For the past two years I have had numerous conversations with PG&E representatives and supervisors regarding the fact that my electric bills are more than double of other residents in the same living space.
My husband and I rent a condo approximately 875 sq. ft (1bd/1bath) and our bills range between $150.00 and $200.00. There are only two of us living in our condo. I would like to share the fact that we are very frugal in terms of how we use energy. We cook once a day, wash three to five loads of laundry weekly and shower once a day. We literally take turns standing by the wall heater at night to warm our back sides and then run to our bedroom and jump in the bed. We have no air conditioning and run no fans.
At our request and concerns for high energy bills, the condo owner recently replaced the refrigerator, the oven/stove and the water heater with energy star appliances. Nevertheless, our PG&E bills continue to climb. Two years ago, I filed a complaint with the utility board to no benefit in terms of determining what causes our PG&E bill to be high.
When I call customer service, I am told I need to be educated on how I could better use energy and even with our drastic changes; we are told that our usage is consistently high. My last letter from Nichole Jordan, Director of Contact Center Operations, (dated July 14th) stated they tried to contact me but I did not return their calls. I was in communications the very same week with Gina Sutton to make arrangements for an Energy Specialist to visit my home. It seems that the right hand does not know what the left hand is doing.
I am filing suit against PG&E because it is my belief that one of two possibilities exist:
1) That additional wires are connected to our unit and we are paying for one or more unit’s usage
2) That the PG&E is over collecting monies for units based on faulty equipment
After repeated requests to visit my condo, PG&E refuses to check the cause of such possibilities. After much research, I have found that in order for us to use as much electricity as charged that we would have to be living in a single attached home nearly 3 times our size. The average PG&E bill for a space our size ranges from $60.00 to $75.00.
Over the past 6 years, I estimate nearly $5,400.00 was over charged in PG&E bills to my husband and I. Initially, we were on a balanced payment plan which ranged from $120.00-$160.00. I did not question it because I believed our bill was balanced for the winter months. Once our bill reached $213.00 for the balanced plan, I began research with the outcome pointing to the fact that we had been paying nearly $130.00 over and above other consumers on a monthly basis. On July 25th, PG&E Energy Specialist- Linda Minkle Badge # 23973 inspected our home and quickly stated something is wrong and agreed things are not adding up. Ms Minkle’s visit was to discuss how to save energy not to investigate why our bills were too high. She saw nothing in our condo that would equal what we have been and are currently being charged. So, are the smart meters really smart? Or is PG&E simply over charging customers?
Last but not least, how many other customers are being over charged by PG&E because they refuse to take a position when things don’t add up? PG&E truly needs complete audit of all their equipment and facilities. As a San Bruno resident within 4 blocks of the tragic explosion, I feel that I am paying for their inexcusable mistakes.
Thank you in advance for your consideration,
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