Faulty pre-payment meter caused devastating boiler leak – how do I get compensation?

Q) I WAS left without gas or electricity for weeks because of my faulty pre-payment meter.

It caused a huge boiler leak, which led to £3,500 worth of damage. Can you help me get compensation?

Abbey Jones, Coventry

A) YOUR faulty meter should have been fixed within hours.

When you came back to a cold and dark flat in December, you realised your supply had been cut off and rang Scottish Power.

But you couldn’t get through and it was two days before you managed to speak to anyone on its customer service team.

It said it would send an engineer, but getting an appointment scheduled proved to be a nightmare.

You chased the firm for weeks to get this booked in and in the meantime you and your two children Ethan, ten, and Evie, six, moved in with your mum.

With the fridge and freezer disconnected, you had to throw away hundreds of pounds worth of food.

It wasn’t until January 3 that an engineer finally fixed your meter and power supply. Ofgem says energy firms should fix customers’ supply issues within three hours of them being cut off. I’m astounded it took so long for Scottish Power to get your supply back on.

Four days after you were reconnected there was a leak from your boiler. Water was coming through your ceiling – soaking your valuables and ruining your mattress, TV and furniture. It caused £3,500 worth of damage.

You called out an engineer, who said the leak had been caused by the fact your boiler was cut off from the power supply. You don’t have home contents insurance, which usually covers situations like these .

When I went to Scottish Power, it offered £250 compensation, plus a gesture of goodwill for the length of time you were left without power.

It also offered £500 for the leakage damage. Your case shows why home contents cover is so important.