ELK GROVE, Calif. — PG&E is apologizing to customers after a 10 On Your Side investigation revealed a problem with its meters, leaving some customers with extremely high bills. It turned out PG&E is actually replacing millions of those meters.
The issue came to light with Elk Grove customer Greg Logoteta, who got a PG&E bill for $857.91. He told ABC10 at the time a PG&E representative said there a problem with his meter.
"She said well basically, 'There was a problem with your meter and it wasn't transferring the correct data for October, November, and December. And so we have adjusted your bill up to make up for the shortfall,'" Logoteta told ABC10.
ABC10 went to PG&E for answers and Logoteta was cleared of having to pay the $857 bill, but he wasn't the only one who experienced an issue with PG&E. 10 On Your Side received many emails suggesting this wasn't an isolated issue.
Richard and Kathryn, from Lincoln, told ABC10 the same thing happened to them. They got a bill for almost $1,000.
A viewer named Jonathan says he also had the same issue after receiving a bill for $950.
Bryan, a viewer from Sacramento, says they got a surprise bill of a little over $1,000 and says PG&E gave them a similar reason... an issue with the meter.
"PG&E laughed all the way to the bank when they installed those fancy dancy meters. Now, they’re going out and they are taking their sweet time to go and fix them, and that’s just wrong. That needs to change,” said Loretta Lynch, former president of the California Public Utilities Commission. “They get to do whatever they want, and then they essentially get to charge us whatever they want, whenever they want, however they want. That’s not fair, and it should stop."
There’s a reason the problem seems so widespread. It turns out many SmartMeters have dead batteries. As a matter of fact, PG&E said, just last year, they started the process of replacing 3 million meters as they reach the end of their battery life.
“PG&E sends more than 99% of bills out on time, but there are situations where bills can be delayed or estimated. We apologize for any inconvenience to customers. While we resolve the situation, we won’t interrupt customer’s service,” said PG&E spokesperson Paul Moreno in a voicemail to ABC10.
As far as what to look for, always read your statements closely. If it includes a message saying it was an estimated bill, then call PG&E immediately.
PG&E says, in the event a SmartMeter stops communicating, they may estimate the meter reading based on the customer's past usage. When this happens, customers are made aware with a note on their bill.
When they replace the SmartMeter, the analog reading is recorded and the customer is issued an updated bill accurately reflecting their real usage. The new bill will include a credit if actual usage is lower than the estimated amount, ensuring the customer is made whole.
It can sometimes be months later, which is why Lynch says customers should fight back.
“In any other business, the burden would be on the service provider to fix it or eat it, but not PG&E. So what we need to do really? Each and every person who pays a PG&E bill needs to call their legislator, and say 'Hey, make the PUC change the rules, so that if PG&E’s equipment malfunctions, it’s on PG&E and not the customer.' If you hadn’t shone a light on this, PG&E would have done nothing but sit on their piles of profits while their customers continued to pay erroneously.”
PG&E says they understand these larger than normal bills can be a challenge for customers.
They said, “We (PG&E) do not 'back bill' for more than four billing cycles if we underbilled. If we overbilled, we will make the customer whole for up to three years.”
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A full statement from PG&E is available below.
More than 99 percent of the energy bills we send to customers are on time and accurately reflect their usage and charges. We are always working to improve our processes so we can continue to meet customer expectations in this area.
When unforeseen challenges impact our ability to provide timely and/or accurate energy bills to a customer, we always go above and beyond to work with that individual customer to resolve any issue and limit any inconvenience to them. While we work with a customer to investigate and resolve a billing inquiry, they can rest assured knowing that their service will not be interrupted and they will always be made whole.
Gas Meters and SmartMeter Technology
PG&E’s gas meters are equipped with SmartMeter modules, a technology that allows the meter to communicate customer usage data to PG&E. This technology has helped to modernize our billing practices and provide timely information. If there is ever an issue with the SmartMeter module or how it communicates, analog dials on the gas meter provide a backup account of usage and an extra layer of protection for customers.
The SmartMeter module is powered by a battery, and the module must be replaced when the battery expires. We have workplans to replace all modules before their batteries stop working, but like all batteries it can be difficult to predict when that will happen. A module can also stop communicating for other reasons, such as physical damage.
In the event that a SmartMeter stops communicating, PG&E may estimate the meter reading based on the customer’s past usage trends. When this happens, customers are made aware with a note on their bill (see attached sample gas bill with estimating message). When we send a member of our team to investigate and replace the SmartMeter module (if needed), the analog reading on the meter is recorded and the customer is issued an updated bill that accurately reflects their real usage. This true-up bill will include a credit if actual usage is lower than the estimated amount, ensuring that the customer is made whole.
If a customer’s gas bill is delayed rather than estimated, the customer will receive a letter that explains the process and alerts them that their bill will be “trued-up” based on the analog reading after the new SmartMeter module is installed. The amount customers pay at the end of the day will reflect their usage. Understanding that larger-than-normal bills can present challenges for some customers, we do not “back bill” for more than four billing cycles if we underbilled. If we overbilled, we will make the customer whole for up to three years.
If at any time customers have questions about their bills, they can call PG&E at 800-PGE-5000.
