Natural gas billing, am I stuck?

January 17, 2006 3:01 PM

Natural Gas billing question...

The past 4 months (as long as I've lived in the apartment) our gas bill has been pretty cheap (<$30/month). It's a 3rd floor apartment, so we don't need to run the heater often, and we have an electric water heater. The bill for december however, is $136, due to the Gas company finally checking the meter and getting a reading.

I think I'm getting shafted here since I've been here for 4 months, and the meter hasn't been read in what I'm guessing is over a year.

Am I stuck with the bill that the previous occupants could have racked up?

posted by borkencode to Work & Money (14 answers total)

it's just expensive in winter, is what i've heard. i had mega-low gas bills up until last month or so, and now suddenly i'm being asked to cough up 150 bucks. i think it's just What Happens.
posted by soma lkzx at 3:05 PM on January 17, 2006

Yup, this is likely what you owe (checking from your location). I've noticed a significant increase in my gas/electric bill here in New York, which I attribute to the higher cost of energy lately generally (I think I read an article specifically about utilities' increasing their rates).

But, if you have any trouble paying it right away, they will most assuredly help you pay it over time.
posted by lackutrol at 3:23 PM on January 17, 2006

I got an estimated gas bill in November for 165.00. This was impossible as I was running space heaters to avoid this. My bills are based on an estimate of the previous occupant's bills. What Laclede gas allows customers to do is read their own meters with these cards you have to send in every month. You may want to ask if they can let you do that. I actually may be getting credited once I get the gas out of my name at the end of the month.
posted by pieoverdone at 3:35 PM on January 17, 2006

Natural gas prices are going through the roof this year.

Think about going on the equal payment plan (EPP) - most utilities have them - helps reduce the sticker shock a bit by paying the same amount all year round.

That being said, our EPP amount went up 50% this month in anticipation of higher prices all winter.
posted by SashaPT at 3:51 PM on January 17, 2006

The prices down here in Greensboro, NC, went up about 50% last month specifically, which is when Piedmont's new rate schedule went into effect. I'm paying 50% over last year, in the exact same apartment, for the exact same energy usage.

Last month was also probably the first month you've been using the heater with any regularity.

So to some extent I think that's just how much it costs. You should call the gas company to confirm that the meter reading is right, but it probably is, and that's probably just how much it's going to cost you from here on out.

For comparison purposes, my bill is usually $20 in the summer and fall and $100 or so a month in the winter.
posted by BackwardsCity at 4:02 PM on January 17, 2006

Specifically, my December bill was $99 last year and $140 this year, for the same usage.

I'm heating a whole house, though, not an apartment, but I'm also further south.

I think a lot of people are having the same ugly surprise you're having this month. I know I was shocked when my bill came.
posted by BackwardsCity at 4:05 PM on January 17, 2006

I've heard the "how about this last gas bill, huh?" conversation pop up a couple times this week. This is what happened with Laclede gas here in St. Louis:

the gas rate rose from 83 cents to $1.13, effective Nov 14

about 60 days later, we're getting a rate cut down to $1.03 this month

So this bill and the next will be flippin nuts. Later bills will suck less, but still be worse than they were before. What blows is that measures taken now to limit usage will be too late to affect usage during the time the rates were the highest. You're definitely not the only person who didn't see it coming.
posted by neda at 5:07 PM on January 17, 2006

Gas bills? Holy hell. I'm in a 3BR house in the Boston, MA area. My girlfriend and I have closed off and shut down the radiators completely in two of the rooms. Our thermostat is set at 57 (< -- yes 57) for the rest of the house (lr, dr, kitchen, 1br, bathroom) and i just opened my gas bill today for the month of december.... $578.00. last year, with the thermostat set slightly higher and all three brs being heated, the bill was under $300. br>
I'm going to be on the phone with NStar in the morning.
posted by evoo at 8:08 PM on January 17, 2006

I feel your pain, evoo. I'd love to have a winter gas bill that was only $136.

For the OP, I'd second sashapt's suggestion of getting on a monthly payment plan with your gas company that spreads your payments evenly throughout the year. Though there can still be surprises (like when my payment went up 30% this year), it minimizes budget crushing winter month heating bills.
posted by MegoSteve at 8:47 PM on January 17, 2006

I've run into the same issues in the past, you are almost certainly being charged what you owe. No gas company would ever let a previous tenant close their account without getting a final reading. Also, you should have gotten an initial reading when you opened your gas bill account. At the very least, you can call the gas company and determine how many units you're actually being billed for, and compare to what your initial reading was (and if you didn't get an initial reading, even if it's invalid you are basically screwed).
posted by antifuse at 1:37 AM on January 18, 2006

A lot will depend on the way that your bill works. There are many possible variations. Straightforward charge per unit alone is unusual for example. Some utilities will charge a fairly linear charge per unit on top of a 'standing charge' (A UK term, basically a fixed amount payable as a base within your bill.) There are variations where the first few units are relatively cheap then units get more expensive the more you use. (Encourages lower use so often forced on utilities by regulators for efficiency/environmental reasons, but also has implications for infrastructure/capacity and does reflect increasing marginal costs of energy/fuel procurement.) This kind of billing could see big jumps seasonally dependent on where the change-up is in terms of fuel use.

Key to this is likely to be whether you took a meter reading when you moved in and informed the utility as to the then reading. If you didn't then you might be stuck, but as antifuse points out the utility should have a reading from when they closed the previous occupier's account. If your taking a reading wasn't possible then it may be that you have some sort of case with the utility. Consider contacting your local regulator or consumer protection body (should you have one) for advice. From a quick search your local regulator appears to be the Illinois Commerce Commission (but I'm uncertain of this).

Apparently however, gas bills are high currently in your area. Here is some local advice for cutting down on your gas bill.
posted by biffa at 3:22 AM on January 18, 2006

I had this same problem when I first moved into my current house -- it was $30ish for the first few months (sept) but in January it went up to about $150 to $200. I called them on it and the dispatcher said about this time of year they charge some kind of distribution cost fee that only comes around this time, that it's not permament. My grandfather has his bills automatically deducted and after I told him he went to check it out and they were high then also. It may just be a temporary thing and return to normal in a few bills, as mine did.
posted by vanoakenfold at 8:20 AM on January 18, 2006

In some places, gas companies only estimate the readings. I got nailed one year when I lived in a tiny one-bedroom apartment: the reading was fairly low one month, but the next month, it was HUGE, like over $200. And it was summer, not winter.

When I called the company, they said they actually finally had sent someone out to read the meter and now I was having to catch up. They told me that if I wanted, someone could always come out to read the meter. After that apartment, I've told every gas company to send someone to read the meter.

I live in a house now, and pay a set payment each month. I did notice on the December billing that "due to inclement weather, some readings were estimated." The company I have now will soon be installing new meters that send the readings directly to the company.

My advice is to tell the company you want actual readings every month, not estimates.
posted by cass at 11:23 AM on January 18, 2006

In some places (e.g. the UK), you can call in the figures from your meter yourself. it's worth bearing in mind that it's often not in your interests to have people reading meters every time as it raises costs for the company and thus the consumer. Phoning it in saves them and you costs. Of course, the estimated bill does give them chance to screw you.
posted by biffa at 12:06 PM on January 18, 2006