Meter Mix Up Causes Woman to Pay Her Neighbor's Electric for FOUR Years

KTVA:

An Eagle River woman who says she was overcharged thousands of dollars on her electric bills was shocked when she found out the reason.

For the past four years, Suzan Kubitz has been paying her neighbor’s bill. It’s the result of a meter mix-up that she didn’t realize had taken place.

Kubitz said she worked to make her condo more energy efficient but, despite her efforts, her electric bills continued to go up. She admits she didn’t notice for a long time. [...]

It wasn’t till a friend, who was considering buying a condo in the same complex, inquired about her utility costs that Kubitz actually took a look. She was startled by what she saw. Despite the fact that she lived in the condo with just her son, no bill in 2019 was under $100. In fact, most were well over that, topping out in April at $475 and May at $534. [...]

Kubitz eventually did a breaker test which confirmed her hunch. Turns out, the meter boxes were mislabeled and hooked up to the wrong unit. For years, the utility had charged her for her neighbor’s usage. Kubitz asked for a refund, but Matanuska Electric Association refused.

“They basically said, it’s not our responsibility to check if you are hooked up to the right meter,” Kubitz said.

MEA spokeswoman Jennifer Castro agreed.

“It is the member’s responsibility to provide the correct meter number,” said Castro. She added that’s the case even if the builder or contractor has labeled the meter base incorrectly.

Another issue could be crossed wiring, which Castro said is also not the utility’s responsibility. [Read the rest here].

I was reading the story on Facebook and was blown away at how expensive the bills are! $475. $534. How can someone afford that much just for utilities???

Average Rent in Anchorage:

That's $1,033 for ONE BEDROOM and from my experience most of these do NOT include utilities. So, add $400 in utilities and there are people in this state paying $1,400 a month just for a roof over their head! That is absolutely insane!

I honestly had no idea! I live in Hollis, I pay under 100$ for electricity and I have free water unless my water heater breaks, sure enough people in the comments sections also have insane utilities! 

A reader from Sitka posted their utilities: 

Other comments:

How much do you pay in utilities? Is it really that high?

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