A British Gas customer was left in hysterics after receiving a "pathetic" refund.
The unnamed person shared a picture of the letter and cheque they'd been given by the energy company on Reddit. "Thanks British Gas," they sarcastically wrote on the Casual UK subreddit in regards to their 'promised' cheque. It came after they had switched suppliers.
The letter read: "We're giving you a refund. You switched supplier after our Safeguard PAYGv2 tariff price went up. Because you were charged the higher rate up until you left us on 2 January 2024, we owe you the difference."
Below was a cheque attached with the grand total of £1. Many people fled to the comments to poke fun at the amount. Some were eager to find out what the Brit was going to do with the refund. "Tell us how you're going to spoil yourself with these winnings then," one mocked. Another user added: "Oooo posh!"
While a third voiced: "Big bucks, don't spend it all in one place playa." Someone else said: "Creating that check and posting it to you is definitely more expensive than £1, amazing!" Meanwhile, a fifth teased: "Don't go spending it all at once." And this user giggled: "It's the thought that counts."
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The refund from British Gas was just £1 (Reddit)In response to the Reddit post, a British Gas spokesperson told the Daily Star: "If a refund is due for any of our customers, even in this case where it is a pound, it's important that they receive it."
Earlier this month, the Mirror revealed British Gas is set to spark fresh anger by revealing profits rocketed to more than £800million last year. The country’s biggest supplier, like rivals, has benefited from industry watchdog Ofgem allowing it to claw back money through higher bills.
British Gas, with 7.5million customers, made £72million in profit in 2022, lower than in 2021 because of soaring wholesale energy costs after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. But analysts expect a big turnaround when owner Centrica reports group results on February 15. Investment bank Investec predicts British Gas’s supply arm raked in £816million last year. Rival UBS has pencilled in a haul of £895million.
Simon Francis, coordinator of the End Fuel Poverty Coalition, said: “These outrageous profits will come as a kick in the teeth to households who’ve spent the best part of a week shivering in cold homes. Last winter we saw around 5,000 excess winter deaths caused by living in cold homes and we know people are turning off their heating because they can’t afford the bills.”
It comes as British Gas this month increased the energy grants it can offer to struggling households, with anyone eligible now able to claim up to £2,000 - and you don’t need to be a customer to access the help. The grants used to be worth up to £1,500. The support is designed to help people clear their energy debt and is delivered through the Individuals and Families Fund, which is a scheme run by the British Gas Energy Trust.
The British Gas Energy Trust is an independent charity, funded by British Gas. To access the help, you need to have energy debt of up to £2,000 and you must have previously received help from a money advice agency in the past three months.
The grants will go to people who are looking to clear an outstanding debt on their current energy account, but cannot get help from their own energy supplier. Suppliers that run their own support fund include: Boost, Eon, Eon Next, EDF, Scottish Power, Ovo, Octopus, SSE and Utilita.
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