Sandra Corrigan to Hydro One: 'I would like someone to give me an answer'

Sandra Corrigan is all in favour of paying her hydro bill. What she questions is how accurate they are, especially when the bills are highest when she's been away.

Corriganrecently retired, and chose to travel this past winter.

The Terrace Bay resident says that her December/January bill was about $538. That might be on par with some larger homes in town, but Corrigan said she unplugged everything possible, except for her furnace and fridge.

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"I emptied out a huge deep freeze," Corrigan said, "I emptied out a mini bar fridge, unplugged all that stuff, unplugged every cord I could possible in the house, [turned the] heat down to 15 and it's an electric furnace, and left my refrigerator running."

She also added that the electric furnace and fridge are both newer, about ten years old, and energy efficient.

Corrigan was also proactive in insulating a portion of her home, and putting film on windows she said wereexperiencing heat loss.

"In two particular months," Corrigan said, "when I look the kilowatts per hour, I actually used more kilowatts per hour in that month, by not being in my house, than when I lived there."

Corrigan, who also warms her house using a pellet stove, can't figure out how the bill was calculated, and hasn't been able to get a straight answer.

She said she's had her smart meter checked by Hydro One, but no issues were found.

"So, I just can't understand, I would like somebody to give me an answer as to how I could possibly use five kilowatts per hour more per month than I was gone, than I was the year before," she said.

Maybe it was just the harsh winter that drove up hydro rates? Not so, said Corrigan.

"If you know this area," she said, "we had a much milder winter according right to Hydro One's site."