There are two issues going on with this complaint. First issue: We sent the customer a letter on 5/12/2017 advising we needed to resolve the issue of not being able to read the meter, due to the touch pad being broken/gone (this our reading device to read the meter). Customer...
contacted us on 5/16/2017 in response to the letter, to set up a time for us to come out and repair the touch paid in order for us to get accurate readings. Order was created for 5/24/2017; this was the date that was convenient for the customer. When our technician arrived his notes indicated the meter is in the pit in the ground and he was able to obtain a reading, therefore he did not install the electronic reader. However he also noted the customer has a dog, this would be reason enough to install an electronic reader. The electronic reader provides us with a way to read the meter without disturbing the dogs or entering through the customer’s gate. On 8/10/2017 customer contacted us again due to receiving a tag indicating we could not read the water meter. The rep explained we need to add the electronic device to read the meter, she apologized that the first technician did not install the meter. The customer agreed this device needed to be installed due to the dogs. Representative advised we would schedule the installation of the electronic reader on 8/16/2017. The customer also requested we replace the stop and waste valve because the handle has been missing since he moved in. The rep advised the owner is responsible for replacing the stop and waste valve. The customer’s girlfriend called us on 8/16/2017 to confirm when we were coming. Due to a high volume of emergency calls that day, it was necessary to reschedule the order. The customer agreed to a Saturday order on 8/26/2017. Customer advised the technician on 8/26/2017 that he wanted the curb box located and marked so he could replace the stop and waste valve. We came out on 8/27/2017 to locate and mark the box, however the technician indicated he was unable to find the box and sent the order over to another area within Citizens to locate the curb box on 8/29/2017. Second issue: Customer called us back on 10/24/2017 to advise storm drains were put in and that a contractor came out and restored the driveway and put it over our curb box(the curb box is where we turn the water on and off at the street). Customer claims a hole was dug next to the driveway by Citizens and he wanted the hole filled. Rep created a case to restore the area. Customer contacted us again on 11/15/2017 regarding the stop and waste valve leak and a property line leak before the meter. Whenever there is a leak before the meter, the customer is not being charged for the water; however the water is being wasted. We give the customer 30 days to repair the leak to avoid interruption of service. We went out on 12/27/2017 to confirm repair for the stop and waste valve was complete, technician confirmed the valve was repaired; however the connection needed to be raised 6 inches. Customer contacted us again on 12/28/2017 disputing that the connection needed to be raised. We sent another technician out on 12/29/2017 and confirmed the pit still needs to be raised. We sent customer a letter on 12/29/2017 stating pit condition needs to be corrected. Our position is the homeowner is responsible for the repairs that he made and for raising the meter pit to code.
I spoke with Mr. [redacted] and explained the billing on the account since the payment of $2,210 was received in September 2014. The account was on budget which paid the budget ahead with the large payment. We discussed the account balance displayed on each bill and how the final balance...
was accrued. The current amount due on the account is $465.93. Mr. [redacted] indicated he understood the balance due now and would discuss with his wife. We printed and sent the bills out to the customer from May 2014 - March 2015.Mr. [redacted] indicated he would contact me with any additional questions.Sincerely,Randy
We received a call from [redacted] on October 14, 2016 asking for service at [redacted]. The service was being turned on for an inspection. Mr. [redacted] asked for temporary service and we informed him we could not turn service on and back off on the same day. We...
indicated we could turn on the water at the meter pit only and then the inspector could turn on at the meter pit to do the inspection. Mr. [redacted] agreed to this. We informed Mr. [redacted] he would need to contact us again when service should be disconnected.Mr. [redacted] called back on October 28, 2016 and was turned off on November 2, 2016. The final bill was for $28.79 which was for .12 units of water (very small amount used) at a cost of $5.65 and sales tax of $0.39 with an additional charge of $22.75 for Sewer. The billing is correct based on the service dates and notification from customer to disconnect. We understand most of the charge is from Sewer charges and will agree to credit the account $11 and split these charges with the customer. This credit will be provided to the customer as a refund check as the bill has been paid in full. Sincerely,Randy
We contacted Ms. [redacted] regarding her account. She was confused on how the budget program worked, thinking that the amount of her budget would pay her actual charges and she felt she had over paid. She was not aware that any actual charges the budget payments did not cover would carry...
