Among Friends

[HP in NY]

How can I prove fraud to my utility company...
My bill is over $500.00 ..
Any help would be appreciated..
My life hasn't changed much since the pandemic.
Single no kids etc. I continued to work the same schedule thank God ... Help

[Venezia]

@HP in NY - Get them to do a check on your meter to see if it's working correctly.

If it is, you'll have to try to determine, if someone else is tapping into your supply line.  A lot depends on the utility company and how prepared they are to help you with this.

Beyond that, you'll have to appeal to someone who oversees the regulation of the utility.

[Snowpuppy]

Is this an estimated bill?

Were you on a type of payment plan that's now ending with a balance due?

[itsmagic]

I received an overly high bill once from my electric company and after calling, they were very nice and came out and reread the meter.  As it turns out the meter was misread the first time. 

[sunshine45]

if you dont get satisfaction with your utility company then contact the department of public service in new york. you can file a complaint online.

https://www.dps.ny.gov/

[Sooner]

@HP in NY Have you talked with the company?  Nothing can be done until you talk to them.

[jannabelle1]

Is this bill for only one month? And your previous monthly bills have always been much lower? As @Sooner said, you need to call the utility company and ask for their help to find out why your bill is so much higher this time. It doesn't necessarily mean there is fraud involved. It could be an incorrect reading, or many other things that are easily fixable.

[fthunt]

Previous poster touched on this........but I'll give an example.

Rented to a lady our age - I pay utilities  so reason she liked my deal.

First - do you own your own home or rent?  If rent, are there other tenants in the bldg?

This tenant had rented an older house  w/zero insulation - - - only landlord (women) also in house.  Tenant's bill went to the sky, her son got snooping in basement and landlady had rigged her meter to my tenant's meter.

Also happened another case with Time Warner .  Wire strung across ceiling in hallway from one apartment to another.

[eddyandme]

@HP in NY 

First, check your year-to-date, usually the graph is on the bottom-left on page one of your bill.  That graph will show your usage from say October 2019 thru October 2020 (your current billing statement).  If it's out of whack, call customer service, explain the usage is out of line and your usage was in-line to the prior year's.  Request another read - firmly is necessary.  If the meter wasn't misread, have them send someone out - they have people who can meet with you, if you wish to be there and look for anything fishy, inside and out.

Frankly, most people who steal energy just turn the meter upside down, they put it rightside up when they know the meter will be read, usually every thirty days.   That's why meters have tags/seals on them.  The landlord has to have a 'house meter, e.g., for hallways, and common areas inside and outside.  

And, if you get your meter replaced, imho, the older the meter, the better - they can slow down with age - we all do!

Don't worry, they'll check into it - the squeaky wheel gets oiled!!

[Kachina624]

I've heard of electricity theft, electric bill errors, but never electric bill fraud.  Who's  committing this fraud allegedly?