Power companies... Is it just me, or everyone?

[Malibu]

As it says, is it just me, or does everyone have the same battle with the big multi-billion $$$ conglomerates?

A loooong story involving my power supply company (the names have been changed to protect the stupid) that started about 2 years ago when I got solar put on. A 3Kw panel system with a 4Kw inverter and I received a 5Kw inverter instead - for no extra charge... Suits me :)
So, solar gets put in, gets inspected and goes online; fast forward to 2 years later and still no power bill has arrived for the usage of electricity over the last 2 years. I probably should have called and queried it, but they're the ones losing, so I let it go. One day, in the mail arrives a thick A4 envelope marked with the power companies logo.
Uh-Oh.........
I open it up and I'm staring at 5 bills for over $4500 to be paid within 3 weeks!
Nahhh... it doesn't work like that, because I know the bill can't be over a time span of more than 9 months.
So I call them a couple of days later. "Yes Sir, No Sir, etc Sir" they say... "We've had a few issues Sir"
A week later, another bill arrives... and a cover letter "We're sorry we haven't been billing you, but we're on track now and here's your new bill"
I'm in credit for $65.00. What the.....? I just got 2 years of power supplied for nicks! Believe me, there's no complaints from me!
No worries, I'm ready for any future bills to come in, so there's going to be no surprises and I'm happy with that.
Three months go by, I get another bill; this one for $1400... A little steep I thought, so I read the bill and did the maths.

W amount of generated peak
X amount of generated off-peak
Y amount of time of use peak
Z amount of TOU off-peak

..... and they billed me for ALL peak usage with no buy-back rates for the solar. I call them, "It's wrong" I say, and explain why. "Yes Sir, we can fix that Sir, We'll send a new bill Sir" they say... So I wait to get a new bill which arrived as expected - An overdue notice for the SAME bill for the SAME wrong amount in the first place?
So I call them again.... "Yes Sir, we can fix that Sir, We'll send a new bill Sir" they say... So I wait again... ANOTHER bill arrives for the same amount of the FIRST bill that was wrong!! :C
I ignored it this time because my blood is getting boiled and I've had enough, only to be called a few weeks later by a lady that I could hardly understand on the phone. "You are currently in arrears of $1400, could you pay it today by credit card?"
"No, I'm not paying it" I said, to which she was a bit shocked and asked why.
I cocked the two barrels and let it rip!
I told her what the problem was and she transferred me ASAP to the accounts department where I spoke to a lady that got the job done perfectly and finally!
But wait... that's not all!
I paid the bill of $1016 (as it turned out to be), which included the 3% 'pay on time' discount and I thought, that's it, everything is sweet now. But nooooooooo.... it's not that simple!
I get a bill today; Current charges - $216, Balance brought forward - $31
Balance brought forward? It was paid in full last time I paid... So, I did the maths and figured out quick enough they didn't take into account my 'pay on time' discount
So I call them - AGAIN... "Yes Sir, no Sir, it was a computer glitch Sir... Your new bill is <10 minutes later, while she calculated the 3% discount> $210 Sir"

I took a deep breath and had a beer.
Surely, no-one else goes through the same woes... or is this normal for the big multi-billion $$$ companies???

The moral of the story is... check your power bills! After 3 years, I still DON'T have a power bill that has come in as correct the first time................. and gas! Don't start me on that one! :C

PS: This is a really condensed version of what happened because I had problems with my postal address, supply address, billing name and even my suburb... all of which they couldn't seem to get right even after telling them multiple times!!

[A Duke]

You want to try winding up a deceased estates Telsra bill, if you want fun.
Regards

[Chesand]

You want to try winding up a deceased estates Telsra bill, if you want fun.
Regards

Yeh! Been there, done that

[artme]

Does one have to be a graduate of Clown School to work for these companies?:?:?

Knew a fellow who was with the old Onetel. Got no service from them and refused to pay the bill.
When the company was wound up he was chased for money. Same answer "Why should I pay for the service I didn't get??""

A rep from the company comes to collect money. Told where to go."well sir we'll send a send a debt collector around"!!
Rep was threatened with violence and told if a bill collector came around he would be treated in the same manner.

End of story! Sometimes.....................

[Robson Valley]

You actually have a grid electrical supply that stays on all the time?
I can't recall what that's like.

[Malibu]

Ahhh... well, I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who has the same sort of troubles with the supply companies!
Glad is not quite the word, but you know what I mean... I still shake my head at the incompetence of the lot of them, but what do you do?
As a fair shake, mistakes happen and I make my gluttons share of them. Usually when it's something new I'm doing using the 'trial and error(s)' methodology (like most people here, we kind of get stuck into what we're doing, make mistakes, learn a bit, fix the problem and go on to the next mistake).