over to the next budget year and if the actual charges were less, the credit carries over to the next budget year. This variance can reduce or increase the budget for the following budget year. She was also confused about her sewer charges, thinking that she paid sewer through her property taxes so she was deducting this from her actual charges. In addition she was deducting the water charges and she didn’t understand she now gets a combined bill. She has copies of all her bills which we went over with her. In summary she was only adding up her gas charges for the last year and subtracting all the payments she made in the last year which is why she thought a refund was due. We went over all charges and payment to show that her account balance is correct. She wanted time to go over all the infomation and asked us to follow up with her next week to answser any additional quetions she may have.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me as I see the credit has been applied to my account.
Regards,
[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I was given a different explanation from Citizens Energy Group that the problem was likely due to "dial creep" whereby gas pressure builds and causes the meter to inch up. I don't believe the meter was incorrectly read in May or that it would have only been discovered with the meter read in August. I believe this "dial creep" issue causes customers to be periodically overbilled. I don't have a problem paying for services I use, but I don't believe I used the 1.16 therms of gas I was billed for or that the meter was misread. Citizens has been good about re-checking the meter and sending a representative to determine if there was a leak, but I believe that if there is a "dial creep" error occurring, something should be done to correct that so that customers don't end up being overbilled periodically. This has happened to me every summer. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Regards,
[redacted]
I apologize for the delay. We received a request from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission as well for this customer. We responded to the IURC as follows: Ms. [redacted] contacted us on 1/23/2017 to inquire about the increase in usage for her water bill. Ms....
[redacted] indicated she was out of her home beginning on 12/29/2016 and for the entire month of January (billing period 12/14/2016 - 1/16/2017). Ms. [redacted] indicated her toilet has been running for months. The bill was estimated in December due to snow covering her pit. Ms. [redacted] typically averages 4-5 units per month. We estimated her to use 3.64 units in December. When we read the meter in January it's possible she was being billed the difference of what was underestimated in December due to a possible running toilet. Ms. [redacted] also mentioned she recently had the toilet repaired while she was gone in the month of January. We read the meter 1/16/2017 and also re-read the meter for the customer on 1/24/2017 and the reading was correct. If the toilet was running and now has been repaired she should see a decrease in her water bill.Sincerely,Randy
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait until for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]
Ms. [redacted] requested to start service online, but we found that a deposit would be required. Citizens emailed the customer to advise of the amount due and asked her to contact our office to advise when the deposit was paid, so we could complete the turn on request. The customer paid...
the deposit, but never contacted our office, so she was never activated in billing.
Shortly thereafter, we identified that there was usage on the meter, since August 2017, but we had no active service at the property and no one was in billing. Ms. [redacted] contacted our office about the requested turn on and we advised her of the usage showing on the meter. She indicated that she didn’t move in until December 1, 2017, so we asked her for a copy of the lease to identify responsibility for the usage.
Upon review of the lease, we found that some of the usage occurred after 12/1/17, the time that Ms. [redacted] was living in the home. We advised her that she would responsible for a portion of the bill, from 12/1/2017. The total amount due will be $82.32. Ms. [redacted] was originally given an amount of $104.39, which was incorrect. We have corrected the account and contacted the customer to advised of our findings and that she will have a credit in the amount to $ 22.68 on her first bill.
Citizens spoke with the customer today. He advised he has a plumber coming to fix the issue next week. He states they are using a product called Stop It. We advised we are not familiar with this product and reiterated the goal is to stop the water leak. We also advised we would give him additional time on the letter he received in regards to disconnecting the service.
