Woman discovers she paid utility bills for her entire building. She realized her mistake 2 years later

Amid soaring inflation and sky-high cost of living, getting big utility bills isn’t out of the ordinary. This is what TikTok user Brooke Patterson ( @vapestar69 ) felt when she received an unusually high bill for her apartment utilities. After making hefty payments of nearly $400 per month for two years, Patterson was shocked to discover that she had been paying the utility bills for not just her apartment but for the entire building. She then took to TikTok to explain how it all happened.

Here's Why Brooke Patterson Paid Utility Bills for Her Entire Building

In the video which now has over 9.7 million views, Patterson explained how she mistakenly overpaid the bills. Firstly, she explained that she initially found the prices unusually high but the power company San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) said that the bills were normal when she inquired about it.

However, as per the reports, Patterson only discovered the error after SDG&E cut off power to her apartment. She explained that the bills were high due to an error caused by issues with an ex-partner. It turns out that her ex-partner had an account for utilities and when he moved out Patterson couldn’t open a new account as the older one had to be closed. However, in another attempt, Patterson was able to open a new account swiftly. This was only because she didn’t open an account for herself but instead, she opened an account for the entire building. This is why her utility bills were sky-high.

However, the comment section of the video wasn’t convinced at all. Several users were baffled by the fact that she did not know. “How did you now know?? Genuinely??????” one user wrote. Meanwhile, another user rightfully pointed out the fact that this means for two years everyone in her building paid $0 and said nothing.

To this, Patterson replied in a follow-up video explaining that she lived in a small apartment with small units. Furthermore, she was paying the bills during the winter months thus the bills of $400 seemed somehow justified in her head, which is why she didn’t question it right away.

Several users suggested things that she should do as well. While one user exclaimed that she should lawyer up and go after a refund, another user suggested that her landlord may be due for a lawsuit as well.

Thankfully, as per Patterson’s follow-up videos, it seems that the issue has been resolved and she is in the process of getting a refund. In her follow-up videos, she said that she took the matter up with SDG&E and they have promised a refund for the extra payments. However, the company had informed her that it would be a lengthy process as bills of the past two years had to be reviewed.

She even posted a video responding to a user who asked her to demand interest on the overcharged payments. She said she would like to explore the potential of it and asked if any of the viewers could help her out with it.

Follow @vapestar69 for more content.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on March 20, 2024. It has since been updated.