Overcharged gas fees to be refunded in Chengdu

The market supervision administration of Chengdu, Sichuan province, issued a notice on Saturday about the investigation and verification of citizen-reported gas related problems, revealing that overcharged gas fees will be fully refunded by relevant gas enterprises.

From April 1 to 19, the city's 12345 citizen service hotline has received a total of 1,996 complaints regarding gas-related problems, with additional concerns about gas metering, charges and service quality. Among them, 1,189 cases have been processed while the remaining 807 cases are under urgent review, according to the notice.

The investigation has uncovered several issues within the gas enterprises, including the unauthorized estimation of gas usage, flaws in the billing collection system, irregular billing cycles and poor responsiveness to public demands.

As of the current investigation, no evidence has been found regarding gas metering and quality, gas manipulation through remote control to alter metering or gas quality problems, according to the notice.

The notice said that the ongoing investigation in Chengdu has seen joint investigation teams deployed to Chengdu Gas Group and other gas companies to thoroughly examine the identified problems and initiate a concentrated rectification campaign.

The authorities have pledged to take legal and disciplinary action against any confirmed illegal behavior and individuals responsible. Relevant gas enterprises shall be obliged to fully refund any overcharged gas fees.