We were able to review the content of the original call from Mr. [redacted] that was made to our office made on September 23, 2016. Mr. [redacted] called to discuss concerns of not receiving a timely bill from Citizens Energy Group. We found the account showed an old mailing address for Mr. [redacted] and he...
was not receiving the bills timely. The representative updated the mailing address immediately and advised Mr. [redacted] that she would remove the late fee that had accrued on his account. The reversal of the late fee of $9.89 was completed the same day. Mr. [redacted] then discussed any available options to help him in paying the balance due for his account. The representative provided two different payment agreements that were available. • Option 1-an agreement that was $60 a month, plus the current bill, which would be due by the due date on the bill. An initial down payment of $60 would be required to start the payment agreement. • Option 2-an agreement that includes the estimated future charges for the account plus the past due amount spread out over several months. With this type of agreement the customer determines the due date and the amount due is the same amount each month until the account balance reaches zero. An initial down payment of $60 would be required to start the payment agreement. Mr. [redacted] agreed and selected option 2, so we explained the following steps in the process for the payment agreement: • the initial down payment of $60 would need to be paid the same day to ensure the agreement is active • the monthly payments would be $167 per month for a 7 month period • even though he would receive a regular monthly bill from Citizens showing current charges, he should continue to pay the agreement amount until the account was paid in full • the payment agreement would expire in April 2016 or sooner should the account balance reach zero • the due date and duration of payments (bi-weekly or monthly payments), which was selected by the customer, would be due on the 15th of each month and the payments would be scheduled to be made on a monthly basis • after the initial down payment of $60 due on September 23, 2016, the next payment would be due on October 15, 2016 Our records indicate the initial down payment commitment of $60 wasn’t paid by the due date of September 23, 2015, so the payment agreement wasn’t honored. Mr. [redacted] did make a payment of $100, but the payment wasn’t received until October 2, 2015. When we spoke with Mr. [redacted] today (June 3, 2016), he indicated that Citizens Energy Group intentionally held his payment and caused it to be delayed. We explained holding payments goes against Citizens Energy Group’s practices and that payments are not handled in our office, but rather a processing center and it would be impossible to single out one payment. Today during our discussion with Mr. [redacted], we offered to waive 3-months of the late fees billed to his account as a one-time courtesy. The credit is for the amount of $9.81. Mr. [redacted] disconnected the call. We have honored our commitment of waiving the late fees and processed an adjustment to his account for $9.81. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you
I left a message for Mr. [redacted] with my contact information. The amount of $498.76 was transferred to [redacted] Ave from his wife's old account on 2/8/16. We have verified the marriage date of 2/1/13. Charges from 2/1/13 through 7/24/13 total $204.78 and would be...
collectible from Mr. [redacted]. We will remove $293.98 from the account on [redacted] Ave and place them back on [redacted] St for Mrs. [redacted].
We would be happy to set up payment arrangements for [redacted] St for this amount.
Sincerely,
Randy
The customer had higher usage in the May 2017 billing period, usage of 21.07, the February 2017 billing period, usage of 8.4, and the September 2016 billing period, usage of 15.63. In looking at historical usage, the customer recently used between 2 and 3 consumption per month. With the...
sporadic spikes, it’s typical of an issue with a toilet. Sometime a flapper goes bad or the handled needs to be replaced or adjusted on the toilet. Even the slighted malfunction can cause an increase in the bill.
The customer indicated he had a plumbers check the property for leaks and found none. If it’s a toilet leak, the handle can stick and the toilet run for several hours or days until the toilet is used again or someone moves the handle. Not all plumbers find this because it happens sporadic when the plumber isn’t present. To avoid future fluctuations, they customer may want to replace the interworking of the toilets. This will help with those sporadic spikes in water consumption.
We did send someone to chagne the meter and replace it with a new meter. After the meter was changed, we tested the original water meter and found it was under registering the actual usage that was used by the household. This indicates the customer’s bill would have been a lot higher if the meter had been working properly, but it continued to under register what was actually used by the household.
When a water meter goes bad, the register function will slow down or it will stop working all together. Rarely does a meter speed up or over charge. In looking at the usage prior to September 2016, there are many months when any water usage showed on the water meter. A typical person can use between 3 to 4 consumption of water per month. In this case, there were many months where less than 1 consumption used for the household.
I spoke with [redacted] and explained the $194 credit showing on the account was due to over payment on the budget. The bill showed the correct balance due if the account was removed from budget and when we refunded the over payment of the budget we failed to notify you of what impact it would...
have on the account balance. Due to this error I am applying a service recovery of $194 to bring the account balance down to zero. I apologize for the inconvenience this issue has caused.Sincerely,Randy
The account and consumption history for Ms. [redacted] at [redacted] was reviewed in early 2016. Service was started September 5, 2015 and used 20 CCF's on average per month. On November 20, 2015 we advised of leak testing techniques for the meter and toilets. On February 24,...
