So one of the few things I allow to take money directly out of my bank account is the Hydro (electricity) because their policy is you cannot have Equal Billing (i.e. equal monthly payments over the year), unless you allow them this capability. Normally this has been ok, although occasionally they jack up rates mid-year and then ding me severely at the end of the fiscal year (August), with a big EXTRA payment (lovely).
This year (however), the shoe is on the other foot (as it were). Due to the replacing of my air conditioner and my furnace (both of which were evidently energy hogs), I am now running a substantial positive balance on my Hydro bill (more than 4 months worth of payments ahead and this is after August’s meter reading, I believe). I figured eventually our friends at the Utility would note this and refund the money back to me (as they would send a collection agency after me, if I owed them money). Unfortunately, this is not the case, they continue to take their normal monthly payment out (which I think now is too much since I am able to build up such a HUGE imbalance) and there is no word of a refund.
A phone call is now in to them to explain exactly what will happen about this, but it is important to watch closely in these situations so that you don’t:
- Get dinged with a HUGE end of year “close out” bill
- Get charged too much and effectively loan your utility a large sum of cash for a period of time.
