Thousands of Ontarians are being hit with a double shocker this month. Their hydro bills have jumped 15 to 20 per cent, and the bills for at least 100,000 Enbridge gas customers are at least triple what they expected.
Shannon Murphy and her husband Mike are on an equal billing program with Enbridge, and July is the time to settle up for the year.
They were told they owe about $400 more than expected. They are not alone. It's estimated about one in 10 of those on the billing program will be surprised.
Enbridge admits its program to track natural gas consumption was out of whack and some people have to pay more than $1,000 because monthly payments were too low.
"To get hit with this is just a big surprise and while we can handle this, what really upsets us is the way they handled the whole process it was just a mess," said Mike.
"They did not make adjustments when they should have to the program and they just waited until the last minute, they should have given us a warning," added Shannon.
If consumers think they will be unable to pay off their bill quickly, Enbridge is wiling to discuss terms. They say consumers should call their hotline at 1-877-362-7434.
Penalties will be waived at least until the end of September. Enbridge does not know why the bills were weighted the way they were, but said the company will make sure it does not happen again. However, the Murphy's are doubtful. Seven years ago the same thing happened to them.
As for higher hydro costs, it's not an error. Ontario is paying the cost of old technologies that need to be repaired or replaced, as well as putting money towards the cost of new power sources such as wind power.
There is a new fee to pay for green energy; the delivery cost for hydro went up nearly a dollar per month; there are debt reduction costs; the cost of energy went up eight per cent; and the HST adds another 8 per cent to your hydro bill.
With a report from CTV Ottawa's Paul Brent
