Gas Firms Fined £8m for Delays in Emergency Leak Responses
Three gas distribution companies have been hit with £8 million in fines after failing to respond quickly enough to gas leak emergencies — a lapse that energy regulator Ofgem warned may have put the public at “serious risk.”
Cadent Gas, Scotland Gas Networks (SGN Scotland), and Southern Gas Networks (SGN Southern) all admitted falling short of emergency callout targets between 2022 and 2023. Under the rules, gas companies must respond to suspected leaks within one to two hours in at least 97% of cases.
The penalties follow an investigation launched after the companies self-reported the failures. The largest fine, £5.8 million, was handed to SGN Southern, while Cadent was fined £1.5 million and SGN Scotland £700,000.
The funds will go into Ofgem’s voluntary redress scheme, which supports projects aimed at helping vulnerable energy consumers across the UK.
Cathryn Scott, Ofgem’s director of market oversight and enforcement, said the consequences of delayed responses could be severe:
“The potential risk to households and businesses if gas leaks aren’t investigated quickly is significant, so it’s right that the companies involved have acknowledged the seriousness of missing these targets.”
She added that the companies had since taken steps to improve:
“We’re confident they’ve strengthened their systems and processes, and they’ve demonstrated this by meeting their targets consistently since the breach.”
