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    • Regarding a driver, that HAS paid for parking but input an incorrect Vehicle Registration Number.   This is an easy mistake to make, especially if a driver has access to more than one vehicle. First of all, upon receiving an NTK/PCN it is important to check that the Notice fully complies with PoFA 2012 Schedule 4 before deciding how to respond of course. The general advice is NOT to appeal to the Private Parking Company as, for example, you may identify yourself as driver and in certain circumstances that could harm your defence at a later stage. However, after following a recent thread on this subject, I have come to the conclusion that, in the case of inputting an incorrect Vehicle Registration Number, which is covered by “de minimis” it may actually HARM your defence at a later stage if you have not appealed to the PPC at the first appeal stage and explained that you DID pay for parking and CAN provide proof of parking, it was just that an incorrect VRN was input in error. Now, we all know that the BPA Code of Practice are guidelines from one bunch of charlatans for another bunch of charlatans to follow, but my thoughts are that there could be problems in court if a judge decides that a motorist has not followed these guidelines and has not made an appeal at the first appeal stage, therefore attempting to resolve the situation before it reaches court. From BPA Code of Practice: Section 17:  Keying Errors B) Major Keying Errors Examples of a major keying error could include: • Motorist entered their spouse’s car registration • Motorist entered something completely unrelated to their registration • Motorist made multiple keying errors (beyond one character being entered incorrectly) • Motorist has only entered a small part of their VRM, for example the first three digits In these instances we would expect that such errors are dealt with appropriately at the first appeal stage, especially if it can be proven that the motorist has paid for the parking event or that the motorist attempted to enter their VRM or were a legitimate user of the car park (eg a hospital patient or a patron of a restaurant). It is appreciated that in issuing a PCN in these instances, the operator will have incurred charges including but not limited to the DVLA fee and other processing costs therefore we believe that it is reasonable to seek to recover some of these costs by making a modest charge to the motorist of no more than £20 for a 14-day period from when the keying error was identified before reverting to the charge amount at the point of appeal. Now, we know that the "modest charge" is unenforceable in law, however, it would be up to the individual if they wanted to pay and make the problem go away or in fact if they wanted to contest the issue in court. If the motorist DOES appeal to the PPC explaining the error and the PPC rejects the appeal and the appeal fails, the motorist can use that in his favour at court.   Defence: "I entered the wrong VRN by mistake Judge, I explained this and I also submitted proof of payment for the relevant parking period in my appeal but the PPC wouldn't accept that"   If the motorist DOES NOT appeal to the PPC in the first instance the judge may well use that as a reason to dismiss the case in the claimant's favour because they may decide that they had the opportunity to resolve the matter at a much earlier stage in the proceedings. It is my humble opinion that a motorist, having paid and having proof of payment but entering the wrong VRN, should make an appeal at the first appeal stage in order to prevent problems at a later stage. In this instance, I think there is nothing to be gained by concealing the identity of the driver, especially if at a later stage, perhaps in court, it is said: “I (the driver) entered the wrong VRN.” Whether you agree or not, it is up to the individual to decide …. but worth thinking about. Any feedback, especially if you can prove to the contrary, gratefully received.
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    • deed?  you mean consent order you and her signed? concluding the case as long as you nor she break it's conditions signed upto? dx  
    • Well tbh that’s good news and something she can find out for herself.  She has no intention of peace.  I’m going to ask the thread stays open a little longer.   It seems she had not learned that I am just not the one!!!!  plus I have received new medical info from my vet today.   To remain within agreement, I need to generally ask for advice re:  If new medical information for the pup became apparent now - post agreement signing, that added proof a second genetic disease (tested for in those initial tests in the first case but relayed incorrectly to me then ), does it give me grounds for asking a court to unseal the deed so I can pursue this new info….. if she persists in being a pain ? If generally speaking, a first case was a cardiac issue that can be argued as both genetic and congenital until a genetic test is done and then a second absolute genetic only disease was then discovered, is that deemed a new case or grounds for unsealing? Make sense ?   This disease is only ever genetic!!!!   Rather more damning and indisputable proof of genetic disease breeding with no screening yk prevent.   The vet report showing this was uploaded in the original N1 pack.   Somehow rekeyed as normal when I was called with the results.   A vet visit today shows they were not normal and every symptom he has had reported in all reports uploaded from day one are related to the disease. 
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Ridiculous Gas Bill.. Help!


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My gas bills have become outrageous. We have a 3 bedroom semi and it's just two adults, a small child and a baby living here. We get our gas from British Gas.

 

On the 6th of Feb this year we got a quarterly bill for £682.56. On the 11th of May they estimated another £540.28. I checked the meter today (26th of May) and their estimate for 11th May was high, but now two weeks later it is pretty close.

 

Our usage is (in Kwh): Jul - Sep1352.28 [2012]Oct - Dec9651.26 [2012]Jan - Mar13994.18 [2013]Apr - Jun4642.55 [2013]

As we pay £100 per month direct debit for gas we are now £1200 in debit to them - we are struggling to find a way to afford more. Isn't this a ridiculous monthly gas cost for an ordinary 3 bed semi? We have hot water on for four hours a day and heating is also on a timer combined with a thermostat. We cook with gas but only have a mini oven as the main one has a fault with the safety device. Our friends tell us they only pay an average of £45 for gas.

