Powergen;Contractual info needed.

[MARTIN3030]

Wonder if anyone can throw some light on this 1.

My Mother has a contract with Powergen under their "Staywarm" package.
Effectively she pays a fixed rate for gas and Electricity.
During the recent storms her house was damaged,forcing her to move out as repairs to repair structural damage are carried out.
It is anticipated that this will take some time.There is no Gas or Electricity being used,in fact the gas has been turned off due to a ruptured flue.
My mother contacted Powergen to advise them of this but they are insisting that she still pays the full amount.
Looking at their terms and conditions;
Section 4(B) states material change to your home.......

I am aware that this agreement does not fall within the CCA but is obviously regulated by other statute.
Is anyone familiar with contractual law regarding this.
For example would there be anything in the unfair contract terms as seemingly she is being asked to pay for something she is not using ?

advice please.

[rosiecotton]

Without seeing the full terms and conditions I can't say for sure.

However my initial thought is that she will have to pay. If she uses 0 gas and electricity then the fixed rate plan obviously won't be of benefit to her and may seem unfair - but presumably to the other extreme she could leave her lights, heating, appliances on all day and night and yet Powergen would not then be able to complain and say this isn't fair.

If she had a contract stating that she could use whatever she liked but if she didn't get her money's worth then she could cancel, this would seem biased towards the consumer, if you see what I mean. Hence almost unfair to the trader, if anything!

When you say that there is a section covering material changes to home, what exactly does that entail/state?

[MARTIN3030]

Ok I have spoken to Energywatch and they are of the impression that the terms cannot be enforcable in this case.
This is based on the need to have a confirmation letter sent to Powergen issued by the contractors clearly stating that the propery remains unoccupied and incomplete.
I will try this first following which faliure by them to suspend billing demands, EW have logged a case number and will take this up.
Thank you for your post Rose

[ozzywizard]

They should of put an hold on the account. You can still follow the S.A.R - (Subject Access Request) process. Let us know what comes out of your energywatch complaint.

Can you give more onfo on

used,in fact the gas has been turned off due to a ruptured flue.

She may be entitled for 30 pound a day untill supply is restored.

[rosiecotton]

Glad Energywatch could help. Energy contracts are always a bit iffy for me as I don't deal with them in any way - any complainants who come to me with energy issues tend to get redirected to EW!

Hope you get it sorted.