Maritime Electric customers getting rebate after rate increase applied early

About 80,000 electricity customers on P.E.I. can expect to see rebates on their bills in March, after the Island Regulatory and Appeals Commission ruled they were over-billed in January.

The issue revolves around an approved rate increase that came into effect Jan. 1. Maritime Electric billed customers for the increase for the whole of their January bills, even if some of the electricity was actually consumed in December.

Following a complaint from a customer, IRAC ordered the company to refund the overpayment. In a letter of response, Maritime Electric said it would provide the refunds, but noted this has been its practice for implementing rate increases since about 2005.

Maritime Electric spokesperson Kim Griffin said it would take some time to calculate the rebates. Customers have different billing dates, so different numbers of days in December would have been charged on January bills.

"We'll be going through customer by customer, making sure and understanding if they were charged that new rate in any time in the month of December. If they are, that credit will be applied directly to their bill," said Griffin.

"If we look at a typical customer, which is generally how we speak of it, but, you know, it could be anywhere from 20 cents to a $5 credit on their account."

Most customers will receive the one-time credit on their bills in March. A line on the bill will show how the credit was calculated and its value.

In total Maritime Electric says the refunds will cost the company about $250,000 in lost revenue.

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