primitive whines about socialist electric company

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022451265

Oh my.

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:16 PM

Anyone familiar with where to file a complaint against a rural electrical coop? Besides at their office?

My daughter keeps getting bills of $400 - $1000, she uses christmas tree lights for crying out loud! I replaced her hot water tank and dryer. They replaced the meter. They will not give her an itemized statement that includes amounts paid in. LIHEAP just paid them $400+ on a $375 bill a couple weeks ago and today she gets another bill for almost $1000!
 
This keeps happening and I can't find anywhere to file a complaint except through them. PUC doesn't, PA AG doesn't.
 
Please, if anyone has any ideas post them. I can't afford to keep paying these insane bills for her and she isn't making enough at her job.

<<<when a customer of PP&L, Pennsylvania Power & Light in Allentown, Pennsylvania, an evil dividend-paying corporate entity, never had a problem.

And rates were pretty low too.

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:47 PM

6. It has been a freaking nightmare. They threaten to cut her off with no electric company at all. I cannot believe they can treat people this way.

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:58 PM

11. Public Utilities Commission doesn't deal with rural electric coops. Going to call Kane's office Monday a.m. and an electrician. Just so ridiculous. They are rude when she tries to resolve it with their office. I am so frustrated.

lynne (2,926 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:23 PM

3. I kept getting outlandish bills -

- and nothing I did helped. Checked appliances, etc. This went on for 4 months and each month it was getting higher. Finally checked the actual plumbing under the house and there was a pinhole leak in the line going from the hot water heater and I was leaking hot water 24/7. Got that fixed, bill was cut in half.
 
Can't speak about her not being able to get an itemized bill as I can pull that down online with my company. But I'd keep looking for any reason that may cause such horrific bills. Might be something she's not checked out yet.

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:50 PM

7. New hot water heater, new dryer, nothing seems wrong. I'm hiring an electrician Monday a.m.

She can't get an online bill to check, they keep telling her she already does! It's insane!
 
Glad you found your problem!

Lars39 (18,089 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:28 PM

4. Could someone be stealing electricity without her noticing?

Like plugging in an extension cord at her place outside and running it to theirs to heat their house, etc?

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:53 PM

8. Her neighbor is across the road, but a barn they have over there used to be with the land the house is on. I am baffled, am going to hire an electrician Monday a.m.

Curmudgeoness (9,777 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:33 PM

5. I don't know about LIHEAP and what all they do but would they be able to help find where to go? Or would your state rep's office have answers as to where you can go for help.
 
If I remember correctly, there was some program with the power companies where you could have someone come to your house and determine what you can do to cut bills. They were just there to make suggestions, not sell products or services. Ask the coop if they have any such program to help her.
 
Those monthly bills seems so outrageous that I cannot believe someone doesn't think there is a problem.

^^^the primitive with a sensitive bottom.

Mnemosyne (15,465 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:56 PM

9. Nasty people at the office insist must be bad appliances! It's ridiculous. The PUC doesn't deal with rural coops.

I'm getting an electrician and calling Kane's office first thing Monday.

MadHound (33,595 posts)    Sat Mar 2, 2013, 06:57 PM

10. As a member of an REC your daughter is, technically, part owner of the coop

As such, she should, by law, have access to all REC records, including her bill. Tell her to go into the REC office and be forceful about the matter, demand to see her records, quote the bylaws, etc. If that fails, a note from a lawyer should do the trick.

[Evil_Conservative]

Obama said this would happen...

He said rates would necessarily skyrocket.

Own it.

[BattleHymn]

Hello mnemosyne primitive!  This is DUmp Heloise, your tireless assistant in assisting primitives with all things household, and general fix-it-yourself related.

You knew your utility company changed out your meter, but did you know they may have snuck into your house and ran a higher amperage line to your breaker box?  That 200-amp service electrician can be mighty sneaky sometimes!  That higher amperage line means you can suck down even more power that, get this, they will expect you to pay for!  I know, crazy, right?  But, can you blame them?  I mean, with everything necessarily skyrocketing and all, it's just a sign of the times!

Now, I'm not an electrician, and presumably you are not either, or you wouldn't be on the DUmp try to shirk a union-paid electrician out of his wages for advice! haha!  That being said, I can give you some free tips that might help you determine what size amperage you have coming into your house now. 

Start by removing the panel shroud (not the panel door, but the actual shroud) that conceals all those pesky (hopefully union-installed) wires leading to your breakers.  What you want to do is look for the two extra-fat looking wires that lead into your panel.  I've hotlinked a diagram to illustrate the two wires you are after:



Now what you want to do is get a nice, sturdy all-metal fork, knife, or spoon that is large enough to bridge the gap between those two wires labeled as 'NEVER EVER TOUCH!' in the supplied diagram.  This next part you where you will want a friend with a stopwatch to assist you.  Get a good, tight grip on your chosen kitchen utensil, and push it down hard on the 'NEVER EVER TOUCH!' wires.   As soon as you have bridged the contact points, have your friend start the stopwatch, and wait to see how long the utensil takes to burn through.  Essentially, what we are making here is a really slow-burn fuse.  If it takes 7-10 seconds to burn through, you probably have 130 amp service.  If it's 4-6 seconds, you're probably wired up with 150 amp service.  Anything less than 4 seconds, and you're dealing with 200 amp service. 

