October 25th 2023.
Lee Haynes and Jo Woodley were in for a nasty surprise when they received a five-figure gas bill out of the blue. The couple had moved into their Tamworth, Staffordshire home in 2005, and were unable to figure out who was responsible for their gas supply.
Lee, a 44-year-old school site worker, said he had done "everything" to try and pay, but was left in shock when he received the bill. He had even received letters from the National Grid and the housing association in 2006, confirming the couple's struggles.
"It was very strange," said Lee. "After a few months we had bills for everything but not gas. I was worried about suddenly getting a big bill – so I tried really hard to find out who was supplying our gas. The guy from the housing association tried all the suppliers they work with and said he didn't know what to do."
The couple had contacted the ombudsman who had instructed them to wait for their supplier to make contact. But then, in March, a letter from gas distributors Cadent dropped through their letterbox. Three months later, the couple were presented with an invoice for an astonishing £10,824.87.
Lee expressed his confusion, saying "Who would write in their calendar every year to try and find out who's providing gas to their home? We just got on with living there – like we were told to. I did everything I could. I didn't want to just let the problem go."
When asked about the situation, a spokesperson from Cadent said that, as part of their gas transportation license, they had an obligation to investigate and recover costs. They also mentioned that they have a specialist team to offer help and support to customers who are required to make a repayment.
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