Are you experiencing unusually high electricity or water bills? Use these tips to check for problems that could be costing you lots of money every month.

Check your Meter

Compare your meter reading listed on your bill to the actual reading on your meter to make sure the bill you received is accurate. If your bill states that you used 2617 kWh, when you normally use only 200, a quick look at the meter to make sure the meter reading is correct will give you the answer. If this is the case, then contact our Billing Department.

If your meter reading matches the reading on your bill, meaning you weren’t overcharged, your next step is to verify that your meter isn’t running needlessly. Shut off all the breakers or all water and see if the meter is still spinning. If it is then call a certified electrician to review your electrical circuits and breaker box, or call a plumber to check your plumbing.

Check Your Usage History

To figure out why your electric bill is “so high”, the first thing you need to do is to figure out what’s normal. If your bill has spiked recently that’s easy: Just look at your old bills and see how much your usage has gone up. Look only at the amount of electricity you used in kWh. Don’t look at the cost, because the cost could have gone up for other reasons, such as an increase in the price of fuel used to generate electricity. If your kWh usage is similar but the cost is now higher, then the answer as to why is on your bill. The fuel charge has been increased due to increases in the oil price.

Check your Consumption

Maybe your bill hasn’t gone up but you just think it’s always been too high? In that case the first thing you can do is to compare your usage to what’s normal. A typical family uses 450 kWh per month. If you’re anywhere near that you’re normal. Normal doesn’t mean good, though, since most people waste lots of energy. Visit our Environment Section to learn useful tips on conserving energy.