Cheaper Gas Bills

Meters

A gas supplier must provide an appropriate meter to a customer who asks for one. There are two main types of meter:-

• credit or quarterly meters, where you use the gas and pay for it later
• prepayment meters, where you pay in advance for your gas supply.

Credit meters

Most customers will have a credit meter and will receive bills four times a year. This is known as quarterly billing. The gas supplier will call to read the meter at regular intervals or contact you and ask you to read the meter and pass on the reading. The meter must be read at least once every two years.

Prepayment meters

If you have difficulty paying for your gas, you can ask for a prepayment meter to be installed. If you’re in arrears, you should be offered a prepayment meter as an alternative to disconnection.

You can ask for a prepayment meter if you’re not in arrears, but you may have to wait until one becomes available.

In most areas, electronic prepayment meters are the only available prepayment meter option.

The main types of prepayment meters are:

• token meters
• key meters
• card meters
• smart card meters.

The gas supplier will give you a list of the places you can get the card, token or key charged, which may include vending machines. The meter will record the amount of gas used.

The advantages of using a prepayment meter are:

• it can be a useful way to budget if you’re on a low income
• it can be used to pay off arrears as an alternative to disconnection.

There are several disadvantages to using a prepayment meter. These include:

• you’ll usually pay more for your gas than if you had a credit meter. Prepayment meters are normally the most expensive way to pay for gas
• if you can’t afford to buy tokens or recharge your card or key, you won’t have any gas
• you may have to pay transport costs to get to the nearest charging point
• you can’t spread the cost of the larger winter bills over the whole year
• the meter can be set to recover arrears. This means you’ll have to pay for using gas and for your arrears at the same time
• you’ll have to pay more towards the arrears when you’re using more gas.

Meter readings

Your gas supplier must read the meter at least once every two years. If the gas supplier has been unable to gain access to read the meter it will leave a card for you to fill in with your own reading. If you are disabled, chronically sick or of pensionable age, you can ask the gas supplier to read your meter every three months. The gas supplier must inspect and test the meter at least once every two years.

If you are disabled, chronically sick or of pensionable age and find it difficult to read your meter because of its position, you can ask the gas supplier to move the meter, where reasonably practicable, free of charge.

If you think the meter reading is wrong

If you think the meter reading given on your bill is wrong, take your own reading. If this shows the meter has been misread, inform the gas supplier of the correct reading and a revised bill will be sent. If you think the meter is faulty, report the matter to the gas supplier, who can arrange for the meter to be tested.

If you have had an estimated reading, read the meter yourself and contact the gas supplier to give your own meter reading. You will then get an adjusted bill.

In some cases, if your house has been divided into flats, there may be a mix-up over the meters. Check with your supplier that the serial number on your meter matches the one that the bill relates to.