A mother of three young children had to go seven weeks without heating due to an error by her supplier. Shanice Palmer phoned her supplier Ovo when there was an error message on her gas meter, but didn't know it would mean she couldn't heat her house for weeks.
Shanice's smart gas meter was swapped out for a traditional meter - but this wasn't updated on Ovo's system, so she was sent a pay-as-you-go card for the wrong type of meter. Shanice said she phoned the supplier to try and get the issue sorted "over 20 times" and claimed the company promised to send an engineer on around 15 of those occasions.
Unable to top up her meter, Shanice was left without any gas supply to her home near Aberdare. She tried buying her own card from a shop, but it didn't work with a meter.
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She explained: "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 not room for us here long-term and people are having to double up and share rooms."
Shanice's 11-month-old daughter already suffers from croup, and is "really ill," so Shanice didn't want to take the risk of keeping her in a cold house. Her other children are two and five years old, and Shanice is "very, very concerned" for them.
After being contacted by WalesOnline, Ovo confirmed that the wrong type of card had been sent out in error and that the meter would be fixed.
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."
This "goodwill gesture" consisted of £30 for the meter not working, and £30 for the problems Shanice had in getting a new card. Shanice 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 was back on supply and had a working card. The issue had not been fixed at this point, but an engineer was sent out several hours later on Friday evening.
However, as of 10pm on Friday, another problem had come up, 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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