A BRITISH Gas customer is “beyond livid” after she was hit with a £57,000 bill for one month of energy.
Katie Coyne and her husband Richard were warned they had just weeks to pay the eye-watering bill.
The energy supplier said the couple had racked up the charge in just one month – even though their annual estimate is just £2,150.
Richard, 64, spend countless tea and lunch breaks trying to speak with a customer services agent.
But he didn’t get through to anybody on the phone – so kept having to hang up.
The couple were scared to turn on anything electric in their home in the Wiltshire town of Devizes for weeks.
Katie, 60, said: “I opened it and did a double take. I thought, ‘You’re having a laugh!’
“We have a smart meter, so they should have accurate readings. But all our bills say they are estimates – it doesn’t make sense.
“We just pay them £180 a month because we think that’s about right and we don’t want to get into debt.
“But our bills don’t make sense at all. Sometimes they say we owe them and sometimes they say they owe us.”
She added: “This makes you feel so small – like you don’t count for anything.”
British Gas has now confirmed that the huge £57,000 bill on February 19 was a mistake.
Katie said: “They say they’re sorry but that doesn’t work anymore. It’s just a joke.”
The couple have rented their home from a housing association for 24 years.
Central heating with a gas boiler was installed to replace their storage heaters three-and-a-half years ago.
Katie and Richard switched to British Gas two years ago and had a smart meter fitted.
Last year the couple’s electricity bills ranged from £62 to £201 – and their meter passed checks just two months ago.
They have priority status with the energy provider because of Katie’s health.
When £57,000 the bill landed on their doormat, Richard tried and failed to get through to a British Gas adviser.
The desperate couple emailed the energy giant’s CEO – but heard nothing back.
Katie said: “It’s impossible to speak to someone. They’re just hiding behind their screens.
“If we do get through they ask us to email and they say it will be sorted but it isn’t.
“We’ve made six or seven official complaints. I’ve been at my wits’ end with this.
“I’m feeling really desperate about it. We deserve to be compensated for all the stress and lost lunch breaks.
“We’re getting through this because we have each other but I worry that it could happen to someone vulnerable and alone.”
Retired cleaner Katie added: “I’m just really angry that we’re being ignored.
“They don’t seem to care about the impact on someone’s mental state. We have to watch every penny.
“I just hope and pray that government and big corporations realise soon that they need people like us or everything will fold eventually.”
British Gas said: “We’re very sorry about this mistake, we’ve confirmed to Mrs Coyne that the bill was clearly incorrect.
“She wasn’t charged, we cancelled the bill on the same day and took no payment. We will send her an updated bill shortly.”
