A vulnerable woman was left unable to use her essential at-home medical equipment for hours due to issues with her prepayment meter, her daughter has claimed. 

Sarah’s* daughter, Marie* told the Recorder her mother needs to use her nebuliser every two to three hours as she suffers from asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). 

On December 15, British Gas installed a prepayment meter in Sarah's Romford home, as they were moving her off the direct debit plan she was previously on.  

According to Marie, her mother was moved because she had racked up a debt of around £1,600, despite paying the same figure every month. 

She said her mother, in her 50s, had told British Gas she did not want to be put on a prepayment scheme due to her vulnerable status, though she was moved regardless. 

A British Gas spokesperson however said Sarah agreed to have a prepayment meter installed, due to the build-up of debt which occurred as a result of her increasing energy usage. 

On December 19, Marie said her mother was due to get an x-ray in the morning, having not been feeling well, before returning home. 

By mid-afternoon, Marie said she stopped by to check she was okay. When she got there, she claimed there was no power in the house as her mother could not work her meter, meaning she was unable to use her nebuliser. 

Romford Recorder: Sarah needs to use her nebuliser every two-to-three hours due to suffering from asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)Sarah needs to use her nebuliser every two-to-three hours due to suffering from asthma and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) (Image: Supplied)

Marie claimed she was on the phone to British Gas from 3.30pm to try and get an engineer round, though was only able to speak to someone at around 8.30pm. 

An engineer arrived at roughly 12.30am the next morning, though by this stage, she said her mother was “so breathless she couldn’t even drive”. 

The engineer ended up fitting a new meter, with Marie saying they told her the one previously installed was not able to be topped up. 

“They are just putting these people on smart meters but no-one knows how to use them,” she said. 

She said her mother was unwell following the experience, adding: “She was really, really bad. She had no oxygen in her body, pretty much.” 

A spokesperson at British Gas said: “We agreed with Sarah to change her energy meter to a prepayment option when she was unable to keep up with her bills. After reviewing her account however it’s clear we didn’t set her direct debit payments high enough to cover her energy usage. We are sorry we didn’t act on this sooner.  

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“We are reviewing her account and will be in touch to apologise and discuss how we can help her going forward.” 

Concerns have been raised nationally about the installation of prepayment meters. The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Fuel Poverty and Energy Efficiency recently told i the government must “act urgently” to prevent new prepayment meter installations over the winter. 

*Both names have been changed as the mother and daughter wished to remain anonymous.