As a post note, I just received a letter from the power line company telling me that they'll soon be fitting a smart meter to my system.
I anticipate with dread the dribble bills I get when that happens!

We'll see :doh:

[Mulgabill]

Yes good luck with the "Smart meter" John!
For the past 18 months we made 3 - that's three! appointments with the authorities to fit the "Smart meter" but they did not show or call to explain.
Last June we discovered that our power board was in a dangerous state and had to be replaced. This was done and a "Smart meter" was installed as part of the upgrade.
Now 6 months on and we have yet to receive a usage bill.
We rang late November and asked for a bill and they said that we should have received one. Another will be posted out. Two weeks went by still no bill. Another phone call and they advised that the meter reader could not find the Power meter box. We advised them the that it has been in the same place for the past 50 years and can be seen from the street.:no:.
The bright young thing at the end of the phone suddenly had a flash of genius and said that the new meter can be read remotely and would I give them the Serial number and meter code and the bill will be posted out within 24 hours. That was nearly 3 weeks ago, still no bill. :frustrated:
I was talking recently to the electrician who installed the new power board and he was amused that the "Smart meters" can actually be read remotely. To his knowledge this has not been activated by the supplier yet.
Just sheer incompetence :banghead:

[Malibu]

Yeah, thanks Russell... I'm really looking forward to the 'new' smart meter!:roll:

Actually, I already have one that was installed when the solar went in, but it's not a remotely readable one, so I think they're going to put in one they can read via radio/sms/telephone/whatever.
The old clunker meter I had only read one way, but it was interesting to see when I generated more than I used, it would turn backwards. Quite exciting to see!

Don't be too quick to get your bill either... I think the information is on the ombudsman's website, so double check yourself, but basically they can't bill you for more than 9 months usage if it's their fault (and not sending a bill is classed as their fault) and you can request the payment time to be as long as the bill is for. If it's for 6 months, you have 6 months to pay; if it's 9 months, you have 9 months to pay.
If you haven't received a bill for 10 years, it's their problem and they can't bill you for it; that's why I got away for 2 years and ended up with free power and I was still in credit. (I can't complain about that!)
It's a good lurk that WILL eventually catch up with you, but milk it while you can. I think the supply companies are a generally honest bunch (albeit, dumb as dog poop), and they'll try to do the right thing. You just gotta double check them, as I'm quickly learning!

Here's hoping you get your bill.. (NOT! :U)

[fubar]

Wish I had known about this last year as we didnt receive a correct bill for 15 months heres the website http://www.ewov.com.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/4922/120413_Fact_Sheet_4_Backbilling_CSW.pdf

[Bushmiller]

You actually have a grid electrical supply that stays on all the time?
I can't recall what that's like.

Robson

It used to be like that in Oz, but then a concerted effort was made to take all the power generators under the government wing and to make continuity of supply the main priority. This worked extremely well for many years with blackouts being the exception rather than the norm.

Then somebody realised that the government-owned stations were inefficient (mainly in terms of personnel) and that also they were worth quite a bit of money. So in recent times they have attempted, with varying degrees of success, to sell them off to private enterprise.

Now we are back to a situation where there is a competitive market and there are only three things that count: Price, Price and Price.

Having said that, we enjoy electricity at a very low rate compared to most other developed countries, largely through our plentiful supplies of cheap coal, which is now of course a dirty word. Not that you would think we have cheap electricity to hear us complain :rolleyes: .

Experiences such as Malibu's are enough to make anyone despair.

Regards
Paul

[Phil Spencer]

Had a similar problem when we went solar, I put it in the hands of the Electricity ombudsman, was told not to have any further contact with the supply company until it was sorted. In the mean time I kept paying what I estimated my bill would be ended up with a nice healthy credit which paid for the gas.

The ombudsman sorted it out and it has been plain sailing ever since, I generate enough to cover my usage and also pay some of my gas bill which I transfer across with a phone call.

At first we tried dealing with the power company ourselves and it was like talking with some one from another planet, you need a bureaucrat to talk with a bureaucrat, us normal people just don't speak or understand their lingo.

[Mulgabill]

Thanks John for your support and Dennis for the link.
I will cool my heals for the next month or so an see what develops.
We should have a healthy credit with them anyway so that's not a worry. It's just the frustration in dealing with the provider.

