Becky had two BC Hydro accounts with separate meters – one for her house and one for her shop. Her shop meter was broken for a period of time but BC Hydro continued to charge her for consumption. When a BC Hydro technician arrived to exchange the shop meter, she asked if an analog meter could be installed. The technician did not have an analog meter but told Becky he could come back in a week to install one. Feeling like she wasn’t getting anywhere with BC Hydro, Becky contacted us.

We contacted BC Hydro and were told that while the meter display was indeed broken and had been for some time, it was still drawing energy. BC Hydro advised us that it had conducted a full review of Becky’s shop account and acknowledged that it had failed to address her broken meter display in a timely manner. BC Hydro adjusted Becky’s billing so she was charged the minimum daily amount from the time the meter display broke to when she refused the meter exchange. As a result, Becky was credited $3,200.

With respect to the meter exchange issue, the BC Hydro technician’s notes stated that Becky refused the exchange because she wanted an analog meter, not a smart meter. BC Hydro explained that all its technicians were aware that analog meters were no longer available for exchange and that it did not have any in stock. As such, BC Hydro was not willing to further adjust Becky’s billing or waive the fees. Our investigation determined BC Hydro’s position on this matter did not appear to be unreasonable.