My 91-year-old mother has a service contract with British Gas for her gas fire.

The appliance was serviced in August but we have had difficulty lighting it from the ignition system.

I phoned British Gas to ask someone from the company to check out the fire for us and was told the call-out charge for 45 minutes is £97.

I was so taken aback, I asked the person to check again and it was confirmed at £97.

I was sure a mistake had been made so called again and spoke to a different person, who told me the charge would be £107.

I wrote to customer relations, whose answer was: "The charges vary depending on the location of the property."

I have written back to British Gas and asked how the charges are calculated and how it varies in our area.

Like many older people, my mother has limited means and £97 would be out of the question.

-George Oldfield, by email