2016 we sent a letter to Ms. [redacted] notifying her of the need to change the meter to an electronic reading device meter due to a stuck pit lid causing difficulty accessing the meter. On March 1, 2016 an order was placed to change the meter and was completed on March 8, 2016. The technician accessed the pit and found water in the pit and pumped the pit out to access the meter finding a gasket leaking on the meter. The technician repaired it as a courtesy. On March 24, 2016 an underground leak adjustment for 3 billing cycles was completed (normally calculated on 2 billing cycles but due to an estimate increased to 3) for the account. The adjustment applied to the account for $288.22 was based on our Terms and Conditions.The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission also received a complaint concerning this location and ruled the issue unjustified. We have followed the Terms and Conditions and provided the appropriate adjustment I believe.Sincerely,Randy
I spoke with Mr. [redacted] and explained we provided an adjustment on his account based on our Terms & Conditions approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. The adjustment is for one period from actual read to actual read which we provided the adjustment on the largest...
bill. The adjustment is 50% of usage over the normal usage. The total usage for May was 54.87 and the normal usage is 6.46 leaving a difference of 48.41. We provided an adjustment of 50% on the 48.41 ($157.36) of $78.68. Mr. [redacted] indicated the associate did not inform him the adjustment would be 50% and I provided an additional $25 service recovery for this discrepancy.
Sincerely,
Randy
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I understand that the meter was not readable in January that is not in dispute. what is in dispute is that by only estimating my bill at 1.01 CCF for that month caused a higher than normal water bill in February. The reading in February is not in disputed only the associated sewer charges for the month February. If the January bill had been accurate or estimated higher than my February sewer bill would have been the standard charge of $37.66. Because of the water adjustment in February is caused an above normal water and corresponding sewer charge. The water estimate for non readable meter should not be so low as to cause an abnormally high sewer when the meter is once again readable. The standard rate is #37.66 for 0-4 CCF. In January I was charger $37.66 for 1.01 CCF usage and February I was charged $51 for a reading of 6.86CCF which includes water ha was actually consumed in January. I did not consume 6.86 CCF in February. I consumed 7.86 CCF for January and February. This is blatant over-charging and it needs to stop.
Regards,
[redacted]
The customer's gas and water services were disconnected for non-payment in May 2017. The customer contacted our office to advise that she had recently filed for bankruptcy protection. We found that initially Citizens wasn't listed as a creditor, but the customer did make a change...
and included Citizen's as creditor. In June, a portion of the delinquent bills in the amount of $556.12 were allocated towards the bankruptcy case. The customer then paid the water portion of her account to have the water service restored. At that time, the gas portion of the service remained off due to non-payment.
The customer was given a quote, to restore the gas service, in the amount of $249.50 for the past due gas portion, a $44.00 reconnect fee, and a $290 deposit. A full deposit is required as a result of the bankruptcy filing and the disconnection of services. Citizens will work with the customer to restore the gas service. If the customer pays a portion of the deposit, $150.00, $194.00 for the gas balance, and a $44.00 reconnection fee a total of $388.00, Citizens will bill the customer for the remaining portion of the gas deposit, $140.00. This will allow her to be eligible to set up a payment arrangement once she receives her next bill. The customer may contact our office at 317.924.3311, Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to Noon.
We have verified the customer's concern and found an error was made when the representative made the work order to restore the service causing the restoration of service to be delayed. Please know Citizens Energy Group takes the customer's concerns seriously and are taking steps to ensure error...
don’t continue to occur. We appreciate the customer notifying us of the error and a supervisor has already spoken with the customer, but plan to following up again on August 21st. Due to the error and for the customer’s inconvenience during this time, Citizens Energy Group has also processed an adjustment to the customer’s account.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have contacted numerous plumbers in reference to this leak and every single plumber has stated this is not the responsibility of the homeowner and they will not conduct the work. I have absolutely no way of fixing this leak and Citizens is threatening to shut off my water. I am out of options. I am still awaiting a response from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Committee who is investigating this issue.
