Help! Gas been turned off by possible fake?

[LittleBoo]

Man came randomly to read meters today, I didn't even ask for ID as A. I'm thick and B. both the kids were screaming so I just wanted him gone. He took both readings (eletric and gas) even though I said we're on a "pay as you go" with the electric and I give readings online for the gas. I thought nothing of it but realised an hour ago the boiler wasn't working, have spent the entire time trying to fix it, just remembered the man and went to look at the meter and the number's aren't moving, at all! What on earth's going on?!

 

[onlyme]

Can you ring the gasboard and ask if they sent somene out to read the meter?

 

[LittleBoo]

I'm finding it really hard to find the right number, we're wit British Gas but their phonelines are a big maze of "press * to..." things

 

[mumj18]

When your in the menu of the 'press this for this and that for that' business just randomly hit buttons on your phone and you should get through to someone. I always use this trick xxx

 

[Jem88]

If you keep pressing the # button will it put you through to someone? I know when i've phoned the bank it's put me through if i keep pressing it lol. I hope you get it sorted

 

[onlyme]

What was the bloke wearing? Did he have that black hand held reader with him? It's prob coincidence that the boiler's off as it's quite risky to trick his way into your house just to turn the gas off for a laugh

 

[v2007]

Hmmm. sounds like it might just be a coincidence.

Have you got a gas hob??

ETA: I have had both my PAYG meters read today.

V xxx

 

[LittleBoo]

I'm officially too paranoid gas man came and confirmed gas is still being fed into the property thanks ladies!

 

[v2007]

Awww bless you.

What's wrong with your boiler?

V xxx

 

[smokey]

They do still come round to read the metres even if your on pay as you go, its more a survey type thing to see how much is being used. Main thing to watch for though is it is the company your with because if they are from a different supplyer the use it as an exscuse to start sendimg you junk mail and trying to get you to change.
Its more likely to be a coincenence

 

[bigbetty]

Just to let you know love that no matter whether you have a pre-payment meter, or you provide your meter readings online, your supplier has to send someone to read your meters once a year by law - I know this because my husband works in the energy industry xx

 

[BabyHill]

Is it your pilot light thats gone out? I'd check any other gas appliances you have to narrow it down. x

 

[LittleBoo]

Def. the boiler, apparently the circuit board's fried. Still broke, apparently it shall be sorted tomorrow. Can't be doing with this much longer, we're bloody freezing!

Thanks for the replies ladies xx

 

[dizz]

OK I used to work prepayment energy accounts (not with British Gas). I'll just explain kind of how they work to get over this pay as you go thing so people understand it for the future cos it's handy to know.

Basically like people say - your meters DO still get read like normal (and replaced when they're of a certain age). You have an account on the central database like any credit meter customer - but whereas they register payments when their montly direct debit goes out, or they send a cheque in with the bill - when you go and stick a tenner on your gas or eleccy card or key or even those paper tokens they're trying to get rid of but still float around from time to time - it registers a payment of a tenner on your account on the computer system, and tells your meter to let a tenner's worth of gas or electric through into your house (less any debts or standing charges the meter's set to collect, or emergency credit you've used). So every time you top up you're building up a little nestegg of a balance on your actual account on the system.

Meter reader comes round, and your bill gets produced - and provided the meter and the computer system are charging at the same price (this used to be a bit more of a problem before key meters) - the amount the bill comes to is the same as the amount of credit you've got on your account... balance goes back to zero and you sit at home wondering why the company's sending you bills saying you owe them no money. There are ways it can fall out of sync which is how people end up with debts despite being on prepayment meters - things like missing payments, or people borrowing other people's cards (again was a problem with those card tokens that you used to have to spend hours persuading the meter to take properly) and the like - but generally that's how they work and why you do still get the meter reading man around even though you might wonder why the hell he's showed up at your door.

We used to cringe so much when other call centre agents not in prepayment compared them to pay as you go mobiles!

I don't work there anymore - things have probably changed but that's the general principle how the accounts run (the job was shit and I hated it)