British Gas charged a customer £3,483 twice for a new boiler installation in Dagenham, leaving the homeowner fighting for nearly two months to get refunded.
The customer, identified as T.E. from Dagenham in east London, was advised to replace a domestic boiler after a British Gas Homecare engineer detected dangerous levels of carbon monoxide during an annual gas service in May. T.E. paid a deposit of £387 using a debit card, and the new boiler was fitted a couple of weeks later.
Following the installation, British Gas emailed an invoice for the remaining £3,483 balance containing payment instructions for a bank transfer. T.E. completed the bank transfer as directed, but two days later British Gas automatically withdrew the same £3,483 sum from the debit card previously used for the deposit.
When T.E. complained about the double charge, British Gas claimed the heating installer should have provided an emailed link allowing the customer to authorise both the deposit and the automatic collection of the balance from the same card. T.E. maintained that no such warning was given and that official invoice instructions were followed.
Initial attempts by British Gas to refund the money directly to the debit card failed. The energy firm then promised to issue a refund cheque, but when queried two weeks later, no cheque had been generated. After consumer advocate Sally Hamilton raised the case, British Gas issued a cheque, but the customer's bank rejected it.
An investigation revealed that the cheque failed because T.E. had raised a formal chargeback dispute with the bank over the card transaction. To prevent potential double reimbursement, the £3,483 remained locked in limbo between British Gas and the bank until T.E. cancelled the card dispute. The overpayment was finally returned 58 days after the error occurred.
British Gas provided a goodwill payment of £300 to compensate for the inconvenience. The customer's bank also paid £100 for failing to explain clearly how opening a chargeback dispute would affect the refund process. T.E. expressed gratitude for the intervention, while consumers were urged to exercise caution when using different payment methods for deposits and final balances.
British Gas, a subsidiary of Centrica plc, is one of the largest energy and home services suppliers in the United Kingdom. Dagenham is a suburban town in east London.
Aviva delays £34,000 pension payout
Insurance provider Aviva delayed paying out a £34,000 personal pension pot to a 75-year-old customer for five months, repeatedly missing standard processing timelines.
The customer, M.C., applied in early April to cash in the entire £34,000 pension pot to cover urgent home repairs and household utility bills. Standard pension encashment transactions typically take between four and six weeks to complete.
Despite completing all required paperwork, M.C. experienced months of delays and promises of imminent resolution. Aviva claimed its staff needed to speak with the customer's lawyer, though no explanation was provided and the lawyer received no contact from the provider.
Following contact from Sally Hamilton, Aviva processed the transfer within a single day. However, the final amount deposited into the bank account was nearly £10,000 lower than the total pot value due to statutory tax deductions.
Under HM Revenue and Customs regulations, pension providers must apply emergency tax when a pension pot is cashed in full. The tax system calculates tax liability by assuming the lump sum represents a monthly payment repeated across the tax year, allocating only one-twelfth of the annual £12,570 personal tax allowance.
Affected customers can reclaim overpaid emergency tax at the end of the tax year through a self-assessment tax return, or immediately by filing form P53Z on the gov.uk website. The final tax refund depends on the individual's total annual income, including the state pension.
Aviva apologized for the delay and confirmed it paid compensation to the customer. An Aviva spokesman said: "We are very sorry that M.C. experienced a delay in receiving his pension payment and recognise the frustration and inconvenience this has caused him."
The spokesman added: "While additional verification checks were required as part of our regulatory obligations, we acknowledge the claim took longer than expected and this fell short of the standards we normally provide."
Aviva confirmed that the transfer was completed alongside compensation. "We can confirm the payment has now been made along with £300 compensation in recognition of the inconvenience caused," the spokesman said, adding: "We are reviewing the circumstances of this case to identify any lessons and improvements for the future."
M.C. stated he was "most grateful" for the assistance after receiving the funds. Aviva is one of the United Kingdom's largest financial services and retirement providers. Separately, individuals managing finances prior to reaching the UK state pension age, which is rising to 67, were invited to submit their experiences.
Customer service resolution for BT, Monzo and British Gas
Telecommunications company BT issued an apology and a refund after delaying a £22.76 reimbursement to a deceased customer's estate. The customer's child, E.D. from Twickenham in south-west London, contacted BT multiple times following their mother's death in April. Despite providing card details and receiving repeated promises of payment within seven days, no funds arrived until media inquiries prompted BT to issue the £22.76 refund. BT Group plc is the UK's major telecommunications provider.
Digital bank Monzo refunded £28.99 and paid £200 in compensation to customer G.M. from Kent following two fraudulent card transactions. The unauthorized charges, comprising £25.00 and £3.99, took place within a 90-minute window. Monzo initially accused the account holder of executing the payments, but G.M. maintained that no authorization or access had been granted to third parties. Monzo subsequently issued a formal apology, fully reimbursed the disputed sums, and paid £200 in compensation. Monzo is a regulated UK app-based bank.
British Gas issued a refund and a goodwill gesture to former customer G.G. from Buckinghamshire, who waited three months for a credit balance return of £290.75 after switching providers in June. Customer service representatives blamed a "technical issue" for failing to generate a final bill. Despite G.G. logging a formal complaint in August and receiving promises of a resolution, the money was not returned until intervention occurred. British Gas apologized, refunded the full £290.75 credit balance, and provided an undisclosed goodwill gesture. Buckinghamshire is a ceremonial county in South East England.
