CUSTOMERS SEE RED OVER HIGH TNB BILLS
More than 500 people seek explanation at TNB’s ‘Meet the Customers Day’
MORE than 500 customers gathered at Wisma Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) in Jalan Banda Kaba here yesterday to demand an explanation on the unusually high electricity bill charges.
Bachang Baru resident Pok Awe Chon, 72, said he was shocked to receive a bill on April 14 with a current charge rate of RM2,068 with arrears amounting to RM266 over a 121-day period. A day earlier, he said, he had received a bill for RM266 without any arrears, over a 29-day period.
“I was surprised that the April bill reached over RM2,000, while the latest one amounts to RM740,
with RM3,075 arrears.
“Before this, I had to pay only about RM300 each month and had never missed a payment. But for the bill on April 14, I had to pay RM2,334,” said Pok Awe, who lives with five other family members.
He said electricity consumption in his house was confined to four air conditioners, a fridge and a television, adding that he did not switch on all the electrical items, except the fan, during the day.
Zulhusmi Othman, 31, said his wife was puzzled when she was informed that her father-in-law, who lives in Taman Merdeka, had lodged a complaint with TNB over the sudden rise in electricity bill charges despite not having switched to the smart meter yet. Furthermore, no TNB representative had dropped by to check the meter over the three months.
Not only that, when his wife met with a representative for an explanation, she was shocked to learn that she had to pay over RM1,700 for charges before and after the smart meter conversion in March.
“My father-in-law realised something was wrong with the old meter when the readings were inaccurate. Even after the main switch was turned off, the bill increased to over RM900.
“After the conversion to smart meter, the April bill rose to over RM800.”
They were among more than 500 TNB state account users present at TNB’s “Meet the Customers Day” programme, which is being held for five days, beginning Tuesday.
TNB Melaka customer service head Ahmad Rezahan Mohammad said as of 12.30pm yesterday, 580 complaints were recorded from domestic and commercial users on the unusually high bill charges and smart meter problems.
“Many have accepted the explanation by our representatives during the programme. Some users are asking for TNB to do smart meter checks at their homes, and we have a team of 18 people on the ground for that.”
Ahmad Rezahan said he would consider continuing the programme outside the confines of the TNB office after Hari Raya, following a request from the state assemblyman to help bring customers and TNB together.
“We will continue with this programme, but with different methods and locations. During the meet-the-customer session, we can have a dialogue,” he said, adding that he was open to receiving feedback from customers.