Free gas - No supplier? Help!!

[sewaandquelch]

Hello!

 

I'm new to this forum so please be gentle!

 

my partner and I moved into a flat almost three years ago.

For the first few months we had no boiler, gas, radiators etc as the building is very old. Only electric.

The landlord finally got gas installed, so we had heating. Great!

Only thing is, the men who installed the gas meter seemingly did not hook us up to the supplier I had requested.

..in fact no supplier at all.

 

Having not had a bill for several months,

I contacted who I 'believed' was our supplier,

to be told that we weren't on their records.

 

 

And we weren't on anybody's records.

She told me that essentially the gas is coming direct from the grid, it's free, and if I keep quiet, I'm not doing anything wrong.

Unfortunately at the time I didn't think to record that conversation.

 

here we are, nearly three years without paying gas, and we are planning on moving out in a few months.

We're panicking that our letting agent will find out we don't pay gas and will forward us a giant bill,

or that if we try and start a gas account that they might back date the bill?

 

Please does anybody have any advice or know how this stuff works?

I put my hands up to the fact that we've been aware of this situation for a long time,

and usually we're very play-it-safe types,

but we threw caution to the wind for once

and now I'm wondering if we'll be punished by the utility gods for eternity for this tiny thrill of free gas... HELP!

 

Thanks for reading!

[unclebulgaria67]

So you paid electric without a problem and it is just gas that was never registered properly ?

 

Whoever installed the gas meter should have registered it. I believe there is a default supplier in every area of the country, which might be British Gas. You are liable for the gas usage, as it was up to you to make sure the landlord registered the meter. One phone call to one energy company was not enough.

 

What might happen is that the new tenant manages to get the Gas meter registered properly and British Gas or whoever is the default gas supplier for the area is out of pocket. They may chase the landlord for the gas usage cost and possibly the landlord may pass on your details. But if they can't trace you, then i am not sure how they can obtain money due.

 

Normally there is a 12 month backbilling rule, where if you never received a bill, you only have to pay for 12 months usage. The 12 months usage would be worked out looking at the meter reading, working out approx amount of usage for 12 months. However, given the lack of effort in registering the meter and sorting out a supply contract, you might be liable for the usage for the full time you were living in the property.

 

Up to you really. Don't do anything and see what happens. Or alert the landlord that the gas meter has not been registered properly and this means no bills have been received for usage. Leave it to the landlord to sort out.

[Bazooka Boo]

Well the good news is that they can't back bill more than 12 months.

 

Who is your LL, clearly private?

[sewaandquelch]

We are renting through a letting agency technically but we have met the actual landlord in person before. I had read somewhere that since 2007 they can't backdate any bills more than 12 months...which I hope is true.

[sgtbush]

Id be very careful what you say.

Reading between the lines it sounds to me that the landlord may of used jimmy from the pub to fit a meter, and not registered it with the gas company.

Basically abstraction of gas- a criminal offence.

With the advice " your not doing anything wrong" well that's a crock.

You know if you use gas you need to pay a bill. You have kept quiet so you are complicant with the act.

To give you advice, I would approxh the landlord about this.

[sewaandquelch]

Aah ok. That's given me sweaty palms. When I spoke to the employee at the utility company I called (that one time...and can't remember who it was now...) she did say that there were no suppliers linked to our address. Would she not have seen it was British Gas if my default supplier was actually them?

 

I won't leave this for the new tenant, as I don't want to cause grief for the next person, or to be chased by the letting agency. If it comes to it, I guess I'll have to pay what I can. I was just hoping that as it was a mistake by the men who fitted the meter, that it might mean I was not liable to be charged... Oh well

[sewaandquelch]

He definitely used a legitimate company - there was a grant for landlords in the area to install gas boilers for tenants at the time - which he took up. So it was definitely all legit. Thanks for your points though. Looks like I'm screwed.

[sgtbush]

The good news is your landlord has done this so play dumb on the matter.

You could always Say it was in the hands of the landlord and you've never been approached by anyone in regards to the gas, so you presumed its the landlords responsibility.

 

Dont get sweaty palms.

 

To be charged with abstraction you must be the person who did it. You weren't.

[unclebulgaria67]

See this website.

 

http://www.energynetworks.org/info/faqs/who-is-my-network-operator.html

 

The meter needs to be registered. It is actually a criminal offence to use gas that you are knowinglly not paying for. The minimum you have to do, is tell the landlord.

[sewaandquelch]

The good news is your landlord has done this so play dumb on the matter.

You could always Say it was in the hands of the landlord and you've never been approached by anyone in regards to the gas, so you presumed its the landlords responsibility.

 

Dont get sweaty palms.

 

To be charged with abstraction you must be the person who did it. You weren't.

 

Well because the landlord uses a letting agent, I don't even know who really was meant to check it was all done properly. I remember the meter being fitted and telling the men which supplier I'd chosen to go with. And then waited a few months for a bill which never came. Thanks for your calming words, I am still pretty worried now but I just need to work out what to do next. Ideally I'd like to call a supplier and register with them and start paying gas from now onwards until we move out, but I'm worried they'll notice that we've been getting free gas for a long time.

[dx100uk]

not your problem

just go.

 

 

dx

[sewaandquelch]

See this website.

 

 

The meter needs to be registered. It is actually a criminal offence to use gas that you are knowinglly not paying for. The minimum you have to do, is tell the landlord.

 

OK, thanks for your advice and website link. I am not sure what the landlord will do or say, he's a very straight-laced man and will probably refer me to the letting agents who are terrible anyway, so they'll just drop me in it. Oops.

[sewaandquelch]

not your problem

just go.

 

 

dx

 

Really?! That's gonna take some balls on my part! I'm a huge worrier!

[dx100uk]

you were paying your landlord via rent for it or that's what he told me when it happen .

theres no comeback to you whatsoever.

dx

[sewaandquelch]

you were paying your landlord via rent for it or that's what he told me when it happen .

theres no comeback to you whatsoever.

dx

 

Gosh that'd be ideal if that worked. Fingers crossed I can get out this situation!! I won't ever let this happen again either...too much stress.

[dx100uk]

it would be very difficult to prove anything and even then as B bob says they'd only be able to gill you for 12mts anyway and try working that out with no readings.

 

 

dx

[sewaandquelch]

it would be very difficult to prove anything and even then as B bob says they'd only be able to gill you for 12mts anyway and try working that out with no readings.

 

 

dx

 

Thanks, I really appreciate your help. If I had to pay 12 months, then so be it. I'd take that and be happy with it if that's the worst case scenario.