Anyone know the statute of limitations for Louisville Gas & Electric overcharges? Found what looks like incorrect demand billing going back 3+ years on a manufacturing client. We're talking about $18,000 in potential refunds but I want to make sure we can actually recover it before I spend more time on the analysis. Kentucky law seems murky on this.
Kentucky - LG&E statute limitations question
Jack, in New York we can go back 6 years with most utilities but I've heard Kentucky is only 3 years. You might want to check LG&E's tariff directly - sometimes they spell it out in the general terms section. Worth a call to their commercial billing department too.
Reggie here from Memphis. We deal with similar issues with MLGW and Tennessee is definitely 3 years max. Kentucky might be the same since they're neighboring states with similar utility regulations. That $18K is worth pursuing even if you can only go back 3 years though.
I've worked on LG&E cases before. Kentucky follows the 3-year rule for most utility disputes. However, if you can prove fraudulent concealment or that the utility knew about the error and didn't correct it, you might be able to extend that. Document everything and see if there's any correspondence showing they were aware of the billing issue.
Thanks everyone. Greg, interesting point about fraudulent concealment. The demand charges were clearly wrong based on their own tariff schedule GS-3, and I have emails from 2010 where the customer questioned it but LG&E dismissed the concern. That might be our angle to go back further.
Jack, those emails could be gold. In North Carolina with Duke Energy, we've successfully argued the statute clock doesn't start ticking until the customer discovers or reasonably should have discovered the overcharge. If LG&E brushed off legitimate concerns, that could reset your timeline. Definitely pursue this one.
Update: Filed the complaint with LG&E and cited the 2010 emails as evidence they had notice of the error. They're reviewing but initial response suggests they're willing to go back to 2010. Sometimes it pays to be persistent. Thanks for the advice everyone!