A WIDOW asked The Sun’s Squeeze Team for help after British Gas tried to hike her energy bills by £1,535 a year when she told them of her husband’s death.
Retired medical secretary Lindy Higham, 72, said her late husband signed up to a new tariff with British Gas last June, when he knew he only had a few months left to live.
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Her husband, Anthony, who was 73, had been diagnosed with a brain tumour.
Knowing his condition was terminal, he tried to do everything in his power to sort out his affairs before he died.
A former Navy commander, Anthony had even won an award for his bravery from the Royal Humane Society in 2013 after helping to pull three people from a blazing car.
In a bid to protect Lindy from rising costs, he called and fixed the couple’s electricity tariff for two years with British Gas.
But after Anthony’s death last November, Lindy called the energy company to let them know and get the contract transferred into her name.
She was told that she’d have to move onto a new tariff which was £1,535 a year more expensive.
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Despite explaining her situation, she was told that she could not stay on the fixed tariff her husband had secured for her. Instead she would have to take one of the current offers, which would push her annual bills from around £3,947 to £5,482.
‘Shabby way to treat a vulnerable customer’
“I felt like it was penalising me for being widowed,” she said.
“The contract as I see it was for our house and should just be changed in name only.
“My husband was trying to look after me and would have been furious with this very profitable company for behaving in such an unreasonable and unfeeling way.
“It is a very shabby way to treat a vulnerable customer.”
Luckily, when The Squeeze Team intervened, British Gas was quick to back down and offer its apologies.
If you need help resolving a money problem, email us at [email protected].
After we stepped in, British Gas allowed Lindy to go back onto the rate that it originally promised her husband.
She said: “I’m very grateful to the Squeeze Team for taking up my case and relieved that British Gas has agreed to honour the contract taken out by my husband.
“But I’m weary from having had to fight for this as other people might not have bothered.
“I do hope it encourages other people to push back if they are being treated unfairly.”
A British Gas spokesperson said: “We understand this is a really difficult time for Mrs Higham and we appreciate the very last thing she wants to do is talk to us about energy contracts.
“We’re glad we’ve been able to resolve this issue for her today and she is pleased we’re honouring the contract.”
More from the Squeeze Team…
Last week, The Sun’s Squeeze Team helped Martin Cardon who was told to pay back £1,250 after crooks made a Universal Credit claim in his name.
And the team heard from care worker Rebecca Sarah who has been skipping meals to pay her energy bills.
Plus our Squeeze Team pensions expert Romi Savova of PensionBee explained how you could build up a retirement fund worth £330,000 for the price of a daily coffee.
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