I know ! am feeling really gutted, am going to write to BG with all the supposting evidence and details of the tenant, I am distressed that I should be held responsible for this cost purely because I am the landlord. If my tenant was a theif and stole from people would i be responsible for that too!?! My builder reckons that if a new meter is fitted the electricity can be reconnected straightaway whilst the ongoing saga with BG continues. Many thanks for your help, will keep you posted. Glad to hear that you sorted your issue out though you bore the cost in the end.

Hey needjustice, thanks very much for your informative response. I am really cheesed off by this whole episode as now I cant even really let the property or properly show prospective tenants/ agents around. Not only will I probably end up £640 out of pocket but also will incur loss of rent. They indeed do seem like a law unto themselves, the Police did say to me that utility companies have got the right to enter the premises, however the police officer was not too sure whether they are allowed without showing the warrant and without presence of landlord. I have figured that they probably bought a locksmith along hence there is no ' breaking and entering' . This is scary , so basically any mickey mouse utility firm can unlock your home doors and intrude as and when they want, not only utilities but also the thugs they seem to employ to ' protect revenue' Its quite disturbing. I have spent most of this afternoon going through old paperwork, am going to send tenancy agreement and tenants passport copies etc to B Gas and this Revenue Dept, that way at least I'll have a record of the fact that I am taking steps to rectify and that I knew nothing about it. So in the interim if I get another meter fitted by someone else will I be able to get electricity and rent the flat out whilst this is being sorted? Look forwarc to your advice.

#31 16-05-2009, 01:36 PM Kittykatss Member Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 1 Help - I'm having a similar problem.. Two guys turned up at my vacant property ( I had gone to show an estate agent round) they claimed they were from British Gas Revenue Protection ( they had no id on them) , were quite heavy handed in their approach and said they were disconnecting the supply as the meter had been ' tampered' with. They disconnected the supply ( removed the fuse) and handed me a bill for £640 quid (British Gas Revenue protection letterhead)which was broken down into £250 Investigation Fee and £390 Meter Work Fee. Of course I refused to pay as I had no idea about their genuinety. I said I would call their office and speak to someone there and was not going to pay these guys. (British Gas Revenue protection letterhead) Later on that day they called me again heavy handedly asking for payment to be made by debit card etc - I refused. I have no knowledege of any meter tampering and do not even know which energy supplier the tenant had been using before he left ( the prop is now vacant). The next day I visited the property , and was shocked to find that someone had gained access to the property and completely removed the meter.They have left the live electricity wires exposed! I am very worried as to how someone gained access into my property without consent/ permission / warrant/ break in ...and who are these people ? Do they really work for British Gas? Do they have some kind of master key to enter a property like this and are they allowed to do so? I have today reported the matter to the police who have given me an Incident Reference number. What do I do now ? If my previous tenant had tampered with the supply/ meter how can British Gas charge me £640 for something I had no knowledge of? Do I complain British Gas ? or Revenue Protection ? or both? I have no forwarding address for the previous tenant but some of his mail has still been coming to my property including a driving licence from DVLA. Please advise ...