Regards,
[redacted]
There are two issues going on with this complaint. First issue: We sent the customer a letter on 5/12/2017 advising we needed to resolve the issue of not being able to read the meter, due to the touch pad being broken/gone (this our reading device to read the meter). Customer...
contacted us on 5/16/2017 in response to the letter, to set up a time for us to come out and repair the touch paid in order for us to get accurate readings. Order was created for 5/24/2017; this was the date that was convenient for the customer. When our technician arrived his notes indicated the meter is in the pit in the ground and he was able to obtain a reading, therefore he did not install the electronic reader. However he also noted the customer has a dog, this would be reason enough to install an electronic reader. The electronic reader provides us with a way to read the meter without disturbing the dogs or entering through the customer’s gate. On 8/10/2017 customer contacted us again due to receiving a tag indicating we could not read the water meter. The rep explained we need to add the electronic device to read the meter, she apologized that the first technician did not install the meter. The customer agreed this device needed to be installed due to the dogs. Representative advised we would schedule the installation of the electronic reader on 8/16/2017. The customer also requested we replace the stop and waste valve because the handle has been missing since he moved in. The rep advised the owner is responsible for replacing the stop and waste valve. The customer’s girlfriend called us on 8/16/2017 to confirm when we were coming. Due to a high volume of emergency calls that day, it was necessary to reschedule the order. The customer agreed to a Saturday order on 8/26/2017. Customer advised the technician on 8/26/2017 that he wanted the curb box located and marked so he could replace the stop and waste valve. We came out on 8/27/2017 to locate and mark the box, however the technician indicated he was unable to find the box and sent the order over to another area within Citizens to locate the curb box on 8/29/2017. Second issue: Customer called us back on 10/24/2017 to advise storm drains were put in and that a contractor came out and restored the driveway and put it over our curb box(the curb box is where we turn the water on and off at the street). Customer claims a hole was dug next to the driveway by Citizens and he wanted the hole filled. Rep created a case to restore the area. Customer contacted us again on 11/15/2017 regarding the stop and waste valve leak and a property line leak before the meter. Whenever there is a leak before the meter, the customer is not being charged for the water; however the water is being wasted. We give the customer 30 days to repair the leak to avoid interruption of service. We went out on 12/27/2017 to confirm repair for the stop and waste valve was complete, technician confirmed the valve was repaired; however the connection needed to be raised 6 inches. Customer contacted us again on 12/28/2017 disputing that the connection needed to be raised. We sent another technician out on 12/29/2017 and confirmed the pit still needs to be raised. We sent customer a letter on 12/29/2017 stating pit condition needs to be corrected. Our position is the homeowner is responsible for the repairs that he made and for raising the meter pit to code.
I spoke with Mr. [redacted] and explained the billing on the account since the payment of $2,210 was received in September 2014. The account was on budget which paid the budget ahead with the large payment. We discussed the account balance displayed on each bill and how the final balance...
was accrued. The current amount due on the account is $465.93. Mr. [redacted] indicated he understood the balance due now and would discuss with his wife. We printed and sent the bills out to the customer from May 2014 - March 2015.Mr. [redacted] indicated he would contact me with any additional questions.Sincerely,Randy
We received a call from [redacted] on October 14, 2016 asking for service at [redacted]. The service was being turned on for an inspection. Mr. [redacted] asked for temporary service and we informed him we could not turn service on and back off on the same day. We...
indicated we could turn on the water at the meter pit only and then the inspector could turn on at the meter pit to do the inspection. Mr. [redacted] agreed to this. We informed Mr. [redacted] he would need to contact us again when service should be disconnected.Mr. [redacted] called back on October 28, 2016 and was turned off on November 2, 2016. The final bill was for $28.79 which was for .12 units of water (very small amount used) at a cost of $5.65 and sales tax of $0.39 with an additional charge of $22.75 for Sewer. The billing is correct based on the service dates and notification from customer to disconnect. We understand most of the charge is from Sewer charges and will agree to credit the account $11 and split these charges with the customer. This credit will be provided to the customer as a refund check as the bill has been paid in full. Sincerely,Randy
We contacted Ms. [redacted] regarding her account. She was confused on how the budget program worked, thinking that the amount of her budget would pay her actual charges and she felt she had over paid. She was not aware that any actual charges the budget payments did not cover would carry...
