Help,
We purchased a house in December 2017. It’s end of Terrace with a passageway that gives access to the back garden. When we bought the house there were locked doors on both the front and back of the passageway. A few weeks ago my SO was walking down the passage and smelled gas - he reported the leak to the emergency line and within an hour The local Gas Network company were there. They checked our meter and said it wasn’t leaking - but they did detect a massive leak in the road about 30 yards away.
However, they then said that the meter, which is about 6 feet inside the passageway couldn’t be in a covered space and we would need to pay to have it moved outside. If we did not agree to have it moved and pay for it we were threatened with being cut off. We protested, since the doors are original to the Victorian property and we have an e-mail from the people we bought the house from saying that the doors have always been there and that the current gas meter was installed inside the passageway in the early 2000s. We also have the estate agent pictures showing the front of the house, sadly not the back. But both doors have been there for many years - you can see by the paintwork which is in need to some TLC.
Our first worry is that having talked to the Gas Network company on the phone, they refused to give a cast iron guarantee that (since no alterations were done, blocking in the meter or changing its environment), we would not have to foot the bill. The lady we talked to said that if we hadn’t made any alterations we shouldn’t have to pay, but ultimately it’s up to the site Forman on the day. We’re really worried that he’ll be under pressure not to get his company to pay for this work. And the way the company has treated us so far leaves us under no illusions that they will be nice at all.
The network said they are going to relocate the gas meter outside. As long as they pay for this we thought it would not be an issue. They will dig a trench to remove the old supply that goes underneath our tiny front garden and under the passageway door threshold to the meter, but refuse to use this trench to run a pipe for the new meter, under the threshold to connect up with the existing pipe that came out of the old meter in the passageway. They have said they want to put a thick copper pipe all the way up the left side of the passageway door, along the top and down the other side, then through the door frame. I asked why they couldn’t put the pipe from the new meter to our existing pipe work underground using the trench they will have made and they fobbed me off saying they can’t put copper underground. But surely the gas is all underground before it reaches out meter. Surely there is a type of pipe they can use between the meter and our existing piping that can be put underground?
Our second worry is that we bought the house because it looked lovely and this will ruin it and affect its value. Surely they don’t have to do such a crazy install especially when there is a trench to keep it all out of site?
We are really worried that the Forman will be looking to make the job as easy as possible for him and his gang, and that they can threaten us at every point with just cutting off the gas, and we feel bullied into a position of having no choice or say. We contacted CAB but they were unable to help. We are happy if SGN want to relocate their gas meter, but surely they can do it in a way sympathetic to the building that won’t cause the front of our house to look horrid and for the price to be affected?
Any help and advice very happily received. If anyone’s SO works for a Gas network and is able to give any technical advice we’d be massively grateful.