Family freezing after being left with no gas

SHIVERING . . . Sharon Rhodes with her daughters Crystal and Chantelle

A MUM has complained after she and her three children were left without hot water for five days.

Derker resident Sharon Rhodes, 40, said her family were sleeping downstairs to keep warm after her gas meter broke.

Miss Rhodes contacted npower to inform them of the problem and claims to have been told on three occasions that an engineer would attend.

A week later, on Thursday morning, no-one had turned out to her home in Fairbourne Walk.

Freezing

An npower spokeswoman confirmed an engineer visited the house on Thursday afternoon to assess the issue and said they are looking into the problem.

Miss Rhodes said: "They said they would come out within 24 hours but they didn't. So I phoned again and they said they would come out in four hours but they never turned up.

"My kids have been freezing all week.

"My daughter has been poorly and these temperatures are not helping at all.

"They are not doing anything."

When Miss Rhodes first contacted npower she said she was asked to put her gas card into the meter but the button had frozen over.

She added: "The meter keeps breaking down and there is lots of water in the machine.

"They have changed the meter about four times since last year.

"They are saying I'm in debt but I have been left without heating or hot water. Every time their meter breaks down I'm losing money. They are still charging me even though I have no gas. They said I owed them £2,000 but now I owe £887."

In a statement npower said: "We are sorry to hear of Sharon's difficulties, we are thoroughly looking into the problem."

The visit was carried out after the Oldham Chronicle called npower about the concerns.