Getting Bord Gáis security deposit refunded

Auric Goldfinger

This isn't a consumer problem as such unless my money goes missing. At this stage I'd put nothing past Bord Gáis and I'm not referring simply to the issue described here. I'd appreciate other people's thoughts on it though.

I became a customer of Bord Gáis and because I didn't want to pay them by direct debit, I was slapped with a €300 security deposit. While I was with them I was a good customer. I always paid my bills in full and on time. I've now switched my business elsewhere and this means that they should be returning my deposit to me. I foolishly assumed that when I left them, that this would automatically happen and that a cheque refunding the money would be dropping through the letterbox in a week or so. Wrong!

When I took a closer look at their FAQ I spotted this little sting in the tail at the end of the paragraph.

How/when do I get my deposit back?

Once your account is closed a final bill will be issued. If it is determined that you have a deposit/ credit owed to you a refund will be sent either by cheque or if you pay by direct debit we will transfer the credit directly into your bank account. Once a refund is requested it should take no more than 10 working days to process.

So in other words, if you don't pick up the phone and ask for a refund they'll hold onto your money. Indefinitely? Is that even legal?

I rang them up and asked where was my money? The girl on the phone told me she'd arrange to have the cheque sent out to me. At this stage, it was nearly 4 weeks after they'd issued me a bill which referred to a refund of the deposit. I also sent an email to make doubly sure they knew I want my deposit refunded. I got a reply which said it'd take up to 15 working days for the cheque to be delivered to me. A pigeon would be faster than that!

I'm shocked that there doesn't appear to be any mechanisms in place in Bord Gáis to automatically refund their former customers any monies owed to them. God knows, they're very quick to send out letters to people when the shoe's on the other foot. I struggle to think of any reason why a former customer would want to leave their security deposit with them? Are they hoping that people will forget or not bother? It's a shameful practice.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

It's the same everywhere. You must request the refund of your security deposit. No big deal.

15 days is a little long but not huge. Many utilities have around 10 days as part of their customer charters.

Lux23

Rivka Clever Sewing wrote: »

It's the same everywhere. You must request the refund of your security deposit. No big deal.

15 days is a little long but not huge. Many utilities have around 10 days as part of their customer charters.

I didn't think Opt in/our procedures like this were allowed, on what legal basis do they get away with it?

Miaireland

I guess that the need to request a security deposit back is hidden somewhere in the terms and conditions when you signed up so legally that would cover them. I guess that the 15 days is because big companies/many government department do not issue cheques everyday but instead all payments out are imputed in a computer and a cheques are printed out every 7/10/14 days.

MOH

Rivka Clever Sewing wrote: »

It's the same everywhere. You must request the refund of your security deposit. No big deal.

15 days is a little long but not huge. Many utilities have around 10 days as part of their customer charters.

How is it "no big deal"? The first two sentences from that FAQ imply it's an automatic process. It's far from clear that they just keep your money unless you request it.