 

An engineer has checked the meter flow with the boiler and says it's right. He detected no leaks through the test, the boiler is regularly serviced.

 

What are we doing wrong???

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Crikey, it certainly does seem incredibly high.

 

Will try to find someone to help.

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Have your boiler checked out. Perhaps it is staying on to long due to a fault. It should only be on for as long as it is required to heat up to a certain temperature, but if a part is not functioning properly, perhaps it is burning gas for four hours solid.

 

Something is wrong somewhere and I think you will need to a do a little bit of detective work.

We could do with some help from you.

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http://www.britishgas.co.uk/HelpAndAdvice/LookUp/?tate=102,Event=0000000000005361104,Key=5582,SXI=1,USETEMPLATE=Main.tem,query=I have a dispute on my bill,LBound=01

 

Question 6 has a link where you can provide them with an accurate reading.

 

I am not sure whether BG prices have gone up or not.

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Hi Eddy and welcome to CAG

 

Are you on a Dual Fuel tariff with BG.

 

Have you checked to see if there's a better tariff using a price comparison site.

 

Cooking with gas is likely to make no difference to the bills - this is all about your CH and water heating costs.

 

1. How old is the boiler approx.

 

2. Is the house double glazed.

 

3. Is your loft properly insulated with at least 100 to 200mm of insulation material.

 

4. Do your rads all work well, heating quickly and with no cold arcs across the rads.

 

5. Is your hot water cylinder reasonably modern with a factory applied foam covering all over.

 

6. Is your boiler checked annually as this should ensure it's burning gas efficiently. If not, when was it last serviced or repaired.

 

:-)

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Thanks for the comments so far...

 

Spoke to British Gas today, something about 4.2 units a day average, said our bill was high (but not massively apparently) and offered us a meter accuracy check that if it found nothing wrong would cost us over £700. Our quaterly bill for Nov 2012 to Feb 2013 was for £682.56 using 14666.59 kWh of gas. That is £56.88 per week or £227 a month just for gas!! The most recent bill is for £542.94 using 11349.57 kWh of gas. That is £38.78 per week or around £170 a month. This seems exceptionally expensive for a 3 bed semi. I've checked the serial number on the meter in case it's a billing mistake but it's the right one. I can't imagine what it is that is causing such high bills! Most people pay for a month what we pay a week!

 

Q. Are you on a Dual Fuel tariff with BG.

A. We are. We are going to check for a better tariff with BG though as we were on their essentials tariff (which has now stopped) and now we are just on standard.

 

Q. Have you checked to see if there's a better tariff using a price comparison site.

A. There are cheaper tariffs but we are in so much debt to BG we can't change.

 

1. How old is the boiler approx.

The boiler is an Ideal fitted 6 years ago.

 

2. Is the house double glazed.

Yes, with only one small single glazed in the bathroom.

 

3. Is your loft properly insulated with at least 100 to 200mm of insulation material.

The loft is insulated but we have been approached by a company who will upgrade it via a grant. They are also insulating the cavity walls.

 

4. Do your rads all work well, heating quickly and with no cold arcs across the rads.

They seem to be fine, all get very hot. They were cleaned and had new valves when the boiler was fitted 6 years ago. Some sort of inhibitor was used as well.

 

5. Is your hot water cylinder reasonably modern with a factory applied foam covering all over.

I don't know how old it is but it does have foam cladding all around it.

 

6. Is your boiler checked annually as this should ensure it's burning gas efficiently. If not, when was it last serviced or repaired.

 

British Gas service it annually. I dunno what the engineer did last service but it seems to get the water much hotter despite the settings being the same.

 

What to do??

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How hot is the water? turning the thermostat down so it is 50-60 will save you a fortune. Likewise check how long the hot water is on for, a short period will normally do otherwise it will be constantly reheating. Also, theck the hot water tank thermostart is in good contact with the tank otherwise it will be miles off its setting

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Hi Eddie,

 

If you are on a Dual Fuel tariff but it's reverted to their standard version, I am sure you could get a better deal even if you remain with BG.

 

Your answers about the boiler, rads and insulation don't suggest any obvious problems although the increased loft insulation and wall insulation will improve the thermal efficiency of your home.

 

Ericsbrother's suggestions are good, about ensuring the thermostat is set at 50 to 60C and checking it is tight against the metal body of the cylinder. I would even say take the stat down to 55C.

 

Do you have a room stat for the CHS. Check it is set at a temp that's as low as you can be comfortable with, given your family circumstances.

 

:-)

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Assume you've checked the meter type (metric or imperial)?

 

The bills you mention do seem a tad high, I baulked at mine in April at over 600 quid but it's 6 beds and I can't remember switching the heating off for a good few months.

 

There's a few consumption calculators on the web, no idea how accurate they may be, but it may be useful to take readings whilst operating the boiler etc individually and compare against expected consumption rates.

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Checked boiler stat, it was at 65 and i've dropped it down to 55. I'm not sure where to go from here. I'm going to take daily readings from the meter and keep a diary of what I use during the day. I've turned the heating off entirely and set the hot water for just two hours a day. If the sun appears for a decent amount of time it won't be quite as chilly in the house. We can hit the 1 hour override button if necessary and make a note of it. We've applied for a Charis Grant, this might help. We will look at BG tariffs as well. But to me there is something fundamental wrong to use so much gas in this very ordinary house.

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