A Stornoway resident who sued British Gas for allegedly forcing him to stay on an expensive tariff has lost his court battle.
Shonnie Macritchie claimed for £1477, the sum he would have saved if not apparently blocked from switching to its much cheaper white label Sainsbury’s Energy scheme.
Mr Macritchie, of the town’s County Hotel, said he telephoned the company’s call
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Giving evidence at Stornoway Sheriff Court, he recalled the firm “clearly stated” that Stornoway was excluded from the lower price offer despite it being promoted as a money saving deal on bills.
Fighting his case was Derek McPherson who led a campaign to stop alleged discrimination against islanders who receive propane gas piped from the Stornoway gasworks to their homes. The fuel is shipped in by sea tanker and stored on a site on the edge of town before being piped to houses.
Mr McPherson who runs the Fearnlea Guesthouse on Matheson Road claimed British Gas imposed a costly “Stornoway” tariff to its 1,500 customers in the town.
Now, some people were “attempting to get money we were cheated out of,” he said.
The company controlled a local monopoly and told customers “the high cost” of transporting gas to Stornoway thwarted other suppliers, said Mr McPherson.
Derek McPherson told Sheriff Chris Dickson that Mr Macritchie’s secretary also made a phone call seeking information about the Sainsbury offer.
In court, Catherine White, senior customer manager with British Gas, insisted a recording
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In any case, the Sainsbury offer was a dual fuel tariff so people had to also switch their electricity supplier as well as set up direct debit payments and “not everybody wants to do that,“ she said.
Neither did Mr Macritchie take up the deal on British Gas’ suggestion in 2017, she added.
Mr McPherson said the “best way” for the utility to dispose of the problem “is to get rid of the recording,” a suggestion denied by Ms White.
Richard Burnell, former investigations manager with British Gas, conceded “inaccurate” information was given about the lack of competition over the lStornoway piped propane supply.
He insisted the firm followed the rules in force at the time over advising people about alternative deals.
There was no obligation to tell customers about non-
Delivering his verdict, Sheriff Chris Dickson stressed the “law should always protect the consumer.”
However, the “onus here is on the claimant to prove his case.”
He highlighted the “key issue” was the March 2016 phone call.
The sheriff found that Mr Macritchie’s secretary was “given correct information regarding the cheapest tariff at the time the call was made.“
The businessman was ordered to pay £500 expenses to British Gas for lawyer fees and the cost of flights and hotel accommodation for witnesses from London.
Stornoway resident loses gas tariff court case
13 January 2019