I had a letter through the post 2 weeks ago from British Gas stating that i owe 2 Quaters of Electricity @ £500ish. I promptly called them and asked why on earth i was getting a bill for such a high amount when i pay via direct debit. The guy replied "Oh dont worry about it mate it must be a typing error your account shows £40 and you have a Direct Debit in place" I left the call feeling a little dubious but otherwise satisfied there was no problem.
Today i get a further letter from british Gas stating i need to pay £250 without fail to prevent further action! This came with a nice red background and big bold type, so i promptly called them again. This time I was told that i do infact owe them £500 and that they need at least £250 to prevent a defult going on my credit file! They told me that I cancelled my direct debit back in june and havnt made a payment since! Now i most certainly did not cancel my direct debit, infact as i was using slightly more than the fixed amount they were taking via direct debit i called them and increased it to cover the deficit! They flat out ignored what i said and continually blamed me for cancelling my direct debit. My argument to them was "Why would i increase the payment amount and 2 weeks later cancel the direct debit? You have made a mistake not me so how can you justify demanding I pay you £x when you should be doing everything in your power to help me make the payments @ a realistic amount?" I felt this was falling on deaf ears so i requested to talk to a manager.
She was mildly more helpful but still insisted that i either called them or sent them a letter to cancel the Direct Debit. After all this arguing the only option I have is to pay them no less than £200 via a debit card and have a further £75 a month come out of my bank account! I am going to struggle to pay my bills now because of their **** up.
Just thought i'de share my morning with you folks. Good day to you all
One Cheesed off Smitho3!
Today i get a further letter from british Gas stating i need to pay £250 without fail to prevent further action! This came with a nice red background and big bold type, so i promptly called them again. This time I was told that i do infact owe them £500 and that they need at least £250 to prevent a defult going on my credit file! They told me that I cancelled my direct debit back in june and havnt made a payment since! Now i most certainly did not cancel my direct debit, infact as i was using slightly more than the fixed amount they were taking via direct debit i called them and increased it to cover the deficit! They flat out ignored what i said and continually blamed me for cancelling my direct debit. My argument to them was "Why would i increase the payment amount and 2 weeks later cancel the direct debit? You have made a mistake not me so how can you justify demanding I pay you £x when you should be doing everything in your power to help me make the payments @ a realistic amount?" I felt this was falling on deaf ears so i requested to talk to a manager.
She was mildly more helpful but still insisted that i either called them or sent them a letter to cancel the Direct Debit. After all this arguing the only option I have is to pay them no less than £200 via a debit card and have a further £75 a month come out of my bank account! I am going to struggle to pay my bills now because of their **** up.
Just thought i'de share my morning with you folks. Good day to you all
One Cheesed off Smitho3!
