PPL Electric fined over improper billing practices
Two customers didn’t receive bills for 9 months
State regulators approved a settlement Thursday with PPL Electric Utilities after the company improperly billed five residential customers during 2017 and 2018.
Allentown’s PPL has agreed to pay a $5,000 civil penalty and provide better procedures in its billing practices, the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission said in a news release.
According to the PUC’s opinion and order:
Five customers filed complaints with the PUC saying PPL failed to issue bills during consecutive months, with at least two consumers saying the company failed to bill them for approximately nine months. The other customers’ bill delays ranged between four and eight months.
Each customer eventually received large bills from PPL for multiple months of electricity.
PUC investigators determined there was no evidence indicating PPL committed the violations intentionally, but that they were caused by a technical issue. They said the company cooperated fully with the PUC investigation, acknowledged the errors and put into effect measures that the PUC staff approved to avoid the delayed billing from reoccurring.
Besides the penalty, PPL has promised to safeguard against future billing issues by its corrective actions, including revising its operating procedures. The company will also:
Implement procedures designed to identify and replace malfunctioning meters so as not to affect a customer’s billing cycle.
Systemically identify consecutive estimate accounts, allowing the company to find and remedy any no-bill situations before a second estimated bill is sent to a customer.
PPL spokesperson Jane George said company officials worked with the help affected customers to set up payment plans. She said customers who have issues with their bills should call 800-3425775 or go to pplelectric.com.
The PUC voted 4-0 to approve the settlement during its meeting Thursday.
PPL Electric, a subsidiary of PPL Corp., distributes electricity to 1.4 million customers in 29 counties, including Lehigh and Northampton.