over to the next budget year and if the actual charges were less, the credit carries over to the next budget year. This variance can reduce or increase the budget for the following budget year. She was also confused about her sewer charges, thinking that she paid sewer through her property taxes so she was deducting this from her actual charges. In addition she was deducting the water charges and she didn’t understand she now gets a combined bill. She has copies of all her bills which we went over with her. In summary she was only adding up her gas charges for the last year and subtracting all the payments she made in the last year which is why she thought a refund was due. We went over all charges and payment to show that her account balance is correct. She wanted time to go over all the infomation and asked us to follow up with her next week to answser any additional quetions she may have.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me as I see the credit has been applied to my account.
Regards,
[redacted]
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I was given a different explanation from Citizens Energy Group that the problem was likely due to "dial creep" whereby gas pressure builds and causes the meter to inch up. I don't believe the meter was incorrectly read in May or that it would have only been discovered with the meter read in August. I believe this "dial creep" issue causes customers to be periodically overbilled. I don't have a problem paying for services I use, but I don't believe I used the 1.16 therms of gas I was billed for or that the meter was misread. Citizens has been good about re-checking the meter and sending a representative to determine if there was a leak, but I believe that if there is a "dial creep" error occurring, something should be done to correct that so that customers don't end up being overbilled periodically. This has happened to me every summer. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
Regards,
[redacted]
I apologize for the delay. We received a request from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission as well for this customer. We responded to the IURC as follows: Ms. [redacted] contacted us on 1/23/2017 to inquire about the increase in usage for her water bill. Ms....
[redacted] indicated she was out of her home beginning on 12/29/2016 and for the entire month of January (billing period 12/14/2016 - 1/16/2017). Ms. [redacted] indicated her toilet has been running for months. The bill was estimated in December due to snow covering her pit. Ms. [redacted] typically averages 4-5 units per month. We estimated her to use 3.64 units in December. When we read the meter in January it's possible she was being billed the difference of what was underestimated in December due to a possible running toilet. Ms. [redacted] also mentioned she recently had the toilet repaired while she was gone in the month of January. We read the meter 1/16/2017 and also re-read the meter for the customer on 1/24/2017 and the reading was correct. If the toilet was running and now has been repaired she should see a decrease in her water bill.Sincerely,Randy
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me. I will wait until for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]
Ms. [redacted] requested to start service online, but we found that a deposit would be required. Citizens emailed the customer to advise of the amount due and asked her to contact our office to advise when the deposit was paid, so we could complete the turn on request. The customer paid...
the deposit, but never contacted our office, so she was never activated in billing.
Shortly thereafter, we identified that there was usage on the meter, since August 2017, but we had no active service at the property and no one was in billing. Ms. [redacted] contacted our office about the requested turn on and we advised her of the usage showing on the meter. She indicated that she didn’t move in until December 1, 2017, so we asked her for a copy of the lease to identify responsibility for the usage.
Upon review of the lease, we found that some of the usage occurred after 12/1/17, the time that Ms. [redacted] was living in the home. We advised her that she would responsible for a portion of the bill, from 12/1/2017. The total amount due will be $82.32. Ms. [redacted] was originally given an amount of $104.39, which was incorrect. We have corrected the account and contacted the customer to advised of our findings and that she will have a credit in the amount to $ 22.68 on her first bill.
Citizens spoke with the customer today. He advised he has a plumber coming to fix the issue next week. He states they are using a product called Stop It. We advised we are not familiar with this product and reiterated the goal is to stop the water leak. We also advised we would give him additional time on the letter he received in regards to disconnecting the service.
