Found an interesting one on a PSE&G commercial account. The October billing period was 38 days instead of the typical 30-31. The client was charged a full month of demand charges on the 38-day period. The tariff says demand charges should be prorated when the billing period exceeds 32 days. PSE&G didn't prorate. The overcharge was only $380 for one month but I'm checking every billing period in the 36-month history now.
Billing period was 38 days — client charged a full month of demand
Billing period length errors are one of those things nobody checks because the periods are usually close to 30 days. But meter reading schedules shift, especially during holidays, and you can get 35-38 day periods a few times per year. If the tariff has a proration provision and the utility isn't applying it, those small overcharges add up across multiple billing cycles. I found 7 unprorated long periods over 3 years on a FirstEnergy account — total overcharge was $3,100.
Good eye Phil. Billing period proration errors are low-dollar individually but they're systematic — if the billing system isn't applying the proration rule, it's failing on every long period for every customer. Check the billing period dates on every bill in your analysis. Any period over 32-33 days (check the specific tariff threshold) should be prorated for demand charges.
Found 5 more long periods over 3 years, all unprorated. Total recovery: $2,280. Small dollars per occurrence but the cumulative effect is real.