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My gas supply is capped - Who's responsible for the meter?

  • 6 October 2019
  • 18 replies
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My local area had its gas supply upgraded by northern gas from old pipes to new and when they did this they ran new gas pipes up to every property and capped them. If you used gas they attached your meter and everything was uncapped and back to normal.
We do not use any gas in our property so our supply is capped outside our property to an empty white box.
we still have the meter we always had inside the property but its not connected to a supply or any appliances (ie cooker, heating) it just sits there doing nothing.
i spoke to someone at Ovo and they wanted £80 to remove it even though it’s not connected to any supply, so we left it in as the standing charge is about the same.
We are at the end of our contract with OVO now and we will save money if we change supplier.
My questions are....do I still have to pay for both gas and electric with the new supplier?
Who does the redundant meter belong to when we do change?
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Best answer by Eva_OVO 11 October 2019, 17:18

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S
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If your gas supply is capped and not active then you shouldn't be charged standing charges. The local has supplier will be able to confirm this.

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Eva_OVO
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Updated on 10/07/23 by Abby_OVO

 

Great question to ask about switching suppliers with a capped gas supply. Just for a bit of background info here’s a bit of a breakdown on who’s responsible for what in terms of your gas setup.

 

What is a 'capped meter'?


A capped meter refers to a gas supply that has been cut-off by inserting some sort of physical block into the ECV (Emergency Cutout Valve) or pipework leading to the meter. This doesn’t refer to a disconnection or dead supply. A capped supply can be uncapped, if safe to do so, by a gas safe engineer.

 

Removing a gas supply


Even if your gas transporter has capped your supply, you’d still be listed as having an gas supply on the national database and as you’ve found are liable to continue paying a standing charge. In order to get the supply de-activated so you can stop paying this standing charge, you’ll need to contact our Support Team to schedule in a meter removal. As a non-essential maintenance job there is a charge for this however we charge these jobs at cost price and once removed you’ll no longer need to worry about the continued gas standing charges.

 

Switching with a capped supply

 

You’re free to switch suppliers, even if your supply is capped. It’s worth bearing in mind that your new supplier will continue applying standing charges and take over responsibility for the maintenance of your meter. If you decide to get the meter removed after a switch your new supplier will be able to arrange this and the cost for this job may vary from supplier to supplier.

 

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I have just moved in to a property. My gas smart meter was unstalled like 2 days ago but it was capped due to not having electricity to check appliances. I now need it uncapped. Tried calling boost and ovo (connecting straight to boost) they then gave me a number for electricity (network something) they obviously cant deal with gas. So they then sayd to ring my gas supplier which is ovo but boost at the same time. So i cant get in touch with ovo at all. And boost keeps saying they dont deal with appliances.

Im so confused and i dont know what to do

Blastoise186
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Hi there @Annija ,

Sorry for the delay. I tried to reply sooner, but I had some trouble with the spam filters. You might see my original reply appear later with some more advice.

*edited by mod as thread combined*

But in a quick summary, if the supply is capped at:

  • The Emergency Control Valve or anywhere before the meter: Please contact your local Gas Transporter Network.
  • The Gas Meter itself: Please contact your supplier for help
  • Anything beyond the meter, like internal pipework: A local Gas-Safe Register engineer can take a look

If you’re still confused, I can help you work out where to go. Please take a photo of all your meters and post them in your next reply. We’ll try to help you figure out what to do next

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A
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I finally got through to Ovo energy but been in hold for about an hour now unfortunately. But fingers crossed 🤞 

Thank you for your reply

Blastoise186
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You’re welcome. :)

If you still need more help, definitely feel free to come back here and we’ll get you sorted. While the forums are volunteer led, we’re always happy to do what we can.

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F
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Hi

My gas meter has been capped in the last 24hrs for no apparant reason, ovo is my energy supplier, yet I receive statements from boost. Who is liable for reversing this issue, as no one wants to take responsibility and have had a gas meter reading man sent out - joke!! Ovo have been very helpful and passed us through to Boost but they have no interest in trying to help us and I was advised to 'Google a local gas safety engineer' 

Jess_OVO
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Hi @Framee83,

 

I’ve moved your question to a similar topic as the best answer above gives a really great breakdown of who’s responsible for each part of your gas meter. If the gas was capped due to an an issue with a gas appliance in your home, this will need to be fixed by a gas safe engineer.

 

And it sounds like you’re a Boost customer. Boost are the prepayment sister company of OVO so will be the best ones to speak to about your account, reach out to the Boost team here.

 

Hope this helps.

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Thanks Jess!!

It was capped for no reason, no notification or communication regarding it, and Boost have been most unhelpful, we have spent since 8am being passed from pillar to post each advising us to contact our energy supplier, they eventually took action and sent someone out - to read the gas meter!!! 24 hrs without heating or hot water its rather frustrating and we can't get any answers!!

Jess_OVO
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Sorry to hear this, @Framee83. Never like to hear of people off supply and sounds like you’re still in the dark as to why the gas supply was capped.

 

A gas safe engineer will be able to check your appliances (often a faulty appliance will be the reason why a supply is capped) and turn the gas back on when everything is fixed - you can find a local engineer here.

 

If the issue is with your gas meter you would need to speak to Boost to get this resolved, find their contact details here.

 

Hope you get this sorted soon.