Presto!  You've not go some ammo to go after that utility company with! 

Your friend,

DUmp Heloise

[I_B_Perky]

Hello mnemosyne primitive!  This is DUmp Heloise, your tireless assistant in assisting primitives with all things household, and general fix-it-yourself related.

You knew your utility company changed out your meter, but did you know they may have snuck into your house and ran a higher amperage line to your breaker box?  That 200-amp service electrician can be mighty sneaky sometimes!  That higher amperage line means you can suck down even more power that, get this, they will expect you to pay for!  I know, crazy, right?  But, can you blame them?  I mean, with everything necessarily skyrocketing and all, it's just a sign of the times!

Now, I'm not an electrician, and presumably you are not either, or you wouldn't be on the DUmp try to shirk a union-paid electrician out of his wages for advice! haha!  That being said, I can give you some free tips that might help you determine what size amperage you have coming into your house now. 

Start by removing the panel shroud (not the panel door, but the actual shroud) that conceals all those pesky (hopefully union-installed) wires leading to your breakers.  What you want to do is look for the two extra-fat looking wires that lead into your panel.  I've hotlinked a diagram to illustrate the two wires you are after:



Now what you want to do is get a nice, sturdy all-metal fork, knife, or spoon that is large enough to bridge the gap between those two wires labeled as 'NEVER EVER TOUCH!' in the supplied diagram.  This next part you where you will want a friend with a stopwatch to assist you.  Get a good, tight grip on your chosen kitchen utensil, and push it down hard on the 'NEVER EVER TOUCH!' wires.   As soon as you have bridged the contact points, have your friend start the stopwatch, and wait to see how long the utensil takes to burn through.  Essentially, what we are making here is a really slow-burn fuse.  If it takes 7-10 seconds to burn through, you probably have 130 amp service.  If it's 4-6 seconds, you're probably wired up with 150 amp service.  Anything less than 4 seconds, and you're dealing with 200 amp service. 

Presto!  You've not go some ammo to go after that utility company with! 

Your friend,

DUmp Heloise

Your forgot to tell them to make sure they are grounded really well when they do that. 

[GOBUCKS]

I replaced her hot water tank and dryer.

There's your problem. He's a DUmmy.

[RobJohnson]

LIHEAP just paid them $400

I wish someone would chip in and help pay my electric bill.

[Evil_Conservative]

I wish someone would chip in and help pay my electric bill.

Especially in the summers here.

[Maxiest]

Wonder if primitive knows the CO-OP is run by people elected with in the CO-OP's service area.

[Gern]

I've got a great idea!

In true leftist Big Government wet dreams, let's let the Federal Government control all the distribution of electricity!

1.  It will lose money every year

2.  It will be catastrophically unreliable

3.  Bloated union bureaucrats can run it, so we can pay for their juicy retirement bennies.

[RobJohnson]

I pay bills to two different co ops, one where I live and one in MS for some rental property.

Both are not bad to deal with.

When I lived in Illinois there was a rural co op that simply raped everyone, the rates were really high. If you lived outside the city limits you were stuck with them.

[Maxiest]

I pay bills to two different co ops, one where I live and one in MS for some rental property.

Both are not bad to deal with.

When I lived in Illinois there was a rural co op that simply raped everyone, the rates were really high. If you lived outside the city limits you were stuck with them.

The Telephone CO-OP here is a joke.  They are the telephone, internet, and cable provider.  The lady's that work in the customer service are horrid to deal with.  Luckily Comcast now provides the same services in this area, but it hasn't changed their prices or attitude.  Maybe when they don't have customers any more it will.

[NHSparky]

But...but...but...I thought deregulation would solve all those evil greedy corporations from raping their customers!!!

[RobJohnson]

The Telephone CO-OP here is a joke.  They are the telephone, internet, and cable provider.  The lady's that work in the customer service are horrid to deal with.  Luckily Comcast now provides the same services in this area, but it hasn't changed their prices or attitude.  Maybe when they don't have customers any more it will.

I lived in towns with locally owned telephone companies. One town finally had their company bought out and we were able to get caller ID about 10 years after everyone else. 

[JohnnyReb]

Solution.....turn off the grow lights.

[RobJohnson]

Solution.....turn off the grow lights.

 

[Maxiest]

I lived in towns with locally owned telephone companies. One town finally had their company bought out and we were able to get caller ID about 10 years after everyone else. 

I am just a tech guru and maybe I have been spoiled by Comcast and other companies over the years.  But their guide on the cable is horrible, they have like 5 shows in the Video On Demand menu, the internet is slow no matter how much I upgrade it and the prices are so ridiculous.  When it rains it all goes out.  I have been meaning to change to Comcast since it's available finally.