The utility billing error library
Twelve errors we find most often in commercial bills, with the check that catches each one and the evidence a utility needs to refund it.
Rates & tariffs
- Wrong rate scheduleThe account is billed under a tariff it no longer qualifies for, or one the utility should have moved it off when its load changed.Found in roughly 1 in 14 commercial accounts we audit4% to 15% of the account's annual bill
- TOU period misapplicationTime-of-use usage is split into the wrong on-peak and off-peak hours because of a stale meter program, daylight saving time or holiday errors.Found on roughly 1 in 18 time-of-use accounts we audit2% to 10% of energy charges on the affected account
Demand
- Demand ratchet errorsBilled demand is set by a ratchet that uses the wrong percentage, a peak outside the look-back window, or a peak that should have been excluded.Found on roughly 1 in 11 demand-metered accounts we audit5% to 20% of demand charges for the affected months
- Power factor penaltiesA power factor adjustment is billed at the wrong threshold, from a faulty kVARh reading, or after corrective capacitors were installed.Found on roughly 1 in 16 demand-metered accounts we audit2% to 8% of demand charges on affected accounts
Metering
- Meter multiplier errorsThe billing system multiplies register readings by the wrong constant, usually after a meter or current transformer exchange.Found on roughly 1 in 60 transformer-rated meters we auditOften 25% to 100% of the account's usage charges while the error lasts
- Estimated reads never trued upBills based on estimated usage overstate consumption, and the correcting true-up never posts or posts at the wrong rate.Found on roughly 1 in 20 accounts with three or more estimated bills a year3% to 12% of charges over the estimated period
- Crossed metersAt multi-tenant sites, one tenant's meter is billed to another tenant's account, so each pays for the other's usage.Found at roughly 1 in 30 multi-tenant buildings we auditOften the full difference between two tenants' bills, for months or years
Billing process
- Duplicate bills and paymentsThe same charges are paid twice: a cancel and rebill without an offsetting credit, a summary bill paid alongside its detail, or an AP double entry.Found in roughly 1 in 25 multi-site portfolios each year0.5% to 2% of total annual utility spend
- Late fees and unreturned depositsLate fees charged on payments that arrived on time, and security deposits held long after the utility's own rules require their return.Found in roughly 1 in 4 multi-site portfolios we auditDeposits of $2,000 to $50,000 per account plus 1% to 2% monthly late charges
- Closed and vacant site billingAccounts keep billing customer, demand or minimum charges after a site closes, or a vacant unit is billed to the owner after a tenant took service.Found in roughly 1 in 3 portfolios with closures or turnover in the past two yearsCustomer, minimum and ratcheted demand charges for every month after the stop date
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- from bill access to first findings report
- 21 daysfrom bill access to first findings report
- of filed claims accepted by the utility in full or in part
- 94%of filed claims accepted by the utility in full or in part