A mum and her three young children have been forced to go seven weeks without heating due to an error by the energy company. Shanice Palmer called her supplier Ovo when she noticed an error message on her gas meter that meant she was unable to turn the heating on.
Shanice's smart gas meter was replaced by a traditional meter - however Ovo never registered the change on their system, meaning she was sent a pay-as-you-go card for the wrong type of meter. She contacted the energy provider to try and fix the issue "over 20 times" and says the company promised to send out an engineer on roughly 15 occasions, Wales Online reports .
With no way of topping up her meter, Shanice had to go without any gas supply to her home near Abderdare for several weeks. She tried to buy her own card from the shop, but it wasn't compatible with the meter either.
She said: "I’m just losing my mind. I’ve had to come to my mam’s house, because it’s so cold in the house. I really don’t know what to do now. I’ve got to stay here until it’s sorted, but there’s no room for us here long-term and people are having to double up and share rooms."
Shanice's 11-month-old daughter was already "really ill" with croup, so Shanice didn't want to have her sleeping in a cold house and risk her condition getting worse. The parent says she is also "very, very concerned" for her other children, aged two and five.
Ovo have since confirmed that a mistake was made and the wrong type of card was sent out to Shanice. They have also promised to fix the meter.
A spokesperson said: "We’re very sorry for the issues experienced and can confirm the supply is back on. We’ve offered a goodwill gesture for the inconvenience."
However, Shanice says this "goodwill gesture" - which consisted of £30 for the meter not working and £30 for the problems she has had in getting a new card - is a disgrace. She said: "It's far from enough, with the heaters I'm having to use and with it being so cold. It's been such a tough time."
The company stated that Shanice now has a working card and her gas supply was back on. However, the issue had not been resolved at this point, and an engineer was sent out several hours later on Friday evening.
As of 10pm on Friday, there was another problem, so an engineer had to cap her gas meter - meaning Shanice's house would still be without heating or hot water.
Shanice added: "I'm so angry."
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