Utilities

In the UK mains gas and electric are supplied by the National Grid and cannot be cut-off. The National Grid have a contract with the government and they will not breach that contract.  This has been confirmed by OFGEM 

The privatisation of the utilities by the Thatcher government was fundamentally unlawful; these are natural assets that belong to us all and were provided free of charge until the second world war provided an excuse to ration their supply.  The government is supposed to work for us and to look after our resources but the sale of these national assets to private  companies was just one of the catalogue of  crimes committed against the people by the so called 'ruling classes'. 

What we now have is a farrago of private companies carving up an imaginary market to create an illusion that they are energy providers, when the reality is that they are simply credit brokers, who bill you for credit that you haven't agreed to.  The truth is that 'you' owe nothing to these organisations.  They have not provided an agreement disclosing their status as licenced credit brokers (nor indeed any agreement at all in most cases) yet have succeeded in convincing people that they own and supply the power that comes into your home.  But all they are in reality is a billing company. 

A billing company cannot cut off your electric, gas, or water without court action because they don’t supply it.  The proof is contained in the  Rights of Entry (Gas and Electricity Boards) Act 1954: Chapter 21 2 and 2 Eliz 2: Section 1:1 a (which confirms that consent is required) and Section 2 1, which states that a Justice of Peace must have considered any sworn written evidence before issuing a warrant. Section 2 1 (1 a) confirms that admission to your home may may only be applied for by the electricity operator (which we have confirmed by Ofgem as National Grid solely).

If you have a smart energy meter in your home the billing company could potentially disconnect your supply remotely without needing to access the meter. You can ask the billing company to remove the smart meter and fit an analogue meter. The gas and electricity meter is not owned by the billing company; they only have the serial number on record, so you can pay an electrician to remove the smart meter and have your own analogue meter fitted. The merits of taking such action are a subject of debate; if the billing company can't prove they own the meter, why would you need to change it?  One argument against this view is that they are a health hazard and create radiation, so that is one approach you might wish to use.

Another counter-argument is that if you are not using the meters they have a record of, they cannot apply to the court for a warrant, as it is your property and no longer one they might presume to have a claim on. The second 'their' meter is removed, they’ll see you’re not using them as a third party so that will stop any contract you have with them, regardless of any other lawful impediment (as above).

Another factor that may be relevant is that under the provisions of the Electricity Act 1989 Chapter 29 Schedule 6 2 (2), if the alleged account remains in dispute e.g. you have served notice and have an unrebutted affidavit, then you are likley to be in a position where the energy broker has tacitly agreed that they are not the operator providing electricity, but simply a credit broker attempting to charge for credit without a signed agreement, and thus have no valid claim, no contract and that you therefore have no obligation to pay anything to this company.

Energy and water companies provide metering and billing services and are committing fraud if they do not have a contract with the customer signed by an authorised signatory on behalf of the company. This is covered by section 44 of the Companies Act 2006.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/46/section/44

 Section 4(2) of the Fraud Act 2006 covers fraud by abuse of position when the billing company deliberately omits the authorised signature from the contract. They cannot legally sign it because they don’t supply the water/electricity/gas so they cannot make a contract with you.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/35/section/4

What process should I use? 

There are many different processes, one isn’t necessarily better than another. It is down to you to do the research, read up on all the options, and then decide which process is best for your situation.

You can start by continuing to pay your bills, but send a Data Subject Access Request to each billing company and then carry on paying until you get them to cancel your account.  Or you could simply ask them for proof of your obligation to pay for energy that they don't supply. 

Another option is to simply cancel your direct debit and return their correspondence unopened. Remember they can't lawfully disconnect you, but that may not stop them trying.  Eventually, they may send somebody to knock on your door, but if you either don't answer or don't tell them who you are, their options become much more restricted.  

As mentioned above, all these so called energy providers are credit brokers licensed under the Consumer Credit Act 1974, although they are reluctant to admit this. 

Under the Consumer Credit act 1974, Chapter 39, Part V, section 61; a signed credit agreement has to be signed by both parties.  (S61: Signing of agreement. 1. A regulated agreement is not properly executed unless- 

a) A document in the prescribed form itself containing all the prescribed terms and conforming to regulations under section 60(1) is signed in the prescribed manner both by the debtor or hirer and by or on behalf of the creditor or owner. 

b) The document embodies all the terms of the agreement, other than implied terms.

c) The document is, when presented or sent to the debtor or hirer for signature, in such a state that all its terms are readily legible).  

If you haven't been provided with such an agreement, the energy company has no valid contract with you. 

For those who aren't looking for a simple solution but prefer to use the full process of the law, you can consider Magna Carta, Article 61 and follow this Notice process: https://www.practicallawfuldissent.com/file-share/cb306190-3649-4199-9b44-13d5c5d4252a