NYSEG customers complain of higher than usual energy bills

Multiple NYSEG customers have reached out to 7 Problem Solvers about higher-than-usual energy bills they have gotten recently.

The customers said the high bills came after the company installed smart meters in their homes. The modules transmit actual usage back to NYSEG to eliminate meter readings by the customer or NYSEG employee.

"In the five years we’ve lived here we’ve never gotten a bill that big, even with estimated and actual from month-to-month," explained Lauren Rogers, of Alden.

Rogers, who keeps a close eye on all her bills, said she got a $433 NYSEG bill last week, which she said is usually around $170 in the summer. Rogers called NYSEG and said she was told there was an error when the smart meter was installed.

"We were overcharged by 1,000 kilowatts," said Rogers, who said her bill was lowered to $188. Still, Rogers said her usage has been reading higher than normal.

"Since getting the new reader, our average daily use has gone up 10-15 kilowatts per day, which still seems a bit excessive since we’re not doing anything different," said Rogers. "I will give the benefit of the doubt since we had super high temperatures that one week, but it's still questionable in my mind, because it was right after the smart meter got installed."

Other NYSEG customers, multiple from Alden, reached out to me about their bills too. One Alden woman told me that her bill went up more than $100 since the smart meter was installed.

However, despite the complaints, NYSEG said higher bills have nothing to do with smart meters. The modules have only been installed to make readings more accurate.

"Bill increases could be because of a variety of factors," said Shelby Cohen, NYSEG Senior Manager for Communications.

Cohen said higher bills could be caused by:

• Increased seasonal usage based on heat or cold weather
• Increased natural gas costs
• Discrepancies between estimated and actual readings

Cohen said customers are not being charged for smart meters, and don't need to do anything if their meter is located outside their home. If a meter is located inside, Cohen said a NYSEG employee will leave a card to set up a smart meter installation appointment.
Cohen encourages customers with billing issues to call 1-800-572-1111 or learn more about smart meters on NYSEG's website.

If you choose to not get a smart meter NYSEG will charge customers a $13.47 monthly opt-out fee.

I asked NYSEG if the company was looking into any installation issues that could be associated with the higher bill complaints, but I did not get an answer.

Cohen said more than 50,000 smart meters have been installed so far in the Western New York area. The company serves around 170,000 customers in WNY and plans to install the remaining smart meters by the end of 2024.

NYSEG is hosting an in-person open house about smart meters on September 26 at the West Seneca Public Library, which is located at 1300 Union Road, in West Seneca.

If you need a consumer issue looked into, email 7ProblemSolvers@WKBW.com