Hi,

I live in Hemel Hempstead and had a Daikin Altherma 3 monobloc 9kW (EDLA09DA3V3) unit installed by Octopus in June, so this is our first gas-free winter. 

We also have 4kW PV and a Zappi and an Eddi, bought before the heat pump. I’m still undecided about battery storage and ROI. I plan to monitor heat pump this winter and do some more maths next year.

Jonathan 

Hi @squarepeg77 and welcome.

Out of interest, how much did it cost you to have the gas supply removed from the house?

Did the Gas Network Operator merely cap it at the meter box?
Or did they require that it was terminated 'in the road' outside the boundary of your property?

Octopus removed the meter and capped the gas supply where the meter was previously located. This was done as part of the heat pump installation and no separate cost was incurred. 

@transparent Yes squarepeg, I would be interested to know too; ours was capped just outside where the meter box had been before it disintegrated into shards of glass fibre or whatever is is made with. The Octopus Energy engineer capped both the supply pipe and the pipe that enters our property - linking the two with an earth bond. As yet, no capping-off in the road has been carried out and I suspect that SGN would require a ‘consideration’ to do the work if I were to request this. Regards, Toodles.

Our gas meter was in the garage, so we’re left with a capped gas pipe there. I’m fine with that, and assume Octopus know what they are doing.

And I don’t really want my drive digging up 😀

When I first contacted OE about the possibility of having the gas meter removed, their website gave the guidance that it was a free service (but that this may have to be reviewed at some future date). When I finally had the ASHP installed and no longer needed any gas, I asked again and was given conflicting information by two different department; however when I explained to the department that had informed me that there would be a charge that I had been told there would be no charge, several more emails resulted in a date to remove the meter free of any charge. Not having to pay standing charges for the meter is also very handy! Regards, Toodles.

Personally I'd consider playing the ignorance card and asking your local gas distribution network why they still have a gassed up pipe on your property when you no longer have an active MPRN number and/or meter for the service given they have no easement etc to otherwise have said pipe on your property .... you have currently done the correct thing by asking your supplier to remove the meter, arguably they should have got the gas transporter to cap the service at the main and purge down.

Alternatively, nominally, the gas transporter should periodically review disconnections / removal of MPRN's and risk assess maintaining a service that no longer feeds a customer. However in practice I'm aware this doesn't always bare fruits...

I suspect if you were to request the gas meter was reinstated that the gas transporter would not entertain recommissioning that service and would insist on a new connection to their main....

@squarepeg77 or, depending on how the service enters the garage I might consider asking if it counted as built over .... (but only if the garage and service arrangements predate your purchase of your house - you wouldnt want to be accused of creating the built over)

Posted by: @Anonymous

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I don’t really want my drive digging up

I doubt that would be proposed.

The Gas Transporter isn't interested in retrieving a piece of polyethylene pipe.
But they shouldn't have a 'live' pipe on private property when there's no longer an active supply.

Xoserve is the national database of gas meters.
It's independent of any domestic supplier.

When Octopus removed the gas meter itself, they would've sent a Notification to Xoserve which includes the MPRN and the meter reading.
The MPRN is the gas meter number assigned to that location.

Those details are used for a number of actions within the regulatory framework based on the Gas Act.

The Supplier (Octopus) produces your Final Bill, which should be marked as such.

Xoserve check the final reading against historic usage, and the MPRN against the street address.
A confidential process takes place to ensure that

• Octopus was permitted to have removed the meter
• The consumer was indeed a customer of Octopus
• The MPRN matches the address
• There are no outstanding amounts due for that meter (possibly from a previous occupant)
• That the operation isn't part of any criminal action, such as using the Final Bill in pursuit of ID Fraud
• If it was a Smart Meter, that DCC confirms the change of status and has removed the gas meter serial number from the list to which Service Requests can be sent

The whole process is much more complex than we would imagine.
This systems works well, both in terms of crime prevention and keeping the public safe.

Something seems to have gone wrong in this case because Xoserve should have sent a Notification to the Gas Transporter for that region to ensure they know there is a 'live' pipe with only a service-valve and the end-cap on it.

I would suggest that @squarepeg77 checks the Xoserve database for the address by using the Find My Supplier website.
That's free and won't raise any alarms!

Wow - so much interest in a gas pipe on a renewable heating forum 🤣

Thanks for the comments and advice. 
I’ve entered my address into the Xoserve website and it lists Octopus as my supplier. 

What now? Contact Octopus? 

Over its time in existence, this forum has gathered a wider body of expertise regarding energy matters than its original title suggests!

Xoserve shouldn't be reporting that your gas is supplied by anyone.
So this tells us that they haven't been properly notified.
Their database still has an active MPRN allocated to your address, against which bills can be raised.

• Was it an Octopus employee who decommissioned and removed your gas meter, or a contractor working for them?
• Did they tell you the reading when it was removed?
• Did you see them place the meter in a plastic bag, seal it and take it away?

Before you contact Octopus, check whether they've yet supplied you with a gas bill which is actually headed "Final Bill".

@transparent 

• Was it an Octopus employee who decommissioned and removed your gas meter, or a contractor working for them?
  • The Octopus-uniformed electrician who was "gas safe" removed the meter
• Did they tell you the reading when it was removed?
  • No. It was a smart meter.
• Did you see them place the meter in a plastic bag, seal it and take it away?
  • No, I didn't watch the process.

My gas bills from Octopus stop on the day the heat pump was removed, but I don't see any "final bill" notification. It was a combined bill for gas and electricity; now it's just electricity. So from the billing angle, I'm satisfied.