More than 10,000 customers who have their electricity supplied by British Gas have not received any bills more than a year, and another 40,000 have been waiting for their bill for many months, according to the energy watchdog. Energywatch estimates that £13m are outstanding as a result, and customers could find themselves hit suddenly with a bill over hundreds of pounds.

The delay in billing affects households which decided to switch their electricity supply to British Gas after the company began offering the service in 1998.

British Gas says this is an industry-wide problem, which occurs when customer records are not transferred properly.

Hundreds of readers have contacted BBC News Online with tales of late or no bills, demands for huge payments at short notice and frustration when dealing with customer service departments of a number of energy providers.

'Stop debt-related disconnections'

Details of meter numbers, past meter readings, billing information and names and addresses are all passed from one supplier to another by computer. If there is a mistake in any of the data, bills can not be issued.

This corporate apathy could wreck household budgets and plunge consumers into debt
The company says most people experience a delay of a few weeks before the first bill arrives.

But some people have been waiting many months or even years.

Energywatch is now demanding that British Gas issues bills promptly to all those affected and offers them significant discounts and plenty of time to pay.

It also wants the company to suspend all debt-related disconnections.

The chair of Energywatch's Scottish Committee said "the anguish that British Gas is causing their customers cannot be overstated. British Gas is the biggest energy supplier in the UK and is duty bound to take better care of its customers"

Trying hard to pay

British Gas customer Jennifer Simmons moved into her new home in north London seven months ago and is still waiting for a bill despite regular calls to the company.

"It would be lovely if they don't want my money, but I want to give them my money," she said.

"I'm sure if I missed a payment they would be sending me a red letter and be down on my back."

Patricia Douglas from Glenrothes in Fife was not billed for more than three years.

She says during the first year she paid by standing order but complained when the company didn't send her a bill. British Gas refunded those payments and said they'd start again but two years later she's still heard nothing.

Energywatch spokesman Karl Brookes said the idea that a company did not want customers' money would be funny if it did not cause so much distress and hassle to consumers.

"Failing to bill 50,000 consumers raises serious questions about how the company is run," he said.

"But even more serious is that this corporate apathy could wreck household budgets and plunge consumers into debt."

'We would love to bill customers'

British Gas says 5.5 million households have switched their electricity supply to them since 1998 and that, as an industry, up to 200,000 customers a week change supplier.

A spokesman said: "We would love to bill these customers - we would love them to pay.

"But this is an industry problem and we are as frustrated as the customers."

The company said it would be sympathetic and may offer a discount when a bill which covered a lengthy delay period eventually arrived.

Regulator threat

But the spokesman warned: "If you have been waiting a year you should be prudent and put that money aside."

Electricity companies are obliged, under the terms of their license, to provide prompt, regular and accurate billing.

The regulator Ofgem has taken action on this issue in the past.

In 1999 Northern Electric and Northern Electric and Gas had the number of new customers they could recruit limited for a period and in 2000 Independent Energy was prevented from taking on new business until it had sorted out its problems.

BBC

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