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Damned if you do, damned if you don't: ESB fines customers for saving electricity

  • 27-02-2012 5:05pm
    #1
    hatrickpatrick
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 17,797 ✭✭✭✭


    http://www.thejournal.ie/energy-customers-face-minimum-charge-for-not-using-enough-electricity-366894-Feb2012/
    AN ESB-OWNED ENERGY company has introduced a new billing system which will see some customers have their bills increased – for not using enough electricity.
    Electric Ireland, which was formally rebranded from ‘ESB’ shortly before Christmas, introduced a ‘low user standing charge‘ earlier this month – which means users who use only small amounts of electricity will pay for more than they actually use.
    The charge applies to households who use an average of two units (kilowatt-hours) per day across the two-month billing period – adding €9.45 to each bill if customers fall below that minimum usage threshold.
    Electric Ireland explains that the cost of necessary because the cost of maintaining the electricity network, and running billing and customer services has increased- with the result that low-spending households don’t actually pay enough to cover the costs.
    Second or holiday homes which lie vacant for much of the year are most likely to incur the new charge. The average household uses several dozen units a day: for example a 28″ television, left turned on, would use around three units over a 24-hour day.
    “This leaves us with no option in these situations but to increase the standing charge on these accounts,” it says, noting that the alternative option would have been to raise the flat ‘standing charge’ for all customers.

    This is without doubt one of the most ridiculous and outrageous things I have ever read. ESB's logo should LITERALLY have a trollface embedded into it.

    http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_ldp3yyI6tu1qb9a2wo1_500.png

    They increase bills by ridiculous amounts, so customers start trying to save as much as they can. They react to this by introducing a new charge to circumvent those who try to save electricity.

    They are literally treating their customers like cash cows to be milked at will, rather than customers who pay for a product they receive.

    Any chance whatsoever of a protest, boycott, or anything else other than a few angry calls to Joe over this?


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