[Malibu]

No worries Russell, hope it helps and thanks to Fubar for the link.
That's the same source I got the info from and it was seconded by a cover letter/conversation with the power company at a later stage (who, when I spoke to him, I got the feeling when I explained what was happening, had heard this problem many times before)

Another interesting thing to note is, I was yakking to the meter reader one day who was in a fairly grumpy mood about the general treatment they were getting, with their jobs being replaced by remote robots (understandable, him being grumpy, but a nice bloke...). He told me when they go to remote reading, to check that the meter number on the bill matches up with the number on the meter itself. If it doesn't, you're getting someone else's bill, because they've pinged the wrong meter.

Interesting comment you made Phil, about speaking the lingo. I guess for us mere mortals, these companies don't have to listen to us except from a complaining customer stand point. When the Ombudsman calls, they need to take notice!
One thing I find hard about the whole thing is actually reading the bill. Trying to get my peanut brain around the Kw/Kwh/PV Peak/etc values is pretty daunting. As an electrician, I understand what it all means, so it's a matter doing the maths (not my strong point) until it all balances out. My Dad was an electrician too, but as he's an 83 yo, he gets a bit confused on the masses of numbers on the back sheet now. He usually just sends off the $ value presuming it's the correct amount. He won't let me pay his bill, but I get him now to send the bill to me for me to check the values. I've wondered how many other people around may be like Dad... sometimes a bit confused because of age or something, and just pay the $ figure, not realising it's not the right number...
As I said earlier, check your bill :;

[Robson Valley]

It is just 220 km from the village to the City of Prince George.
Regional power outages in the city average maybe 1/10 year.

McBride sits at the freakin' end of a 500km line which comes up from the south.
Absolutely anything goes wrong anywhere along that line and we take the hit.

One Sunday, in the local grocery store, the girls counted 60 (sixty) power outages
then gave up. Store owner dropped $4k for a cash register back up.

As of last year, we now have a diesel/biofuel gen set and breakers 10 km out on the line.
If the break is outside that, we're now OK. Takes about 2 sec to come on.

[Malibu]

60?!? That's serious!
My record is 9 in a 6 week period, which is annoying because all the clocks need resetting. So far, nothing more than annoying, but in Aus (Victoria at least), you can claim damages against the supplier for appliance damage caused by spikes/brownouts. It takes a fair amount of paperwork, and they want to see the damage, but it can be done.
A few weeks ago, there was a spike in Mount Martha that resulted in 50-odd calls to the fire brigade due to smart meters exploding, and my daughter-in-law lost a microwave along with a couple of other small devices.

[chambezio]

Where we live is 18 miles from Tamworth, and 3 miles out of a village. It is a rural subdivsion, total population for the village area is 500. We have been here for 31 years. When we first moved here the power would drop out fairly regularly about tea time (6-7pm). As more new settlers moved out here over the years the service had to be upgraded to suit the demand and it did. Roll forward to the present and guess what....the power drops out anytime, worse when there is a storm about.
I blame the "organisation" we were told to "Live better electrically" for how long? Now they are telling us to use less!

Our power bills back in 1981 when we moved in had 3 separate charges that made up the bill-General rate, Off Peak rate, Standing Charge. What is Standing Charge? Its is to pay for the privilege of using "rura lpower". Then the supplier (County Council) had a number of name changes. Then went corporate now we are owned by big business. Our usage for the last quarter is only marginally higher than for the same period as last year but it is $200 dearer!!!

The government knew when to sell off the industry because the Power Generators had to be renewed due to the existing ones were to their use-by- date. So for the new owners to cover their costs of up grade we are now paying a whole lot more for our power than before.

The original County Council was a very well run efficient organisation which had a number of arms to generate cash They (along time ago) generated its own power using a plant that was a scaled down version of Bunnerong Power Station in Sydney. They had to suply and service the the power lines and poles. They even had a fleet of electricians who did domestic wiring of your house etc. They were a big employer and trained a heap of sparkys over the time. Then they had a retail sector that allowed you to buy your electrical appliances and put it on your account with your power. It was a great organisation!!

Now when we have a blackout we call the operator in Port Macquarie (300+km away) and they dispatch a local Country Energy serviceman to fix our problem.

[Bushmiller]

The government knew when to sell off the industry because the Power Generators had to be renewed due to the existing ones were to their use-by- date. So for the new owners to cover their costs of up grade we are now paying a whole lot more for our power than before.



Chambezio

I sympathise with what you are saying, but you do have to distinguish between the power generators and the power distributors. I think the people you are describing are the power distributors. The NSW Electricity Commission did go through all the preparatory work (corporatisation) with the intention of selling off the power stations, but it didn't happen, mainly because they changed their thinking. Now they do want to sell them again but nobody wants to buy because of future uncertainties.

