Dec 12, 2007 9:17 pm US/Pacific
Call Kurtis: The Outrageous PG&E Bill
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) ―
"One month for $427.00," says Gladys.
That was Gladys Frias' August bill; just more than a month after PG&E installed a new "Smart A/C Thermostat" in her home. Her previous month's bill was only $78.00.
"I thought it was a great idea at the time," Gladys explains.
Gladys received a flyer in the mail to participate in the "Smart AC" program, and save.
"I thought save more money, save some energy," she says.
Not in her case, her September bill ran up to $501.52.
"I've never had to pay that amount of money before, ever, in six or seven years," "and as soon as I did a slight change which I thought was going to benefit me, it blew up in my face," Gladys said.
She thinks it's impossible for her to have quadrupled her power bill. Her 900 square foot home is nearly empty – no power hungry electronics or appliances, and she has energy efficient windows.
"I don't have a washer, I don't have a dryer, I don't have a dishwasher," she explains.
She called me to see if I could find out the truth in her billing. We immediately got in ouch with PG&E, and over the past few weeks, it's dramatically stepped-up its efforts to find the source of her skyrocketing bill.
And since the spikes hit during the summer months, the first suspect was the air conditioner.
"That's where it's at."
Gladys says she set it to maintain 78 degrees. PG&E told us that even if Gladys ran the A-C all day, everyday, it would be nearly impossible for her to have used the energy for which she was billed.
Now, weeks later, PG&E's investigation cannot definitely determine a cause for the bulging bill. So, to compensate Gladys, they'll deduct $700 off her next statement.
PG&E says it has more than 6800 customers on the "Smart A-C" program, and has never seen this problem.
If you ever experience a sudden jump in your energy bill, PG&E says call them right away. If the utility doesn't seem to be cooperative, you can file a complaint with the Public Utilities Commission.
(© MMX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Click to enlarge
Stumble It!
Reporting
Comments