PUC gives more explanations on the increase in the price of utilities |05 May 2021

Mr Morin (Photo: Louis Toussaint)

Based on continuous complaints from customers regarding alleged overpayment of water and electricity bills, the Public Utilities Corporation (PUC) has once again come forward to shed more light on the matter, giving more explanations on the nature of the increase in the price of utilities.

To date, the PUC is still receiving quite a number of complaints regarding, mostly, overpayment of water and electricity bills from customers who felt that they were being overcharged regarding their utility usage.

It was in January that the PUC, in accordance to the restrictions set by the health authority, started to charge households based on estimations, rather the traditional physical meter reading.

In a press conference yesterday at the Electricity House, chief executive Philippe Morin gave more details in relation to the increase which he said has been influenced by four main factors.

Firstly, he explained that based on the company’s reviews of tariff in regards to the price of fuel, there have been two increases since the beginning of the year, precisely by 30 cents in January and 25 cents in April per each kilowatt-hour (a composite unit of energy equal to one kilowatt (kW) of power sustained for one hour) on domestic consumption.

This, Mr Morin said, is unavoidable as it highlights the company’s tariff review which is carried out every three months.

The second reason for the increase was due to the restriction on movement order which increased household consumption of utilities since most family members were at home during that time.

This included students who were studying online, parents who were working from home, as well as other extra consumption, including television and air-conditioning units.

Another factor for the increase is the estimation exercise itself which according to Mr Morin is not necessarily accurate.

It was only last month that the PUC resumed its meter reading activities, adjusting the customer’s charges based on their accurate usage for the past three previous months.

Estimated bills usually happen when the meter reader is unable to read a meter and the estimation of usage is based on the property's previous usage pattern.

In the local context, the PUC has been estimating bills on the average based on the consumption from January to April.

The process entails comparing the bills between December and April with the average usage being used as the estimated consumption.

Through that exercise, Mr Morin confirmed that there is evidence of a considerable increase in the amount of utilities, precisely electricity, consumed during the first four months of the year.

He however noted that wherever there is evidence of overpayment, the PUC will reimburse customers in the form of an applied credit to their next bills.

Mr Morin also explained that PUC will be more flexible with the customers in terms of time allowed to settle their bills, while the latter should also act responsibly and settle their bills.

Based on complaints that the PUC is not answering, or returning calls, Mr Morin said the company is presently in a difficult situation, precisely in terms of manpower due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

This, he said, also applies to meter reading as a huge number of its readers are either in isolation, or home quarantine.

Roland Duval