We were able to review the content of the original call from Mr. [redacted] that was made to our office made on September 23, 2016. Mr. [redacted] called to discuss concerns of not receiving a timely bill from Citizens Energy Group. We found the account showed an old mailing address for Mr. [redacted] and he...
was not receiving the bills timely. The representative updated the mailing address immediately and advised Mr. [redacted] that she would remove the late fee that had accrued on his account. The reversal of the late fee of $9.89 was completed the same day. Mr. [redacted] then discussed any available options to help him in paying the balance due for his account. The representative provided two different payment agreements that were available. • Option 1-an agreement that was $60 a month, plus the current bill, which would be due by the due date on the bill. An initial down payment of $60 would be required to start the payment agreement. • Option 2-an agreement that includes the estimated future charges for the account plus the past due amount spread out over several months. With this type of agreement the customer determines the due date and the amount due is the same amount each month until the account balance reaches zero. An initial down payment of $60 would be required to start the payment agreement. Mr. [redacted] agreed and selected option 2, so we explained the following steps in the process for the payment agreement: • the initial down payment of $60 would need to be paid the same day to ensure the agreement is active • the monthly payments would be $167 per month for a 7 month period • even though he would receive a regular monthly bill from Citizens showing current charges, he should continue to pay the agreement amount until the account was paid in full • the payment agreement would expire in April 2016 or sooner should the account balance reach zero • the due date and duration of payments (bi-weekly or monthly payments), which was selected by the customer, would be due on the 15th of each month and the payments would be scheduled to be made on a monthly basis • after the initial down payment of $60 due on September 23, 2016, the next payment would be due on October 15, 2016 Our records indicate the initial down payment commitment of $60 wasn’t paid by the due date of September 23, 2015, so the payment agreement wasn’t honored. Mr. [redacted] did make a payment of $100, but the payment wasn’t received until October 2, 2015. When we spoke with Mr. [redacted] today (June 3, 2016), he indicated that Citizens Energy Group intentionally held his payment and caused it to be delayed. We explained holding payments goes against Citizens Energy Group’s practices and that payments are not handled in our office, but rather a processing center and it would be impossible to single out one payment. Today during our discussion with Mr. [redacted], we offered to waive 3-months of the late fees billed to his account as a one-time courtesy. The credit is for the amount of $9.81. Mr. [redacted] disconnected the call. We have honored our commitment of waiving the late fees and processed an adjustment to his account for $9.81. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thank you
I left a message for Mr. [redacted] with my contact information. The amount of $498.76 was transferred to [redacted] Ave from his wife's old account on 2/8/16. We have verified the marriage date of 2/1/13. Charges from 2/1/13 through 7/24/13 total $204.78 and would be...
collectible from Mr. [redacted]. We will remove $293.98 from the account on [redacted] Ave and place them back on [redacted] St for Mrs. [redacted].
We would be happy to set up payment arrangements for [redacted] St for this amount.
Sincerely,
Randy
The customer had higher usage in the May 2017 billing period, usage of 21.07, the February 2017 billing period, usage of 8.4, and the September 2016 billing period, usage of 15.63. In looking at historical usage, the customer recently used between 2 and 3 consumption per month. With the...
sporadic spikes, it’s typical of an issue with a toilet. Sometime a flapper goes bad or the handled needs to be replaced or adjusted on the toilet. Even the slighted malfunction can cause an increase in the bill.
The customer indicated he had a plumbers check the property for leaks and found none. If it’s a toilet leak, the handle can stick and the toilet run for several hours or days until the toilet is used again or someone moves the handle. Not all plumbers find this because it happens sporadic when the plumber isn’t present. To avoid future fluctuations, they customer may want to replace the interworking of the toilets. This will help with those sporadic spikes in water consumption.
We did send someone to chagne the meter and replace it with a new meter. After the meter was changed, we tested the original water meter and found it was under registering the actual usage that was used by the household. This indicates the customer’s bill would have been a lot higher if the meter had been working properly, but it continued to under register what was actually used by the household.
When a water meter goes bad, the register function will slow down or it will stop working all together. Rarely does a meter speed up or over charge. In looking at the usage prior to September 2016, there are many months when any water usage showed on the water meter. A typical person can use between 3 to 4 consumption of water per month. In this case, there were many months where less than 1 consumption used for the household.
I spoke with [redacted] and explained the $194 credit showing on the account was due to over payment on the budget. The bill showed the correct balance due if the account was removed from budget and when we refunded the over payment of the budget we failed to notify you of what impact it would...
have on the account balance. Due to this error I am applying a service recovery of $194 to bring the account balance down to zero. I apologize for the inconvenience this issue has caused.Sincerely,Randy
The account and consumption history for Ms. [redacted] at [redacted] was reviewed in early 2016. Service was started September 5, 2015 and used 20 CCF's on average per month. On November 20, 2015 we advised of leak testing techniques for the meter and toilets. On February 24,...
