Texas Man Left With $16,000 Electricity Bill After Storm Causes Chaos

That is bad "Customer Service", I fear.

He needs to cut the link to the grid and buy his
own generator, in fact if he gets a big enough one,
he can share the outlay by supplying his neighbours.

Mike.
 

Mike said:
That is bad "Customer Service", I fear.

He needs to cut the link to the grid and buy his
own generator, in fact if he gets a big enough one,
he can share the outlay by supplying his neighbours.

Mike.
Click to expand...
I agree.

Homeowners in Texas definitely need to look at options.
 
This may help explain. Typically the prices vary when folks get in to this type of plan but in an acceptable rate like a couple dollars/month or less. Many people got bills for 3 and 4 thousand dollars a month. Don't know how many but on paper it is legal but doubtful that anyone will have to pay. When you think of it these bills went out with no information or explanation. Maybe they thought it would be OK with the average Texan. Obviously they don't know their customers very well.

Wholesale electricity prices fluctuate based on demand. Because natural gas pipelines and wind turbines froze up in Texas, there was less power available, but high demand for electricity, causing wholesale prices to shoot up, said Joshua Rhodes, an energy research associate at the University of Texas.


Wholesale prices are typically as low as a couple of cents per kilowatt-hour but spiked to $9 per kilowatt-hour after the storm. Fixed rate customers pay a set amount that doesn’t rise as much. Typically, they pay around 12 cents per kilowatt-hour. But Rhodes said fixed rate customers could see their price rise by a few cents later this year as companies hit by the icy conditions look to recoup their costs — but their bills won’t be in the thousands.
 
Don M. said:
It sounds like many of those who received these ridiculous bills were set up for "auto pay" on their utilities. While that may be convenient, it opens the door to excessive or bogus charges. I much prefer to receive a paper statement, and pay the bill Only after I have verified the charges.
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We're the same as you, Don, in that we still receive paper statements/bills.
 
fmdog44 said:
This may help explain. Typically the prices vary when folks get in to this type of plan but in an acceptable rate like a couple dollars/month or less. Many people got bills for 3 and 4 thousand dollars a month. Don't know how many but on paper it is legal but doubtful that anyone will have to pay. When you think of it these bills went out with no information or explanation. Maybe they thought it would be OK with the average Texan. Obviously they don't know their customers very well.

Wholesale electricity prices fluctuate based on demand. Because natural gas pipelines and wind turbines froze up in Texas, there was less power available, but high demand for electricity, causing wholesale prices to shoot up, said Joshua Rhodes, an energy research associate at the University of Texas.


Wholesale prices are typically as low as a couple of cents per kilowatt-hour but spiked to $9 per kilowatt-hour after the storm. Fixed rate customers pay a set amount that doesn’t rise as much. Typically, they pay around 12 cents per kilowatt-hour. But Rhodes said fixed rate customers could see their price rise by a few cents later this year as companies hit by the icy conditions look to recoup their costs — but their bills won’t be in the thousands.
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Appreciate you walking me through the conundrum, FM.
 
Don M. said:
It sounds like many of those who received these ridiculous bills were set up for "auto pay" on their utilities. While that may be convenient, it opens the door to excessive or bogus charges. I much prefer to receive a paper statement, and pay the bill Only after I have verified the charges.
Click to expand...
I hadn't thought of that. That must be what happened to the guy who said his savings acct was wiped out by a power bill that was well over $1500. Like Dog said, these customers can't be forced to pay these bills, they can wait for explanations and clarifications, and even then they can still contest the charges.
 
Murrmurr said:
I hadn't thought of that. That must be what happened to the guy who said his savings acct was wiped out by a power bill that was well over $1500. Like Dog said, these customers can't be forced to pay these bills, they can wait for explanations and clarifications, and even then they can still contest the charges.
Click to expand...

The Problem with "auto pay" is that the company has access to your funds as soon as the auto pay transaction occurs. In the case of these Texas "rip offs", the customers may well eventually get reimbursed....but "eventually" could take weeks or months. Meanwhile, their bank account has been severely depleted.

I much prefer to get the monthly utility and credit card bills in writing....especially the credit card....before I pay the bill. Between human error, and the increasing "hacking" of accounts, I would not want to go through the lengthy processes of getting an error corrected.
 
From my provider:
There’s a lot of concern and misinformation about electricity rates in Texas right now. Unfortunately, some Texas residents were with electricity providers that only offered variable wholesale rate plans with no rate protection from the historic winter challenges Texas just experienced.

As the #1 choice of Texans, we’re here for all our current and future residential customers with rates that insulate you from the volatile wholesale market. Our customers won’t see any near-term impact on their rates due to this winter weather event. While you may experience higher than normal bills due to higher usage during the cold weather, you’ll be insulated from rate increases.

And as we have throughout the pandemic, we’re here for our residential customers with price protection, additional payment flexibility and customer support ready to help 24/7.
 
We have a 5-year contract with Reliant at a fixed rate. This is what their website says:

"The winter storm has caused worry and confusion for electricity customers across Texas. Reliant is working to address these concerns with our customers, including those around the fear of price spikes and usage estimates.

Will my rate increase as a result of the recent spikes in real-time market prices?
Reliant’s residential fixed rate and month-to-month plans are not tied to real-time market prices, insulating our residential customers from extreme wholesale power price swings."

Our electricity is on a "balanced billing" plan; we pay the same monthly amount year round and it is on autopay.
 
Aunt Marg said:
Thank you for the link, Ken.

I can't imagine being hit with bill amounts mentioned.

We're billed every two months for power (electrical), and dear husband and I get ornery when the bill comes in at anything over $80
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My monthly electric bill is typically around $30. There are just a couple of weeks in which we have our air conditioners running continuously, and then it can get as high as $80 or so. Condo living really costs less than some of the alternatives.

For us, heat is no problem either because we have hot water heat throughout the building so it is part of our association fee and isn't very high to begin with. Typically, it costs about $20 a month to heat a condo unit in our building in the winter. We have 16 boilers. 4 are for the hot water for showers, etc. and the remainder are for heating the building. I have never seen more than 4 running at one time even on the coldest days.

Tony
 
I have a fixed tariff till July I believe, for both
gas and electricity I pay £56 per month, total
for the pair.

If the wholesale price goes up, mine stays as
it is, but if the price drops, so does mine, that
hasn't happened yet though.

Mike.
 
Any bill that I get is the same as a paper one. There’s a due date and it has to have leeway well ahead of then. On the due date and not one day before, they can remove your payment. If there was a monstrous mistake, you can cancel your auto pay and deal with the company.
 
ohioboy said:
They will never be able to collect the bills. Under the doctrine of Unjust Enrichment, plus other legal defenses, customers can fight it, no question.
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I hope all fight it.

Some of the bills I came across in articles are large enough to put a homeowner under. So shameful.
 
I don't like autopay for anything. I like to be in control of where my money is going, and how much.

Another thing I don't like is autorenewal. I subscribed to Lumosity, and foolishly clicked on the option to automatically renew every year. I had forgotten all about that. All of a sudden, I got a hefty bill for the next year's worth. I immediately cancelled the "auto" part, so it won't happen again. (Fun games, but I don't like being automatically charged for anything. And Lumosity isn't cheap.)
 

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