Just finished an audit for a daycare center in suburban Detroit - DTE territory. They've been on a residential rate for 3 years despite clearly being commercial use. Average monthly bill around $1,800. Has anyone else seen this with daycares or other small commercial operations? Seems like it would be pretty obvious to the utility.
Daycare on residential rate - how common is this?
Oh man, I see this ALL the time with daycares, small churches, even some restaurants. Utilities don't always catch it right away, especially if the business started as residential and then converted. What kind of recovery are you looking at?
Looking at about $4,200 in overcharges over the 3-year period. Not huge money but the daycare owner was thrilled. She had no idea she was on the wrong rate. Makes me wonder how many other small businesses are flying under the radar.
This is actually one of the most common errors we see with small commercial accounts. The transition from residential to commercial use often gets missed, especially with home-based businesses that expand or move to dedicated commercial space. Always check the service classification against the actual business use - low-hanging fruit for auditors.