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Thank you, all sorted but only due to a gas engineer who is a friend!! No faults with appliances and no recorded faults with the gas supply so still at a loss as to why our pipe was capped!!

 

Elaine

Blastoise186
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Glad to hear it’s fixed at least @Framee83 .

I’d recommend asking for an engineer report from Boost about why the supply was capped in the first place. If one isn’t available yet, it should be made available within a few days.

Pretty strange situation though I have to admit.

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My gas has been capped off due to my boiler leaking carbon monoxide. My app is showing I’m being charged gas usage which is going up daily. Called OVO and they cut me off. Used online chat and all they want to do is put up my DD.  Something is seriously wrong here and I can’t sort it with them

M.isterW
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Can we get a bit more information, please?

Has your gas just been shut off at the meter, using the valve? Or has the gas pipe been disconnected?

Are the charges you're seeing just the daily standing charge or are you still being charged for gas use?

Have OVO got your meter readings from after the gas was cut off? Either readings you've given them or from a smart meter?

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Hi All,

Looking for some advice here after some confusing conversations with an OVO Engineer on the 14th of Feb and today on the phone to OVO Support.

On the 14th of Feb my smart meters were upgraded as the old units were not connecting or sending readings. 4 hours later the new meters still aren’t connecting and I was told to re-book as there are other things to try, signal boosters were mentioned etc. Also my gas meter was capped after I told the engineer that I wasn’t going to be moving into the property until roughly April.

Today rolls around and I’m on the phone to OVO following up on advice from the engineer to rebook a visit and asking for the Gas meter to be uncapped as I have a boiler service booked (under OVO Boiler Cover) on the 13th of March. I’m told that an engineer can’t be sent to look at the meters yet and that OVO do not uncap meters and that I would have to contact a local gas safe engineer to uncap.

I’m not overly bothered about sending manual meter readings, however I am bothered that I’m being told to pay to uncap the gas meter so that my boiler can be serviced.

I’ve also contacted OVO/Corgi who have arranged the service and been advised that the service engineer won’t uncap the gas meter, note that they also seemed confused that OVO Energy would not do it.

This is the response to my query about uncapping;

“Customer has a capped gas meter, what do we do?

Only a gas-safe engineer is able to remove the cap for the customer - the customer would need to organise for a gas-safe engineer to attend. The engineer will usually ask any questions about why the meter was capped and won't do the work if they are unhappy with the situation.

If a customer is calling because a gas-safe engineer has refused to un-cap the meter, it may need to be escalated to a Siteworks trained agent for further investigation.

Please speak to a gas-safe engineer and let me know if they refused to uncap the gas meter so I can escalate it. Hope this helps thank you.”

Am I in the wrong here?

Emmanuelle_OVO
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Hey @BADG3R,

 

Sorry for the issues you’re having,

 

I’m wondering why the meters were capped in the first place? Wad this something you requested? 

 

 

What is a 'capped meter'?


A capped meter refers to a gas supply that has been cut-off by inserting some sort of physical block into the ECV (Emergency Cutout Valve) or pipework leading to the meter. This doesn’t refer to a disconnection or dead supply. A capped supply can be uncapped, if safe to do so, by a gas safe engineer.

 

Removing a gas supply


Even if your gas transporter has capped your supply, you’d still be listed as having an gas supply on the national database and as you’ve found are liable to continue paying a standing charge.

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B
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Hi @Emmanuelle_OVO 

Thanks for your reply.

The gas meter was capped initially by the previous home owner as the property was vacant for quite some time during the buying process. The sale only went through in Jan this year and I haven’t moved in yet.

On discussions with the OVO Smart Meter Engineer on the 14th of Feb he advised that he would have to leave it capped as I wasn’t sure when I would be moving in. He also advised that It could be uncapped by them when they revisit to review the faulty smart meters closer to my move in date.

This is why I’m so confused as I’m just following up on the advice/plan set out by the engineer on the 14th of Feb. However OVO Support on the phone seem to have different ideas!

Emmanuelle_OVO
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Userlevel 7

Hey @BADG3R, A capped supply can be uncapped, if safe to do so, by a gas safe engineer.

 

Here is a bit more information you may find helpful:

 

What is a 'capped meter'?

 

This does not refer to a disconnection or a dead supply. A capped meter refers to a gas supply that has been cut-off by inserting some sort of physical block into the Emergency Cutout Valve (ECV) or pipework leading to the meter. When a gas meter is capped, gas is prevented from flowing through the meter-leaving the property unable to accept gas.

 

Why are gas meters capped?

 

Meters can be capped for a number of reasons:

  • Unsafe situations, e.g. a leak on the meter that can't be fixed
  • Vacant properties, e.g. if a property has been unoccupied for some time the electricity and gas supplies may be disconnected or capped
  • Theft of gas, e.g. a customer has tampered with their gas meter
  • Collections, e.g. customer refuses to pay
  • Installations, e.g. during a reposition an engineer may cap the meter once they have exchanged it to ensure there is no risk of gas escape before the customer gets a gas safety engineer to connect the meter back up to their boiler

 

I have a capped gas meter, what can OVO do?

 

Only a gas-safe engineer is able to remove the cap for a customer - a customer will need to organise for a gas-safe engineer to attend. The engineer will usually ask any questions about why the meter was capped and won't do the work if they are unhappy with the situation.

If a gas-safe engineer has refused to un-cap your meter, please contact OVO and we can raise this to our specialist team for further investigation.

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