2016 we sent a letter to Ms. [redacted] notifying her of the need to change the meter to an electronic reading device meter due to a stuck pit lid causing difficulty accessing the meter. On March 1, 2016 an order was placed to change the meter and was completed on March 8, 2016. The technician accessed the pit and found water in the pit and pumped the pit out to access the meter finding a gasket leaking on the meter. The technician repaired it as a courtesy. On March 24, 2016 an underground leak adjustment for 3 billing cycles was completed (normally calculated on 2 billing cycles but due to an estimate increased to 3) for the account. The adjustment applied to the account for $288.22 was based on our Terms and Conditions.The Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission also received a complaint concerning this location and ruled the issue unjustified. We have followed the Terms and Conditions and provided the appropriate adjustment I believe.Sincerely,Randy
I spoke with Mr. [redacted] and explained we provided an adjustment on his account based on our Terms & Conditions approved by the Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission. The adjustment is for one period from actual read to actual read which we provided the adjustment on the largest...
bill. The adjustment is 50% of usage over the normal usage. The total usage for May was 54.87 and the normal usage is 6.46 leaving a difference of 48.41. We provided an adjustment of 50% on the 48.41 ($157.36) of $78.68. Mr. [redacted] indicated the associate did not inform him the adjustment would be 50% and I provided an additional $25 service recovery for this discrepancy.
Sincerely,
Randy
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I understand that the meter was not readable in January that is not in dispute. what is in dispute is that by only estimating my bill at 1.01 CCF for that month caused a higher than normal water bill in February. The reading in February is not in disputed only the associated sewer charges for the month February. If the January bill had been accurate or estimated higher than my February sewer bill would have been the standard charge of $37.66. Because of the water adjustment in February is caused an above normal water and corresponding sewer charge. The water estimate for non readable meter should not be so low as to cause an abnormally high sewer when the meter is once again readable. The standard rate is #37.66 for 0-4 CCF. In January I was charger $37.66 for 1.01 CCF usage and February I was charged $51 for a reading of 6.86CCF which includes water ha was actually consumed in January. I did not consume 6.86 CCF in February. I consumed 7.86 CCF for January and February. This is blatant over-charging and it needs to stop.
Regards,
[redacted]
The customer's gas and water services were disconnected for non-payment in May 2017. The customer contacted our office to advise that she had recently filed for bankruptcy protection. We found that initially Citizens wasn't listed as a creditor, but the customer did make a change...
and included Citizen's as creditor. In June, a portion of the delinquent bills in the amount of $556.12 were allocated towards the bankruptcy case. The customer then paid the water portion of her account to have the water service restored. At that time, the gas portion of the service remained off due to non-payment.
The customer was given a quote, to restore the gas service, in the amount of $249.50 for the past due gas portion, a $44.00 reconnect fee, and a $290 deposit. A full deposit is required as a result of the bankruptcy filing and the disconnection of services. Citizens will work with the customer to restore the gas service. If the customer pays a portion of the deposit, $150.00, $194.00 for the gas balance, and a $44.00 reconnection fee a total of $388.00, Citizens will bill the customer for the remaining portion of the gas deposit, $140.00. This will allow her to be eligible to set up a payment arrangement once she receives her next bill. The customer may contact our office at 317.924.3311, Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to Noon.
We have verified the customer's concern and found an error was made when the representative made the work order to restore the service causing the restoration of service to be delayed. Please know Citizens Energy Group takes the customer's concerns seriously and are taking steps to ensure error...
don’t continue to occur. We appreciate the customer notifying us of the error and a supervisor has already spoken with the customer, but plan to following up again on August 21st. Due to the error and for the customer’s inconvenience during this time, Citizens Energy Group has also processed an adjustment to the customer’s account.
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that the response would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have contacted numerous plumbers in reference to this leak and every single plumber has stated this is not the responsibility of the homeowner and they will not conduct the work. I have absolutely no way of fixing this leak and Citizens is threatening to shut off my water. I am out of options. I am still awaiting a response from the Indiana Utility Regulatory Committee who is investigating this issue.
Regards,
[redacted]