True story from Australia !

[mabutiman 1,569]

 

 

 GAS BILL
Anything managed through bureaucracies!!!.

You will like this! ... And it is a true story!

A man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW, Australia )
received a bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00.

He ignored it and threw it away.
In April he received another bill and threw that one away too.

The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating 
that they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by
return mail.

He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a computer error and
they would take care of it.

The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried
out the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the 
account it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament.

However, when he went to use the gas, it had been cut off.

He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once
again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a bill for
$0.00 stating that payment was now overdue.

Assuming that having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was
yet another mistake, he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as
good as their word and sort the problem out.

The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he
Had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps to
recover the debt.

Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the gas company at their own
game and mailed them a cheque for $0.00. The computer duly processed his
account and returned a statement to the effect that he now owed the gas
company nothing at all.

A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking
Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing
writing cheque for $0.00.

After a lengthy explanation the bank manager replied that the $0..00
cheque had caused their cheque processing software to fail. The bank could
therefore not process ANY cheques they had received from ANY of their
customers that day because the cheque for $0.00 had caused the
computer to crash.

The following month the man received a letter from the gas company
claiming that his cheque had bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 
and unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate 
steps to recover the debt.

At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against
the gas company. It took him nearly two hours to convince the clerks 
at the local courthouse that he was not joking.

They subsequently helped him in the drafting of statements which were
considered substantive evidence of the aggravation and difficulties
he had been forced to endure during this debacle.

The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome
was this:

The gas company was ordered to:

[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or Show cause,
within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher court
for consideration under Company Law.

[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.

[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients whose
cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been processed.

[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and

[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period
March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had
caused their client to suffer.

And all this over $0.00.

Who employs these idiots?

 

[roaddog 219]

I was sure this could only happen in the US of A

[Majorsco 3,400]

Australia is just jealous of the USA so they wanted to top them.

[Jim Sibbick 1,037]

 

 

 

 GAS BILL

Anything managed through bureaucracies!!!.

You will like this! ... And it is a true story!

 

A man living in Kandos (near Mudgee in NSW, Australia )

received a bill for his as yet unused gas line stating that he owed $0.00.

 

He ignored it and threw it away.

In April he received another bill and threw that one away too.

 

The following month the gas company sent him a very nasty note stating 

that they were going to cancel his gas line if he didn't send them $0.00 by

return mail.

 

He called them, talked to them, and they said it was a computer error and

they would take care of it.

 

The following month he decided that it was about time that he tried

out the troublesome gas line figuring that if there was usage on the 

account it would put an end to this ridiculous predicament.

 

However, when he went to use the gas, it had been cut off.

 

He called the gas company who apologised for the computer error once

again and said that they would take care of it. The next day he got a bill for

$0.00 stating that payment was now overdue.

 

Assuming that having spoken to them the previous day the latest bill was

yet another mistake, he ignored it, trusting that the company would be as

good as their word and sort the problem out.

 

The next month he got a bill for $0.00. This bill also stated that he

Had 10 days to pay his account or the company would have to take steps to

recover the debt.

 

Finally, giving in, he thought he would beat the gas company at their own

game and mailed them a cheque for $0.00. The computer duly processed his

account and returned a statement to the effect that he now owed the gas

company nothing at all.

 

A week later, the manager of the Mudgee branch of the Westpac Banking

Corporation called our hapless friend and asked him what he was doing

writing cheque for $0.00.

 

After a lengthy explanation the bank manager replied that the $0..00

cheque had caused their cheque processing software to fail. The bank could

therefore not process ANY cheques they had received from ANY of their

customers that day because the cheque for $0.00 had caused the

computer to crash.

 

The following month the man received a letter from the gas company

claiming that his cheque had bounced and that he now owed them $0.00 

and unless he sent a cheque by return mail they would take immediate 

steps to recover the debt.

 

At this point, the man decided to file a debt harassment claim against

the gas company. It took him nearly two hours to convince the clerks 

at the local courthouse that he was not joking.

 

They subsequently helped him in the drafting of statements which were

considered substantive evidence of the aggravation and difficulties

he had been forced to endure during this debacle.

 

The matter was heard in the Magistrate's Court in Mudgee and the outcome

was this:

 

The gas company was ordered to:

 

[1] Immediately rectify their computerised accounts system or Show cause,

within 10 days, why the matter should not be referred to a higher court

for consideration under Company Law.

 

[2] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by the man.

 

[3] Pay the bank dishonour fees incurred by all the Westpac clients whose

cheques had been bounced on the day our friend's had been processed.

 

[4] Pay the claimant's court costs; and

 

[5] Pay the claimant a total of $1500 per month for the 5 month period

March to July inclusive as compensation for the aggravation they had

caused their client to suffer.

 

And all this over $0.00.

 

Who employs these idiots?

 

Bull shit!

 

Where is your proof?

 

I worked for the Westpac bank for nearly 24 years and anything processed for zero would not cause a computer break down. When I worked for them, anyway.

[Davaoeno 37,485]

Snopes says:   It's great fiction. But it ain't reality. 

Read more at http://www.snopes.com/business/bank/zero.asp#A1jTL8gqT8lBhUXj.99

[jtmwatchbiz 31,414]

no sense in getting all upset conducting online investigations and demanding proof of the story. anyone online in this forum this early in the morning including myself are obviously bored and a fun story in "off topic" may just hit the spot. now if this was in the latest news and world events section that would be different

[broden 57,115]

i enjoyed the story

true or not 

 

but i do wonder how snopes became the only universal source of unassailable truth

[Davaoeno 37,485]

i enjoyed the story

true or not 

 

but i do wonder how snopes became the only universal source of unassailable truth

 

maybe because they seem to have little competition.   At least in the west . Universal?  i have no knowledge about that 

[broden 57,115]

 

 

Universal?  i have no knowledge about that 

 

have you checked with snopes?

[Davaoeno 37,485]

have you checked with snopes?

 

have you checked with snopes?

 

yes - they say on their site that they are never wrong , never have a hidden agenda, never try to manipulate their readers,  and run their site as a zero percent profit charity !!   So of course they are always right !!

Edited December 5, 2013 by Davaoeno

[broden 57,115]

 

 

yes - they say on their site that they are never wrong , never have a hidden agenda, never try to manipulate their readers,  and run their site as a zero percent profit charity !! 

 

you better snopes that too

[Davaoeno 37,485]

you better snopes that too

       

[broden 57,115]

       

snopes not wikipedia

[T.S. 783]

I remember receiving that as a mass forwarded email in the 90's.

[Art 6,548]

I have had bills from optus for $0.00 without the drama in the story and also for $0.50c with a comment no need to pay the bill for that small amount.  It is a worry considering all the legal hassles one could be exposed to for non payment of a bill.   It may not be a true story but for me the moral is do we really want our world run by computers?   You can't reason, fine or imprison a computer you can only impound the physical not the electronic cyberspace. we are all doomed.