Metering the Bill

Does anyone get the feeling that their electric company doesn't actually check the meter every month?

I don't think that PSNH checks our meter every month because we get some really wacked out bills every third or fourth month. Take December, our electric bill jumped 50% - from $62 to $94. Now, December wasn't overly cold, so the heater didn't run a lot. We used the wood stove as we normally do; during the evenings and on the weekends. Maybe some of that could be explained because I was home during Christmas week, so lights were on more than usual, but that would be a lot of lights (and since we don't decorate for the holiday, extremely unlikely).

I even commented to WS when I saw the bill that once again they hadn't come out but just guestimated that our bill would go up a bunch because of the holidays.

January and cold weather came around so the heater is running more (a lot more). One would reasonably expect our electric bill to at least be more than it was in November ($62). However, after opening the bill last night, I found that we apparently used less electricity than we have usec in the preceding 12 months and the bill was only $60. From this is it reasonable to conclude that the humidifier that ran most of January (but not in December) actually pumps electricity back into the power grid?

I'm guessing that the meter reader actually came this month and that is the reason for the abnormally low bill. Next month, should they actually come out, I would expect more around $75 - 80. However, they probably won't come around until April, where I will get a catch -up bill (and then artificially high bills for a month or two until they come back out). Then, when hot weather arrives (July or so), the bill will jump again because they expect us to use air conditioning. Then, when they read the meter, it will go really low again as they discover that we don't.

Did I mention that the bill also contained a "fact sheet" that explained why electric bills might jump for just a month? None of the "reasons" applied to us. Couple that with the really low bill we just got, and it just wasn't convincing.

At least it evens out in the long run.

Comments

[Jay]

It's standard practice not to check them every month. They estimate the in betweens and if they're wrong the bill jumps or drops dramatically in the months when they do check.

I learned this from the electric company in 1982 when I left my first apartment. I owned it for the month of July but actually moved out the first week of the month. The final electric bill was absurd, with nothing but the refrigerator going (didn't know it was standard practice to empty it and turn it off), and the few full days there and a visit or two later in the month when I used lights briefly. The bill should have been no more than half normal.

I've seen regular evidence of the practice ever since.

[Cop Car]

I don't know what our power company does now (HH sees the utility bills); but, at least some power companies indicate when a bill is for an estimated reading. (My bills would have "est" beside the reading.) I thought that "everyone" did that. Obviously not!

[buffy]

In the Chicago area, they indicate on the bill when the usage is estimated. I think ComEd comes every other month. Nicor Gas sends someone every month during the winter, but in the warmer months when there's less gas used, they bill us every other month, so I'd assume they are reading less as well.

[bogie]

Our bill specifically states "Your meter is scheduleed to be read each month. This statement shows present and previous meter readings . . . " then "An estimated bill is rendered when PSNH is unable to read your meter." then "Examine your previous bills to see if they say 'estimated'."

There has never been an indication when the bill is estimated although they are supposed to.

Additionally, they encourage us to look at the meter usage graph and figure out where we can save energy. If the bill is estimated so much, there is absolutely no value in the graph as it doesn't tell me a thing.