What the hell is going on with British Gas?

[Scarletpetunias]

I’ve had two emails in the last few days telling me that both my gas and electric accounts have been moved to their ‘new system’. When I log on, I now can’t see all the comparative usage data that used to be there, I can only see an online version of the bill I used to get in the post.

I can’t get through on the phone and even the online chat appears to have packed in so are other people experiencing this?

Yes. I have gas and electricity with them and when I tried to submit my meter readings it said "Sorry you don't have accounts with us" :-S
I do. I googled the email address to email them.

I've got dual fuel with them and I've just logged into my online account without any problems.

@BMW6 - I was able to log on but can’t see all the comparative usage data that used to be there, can you?

I did have a similar issue a couple of weeks ago but just checked and although the layout is different, all info seems to be there. You do have to wait ages for the online chat to speak to a real person - I was 77th in queue!

@PunishmentRoundupWithJoon i can’t even get in the queue at the moment! They’ve only just moved me across, I wonder if it’ll take a couple of weeks to settle down.

Mine is the same. I was a bit irritated as I wanted to view my direct debit and it currently says there are no direct debits set up.
You can use it to view your old account though. I thought their old system was fine as it was!

Yes it's rubbish. I can never get the app to work, it just constantly tells me my password is wrong even when I reset it. I have to go via the website and currently our last statement is gas only, even though we're dual fuel so this is rather worrying. It says we're in credit but considering they haven't charged us for electric that's clearly not the case. I tried the online chat and gave up!

They've definitely had some system 'issues' recently. The government energy support payments have been all over the shop (for us at least)

I don't use the online account but received two letters recently, saying we'd been moved to the 'new system' and giving the new customer reference numbers. Unfortunately neither letter indicates which is for gas and which for electricity.

@Scarletpetunias I'm having the exact same issue, I am unable to see my 'detailed usage' or any comparisons. I've tweeted BG help and received a reply saying they are 'looking to roll out an app in the coming year so hopefully it will be out very soon'. Which means until it is out we can't track the energy we use. The cynical in me says this is a British Gas ploy as it prevents us from budgeting and potentially reducing our spend 🙄I'm not happy!

I have had the same today.
My smart meter usually reads about 0.43p by 11 am
Today its £2.38 by 12am with no additional useage.
Is it a rip off to raise direct debits or delay the £66 refund each month?
We have deliberately drastically reduced useage this year. I too wonder if its a ploy so finally rung up took an hour on hold.
I have made a formal complaint for transparency and data as told it will take 28 days to fully kick in.
Thieves.

Looking at the complaints on Twitter it's not just an issue with British Gas. Smart Meters not working, apps not working with other providers too. My daughter is with EON with her smart meter set to submit a reading every 30 minutes. Last submission was 11th November!! I definitely think this is a deliberate act by energy suppliers. It's making me more determined to do star jumps rather than put the heating on 😂

Thank you for your replies. I can’t believe there isn’t more noise about this - it’s ridiculous to do this just when we’re all trying to manage our energy consumption. I don’t really go for conspiracy theories but I’m starting to wonder!

Lots of mix ups on billing, Octopus deducted the £66 payment from the DD at the same the as the rate per KWh went up which meant we were underpaying, they are erratic at billing regularly which makes it hard to keep track.

By the way, those of you with British Gas, have you been getting your £66 refund? I met up with one of my adult sons today and he said he’d had 2 refunds so far but for £49 not £66. He’s tried emailing etc but keeps getting referred back to the FAQ on the website.

I have had an awful problem with British Gas and their attempts to move my dual fuel account to their new system. They cancelled my direct debits, then after being on the phone for ages they said they set up new ones only for them to not actually do it. Then I find they moved only one service not both gas and electric. I complained many times and eventually they got both accounts together but my latest bill says I have used no gas or electric since the summer which is impossible. My balance is in credit which is good, but although they just credited the £66 for the cost of living they then debited it the same day! I have no idea what my usage is like beyond what my smart meter states as the app doesn't work and there is no info on the website. I have no idea if my account is up to date or whether I am facing a huge bill at some point. As I am on a fixed deal until May I am just toughing it out and hoping they sort it all before then. They are useless though so I don't have much hope!

Yes got 2 x £66 payments to date. The billing is a mess, they keep cancelling bills then reissuing them. The chatbot will stick you in a queue if you are lucky or will say too busy. You have to ask it for customer service agent or else it just directs you to stock replies. They never respond to emails. Load of crap.

I've been trying to close my account with them since the 19th November... couldn't get through on the phone, the chatbot doesn't work, so had to resort to social media. Semi helpful until they told me the accounts in DH name and they can't assist me, but if he contacts them on social media quoting the chat reference they will sort it out. Over a week later no response to him, so I followed up, to be sent (drum roll please) a link to the chatbot...

I've just logged in as the account is still live and I can't see any of the data anymore either.

My smart metre has stopped showing my usage. British Gas will not replace it.

@Knittingnanny2 yes, I am receiving the £66.

For anyone struggling to get hold of customer service I have found the best way is to tweet @ britishgashelp I got a response quite quickly. Phone and live chat are a definite dead end so I don't even try anymore.

Thanks I’ll pass that on to my son

I have taken to Twitter to get a reply too. Apparently, the My Energy report which produced the detailed usage info on the British Gas app or online account is not on their new platform yet. They hope it will be available again next year.

I think what has annoyed me most about this is that they didn’t actually say anything about this change in the letter I got saying I was being moved to the new system. Had they done this, they could have reduced the large number of queries that I’d imagine they are getting. Absolutely useless customer service!

I completely agree! And that they 'hope' it will be available again next year isn't good enough, especially in the current climate. Some people rely on the detailed use info for reassurance. All we can see at the moment is our bills.

Just when we need to see the details for accounts and usage they’ve totally messed it all up, failed to take my money and I can’t access the accounts 🥴

British Gas are almost impossible to communicate with........has anyone found a phone number that leads to a human???