If I said that the price paid to the power generators is, in round figures, 5c /kwh and you compare that to the cost you pay (probably around 25c) I think you will see that it is the distributors that are the culprits.

Regards
Paul

[Malibu]

You're right Paul,
Sometimes it's a little difficult to separate the supply companies and the power generation companies. I know who supplies my power (the retailer) but I have no idea who generates the stuff.
In reply to chambezio, I understand what he's saying too... As someone who was in the thick of the Black Saturday fires - in fact, the entire front that ripped through most of Victoria was started about 1km from my house, by a pole mounted tranny... the very same one (tranny) that started a fire a couple of years previously. Maybe lack of maintenance, maybe 'one of those things', who's to say? I know I've never had as many power dips as I do in recent years...
All I know is that when the old SECV was in existence, things seemed to be a bit different. They generated the power, they owned the power lines and serviced them, they read the meters, and they issued the bills.
So what's changed? I'm not sure, but more has changed than a mere 'name change'... Privatisation seems to be the way to go now - for all g'ment departments - , but is it the best way to go?
I don't recall having so many problems (either bill related, or supply related) when the State Government ran the show. :shrug:

[Malibu]

Excuse me people, while I hijack my own thread... but it's along the same vein as the incompetence of the power companies and makes me think this sort of thing is rife in our world. This company I'm talking about, we'll call the fictional name of 'Orstrayliun Post' (because it'll be obvious who I'm talking about anyway!)

I was contacted by someone (no names) from Perth who was interested in some of my work, which I'm happy to say they accepted my quote, commissioned the job and payed promptly. One of those customers that makes you think "yeah, I like this one! I'll do my best for them!"
The job was done pronto, packaged up with extra care and I had quoted 'standard postage' to them, but I decided at the last minute to send by Express Post for two reasons - It gets there overnight and there is tracking details as well. Bewdy, I like the idea. I get to see where it is en-route via the tracking number, and the customer gets it quick smart and hopefully they'll be impressed with the service I give :)

So, I drop it into the Orstrayliun Post center last Thursday afternoon, well and truly before the mail gets picked up, it gets scanned in by the fine people that run the show down there and it's ready to rock'n roll... I check the tracking number and it's sitting at the Post center waiting for it's next leg of the journey, which is 35km away from here.

------------------------Fast forward to today (Sunday) --------------------

According to the Orstrayliun Post tracking number, it's STILL sitting at my local PO... 4 days?? It hasn't moved?
For what reason did I pay this 'fictional company' 3 or 4 times the postage rates of a standard letter, for extra service, when obviously it makes no difference?
In defence of the local people, it's no longer at the P-office... it's gone, because I asked them about it.

I can understand that maybe the mail shuts down over the weekend, but hang on, where's my customers parcel according to the tracking details?
I suspect they will get their order tomorrow, but why should they need to wait 5 days for it and why can't it be tracked?
I would be fuming if I'd paid for overnight delivery and 5 days later the goods arrive.

Tomorrow is a phone call to Orstrayliun Post, because I'd like them to explain why I paid 4 times the fee, for the same service.

Maybe I'm just becoming a cynic in my old age and expect too much? --- like - to get what I pay for, and maybe the service as promised? :~

[Bushmiller]

John

If you live outside of major centres "express post" is close to meaningless. They only guarantee next day delivery between cities and that may not be certain either.

Our local post office, which is privately owned, maintains that post is moved around during the weekend, but no deliveries of course.

Regards
Paul

[Malibu]

If you live outside of major centres "express post" is close to meaningless. They only guarantee next day delivery between cities and that may not be certain either.

G'day Paul,
As I've just found out, the hyped up "Next Day Delivery" is not quite true...
The list of post codes on the back of the Express Post envelopes/satchels is the ONLY places you can send express post to and NOT to anywhere other than those post codes.
It's not just the guarantee of next day delivery to there, but anything outside those post codes they treat as standard mail rather than what I thought; that it's still treated as express post, but maybe it will take a little longer because it's not on the designated route.
Back to the mail I sent... Because it wasn't on the express post list of post codes, it defaulted to ordinary mail, so went via road instead of air.
A bit misleading I thought - as did the local post office people.

[shedbound]

We live within 10km of our power station, every time it rains we lose power, every time we ring we get told its one a transformer, sometimes we can go without power for up to 24hrs. This has been going on for 8 years and who knows how long before that? must say the phone lines are no better with our sporadic internet service. not to mention the constant loss of digital TV reception. One step forward three back! makes me wonder sometimes.