back on here! 

'Til next time, Love A.Lou xx