Suddenly she got 18 electricity bills. “It's mind-boggling”

Izabela Bobrowska works at Germany on a monthly basis. One month is at work, and then the same amount of time at home, in Konin (Wielkopolska Province).

– This means that I am not at home for half a year. The maximum bills that I get for electricity for two months are about three hundred zlotys, most often they are lower. On April 29, 2024, I received as many as 18 invoices from Energia for almost a thousand zlotys without any explanation. Without a description of what these invoices concern, which months and years, and why there are so many of them – she says at the beginning of the interview with the business editorial office of tvn24.pl.

She guessed that these were not invoices for current electricity consumption, because a few days later the bill for April arrived. So she called the Energia hotline to explain the situation. “I found out that my meter was incorrectly calibrated and that's why the corrections. So how was the consumption calculated if the device was not working properly?” she asks.

We are reviewing the correspondence that Izabela Bobrowska exchanged with Energa. In response to her questions asking for clarification of the situation, the energy company wrote on May 21 of this year: “As a result of checking your meter, errors were found in its connection. This concerned the period from March 2015 to April 2024.”

– I don't understand this answer. If I had been understating my consumption for years, I would have paid the extra amount without batting an eyelid. It would have been my mistake. However, here there is an error in connecting the meter and it's been nine years. How are we supposed to calculate what I have to pay for? This is ridiculous – the interlocutor points out.

She recalls a discussion on the subject with a consultant. – I asked on the hotline why should I pay for someone's incompetence? The consultant replied that I had used the electricity anyway. How did he know that? It's unbelievable that you could make a summary of a few years and send someone a dozen or so invoices without detailed information – Ms. Izabela points out.

In another response from Energia, we read a more technical explanation of what the meter is about. “According to the information we received from the distributor, as a result of checking the meter on 22.04.2024, it was found that one phase under the meter (inlet and outlet) was swapped. The meter counted the energy given off (A-), while the recipient does not have a photovoltaic installation. In connection with the above, a corrective adjustment was made. The correction was made only for the period of 3 years back to + 586 kWh, while the recipient used 3794 kWh in the entire period.”

Izabela Bobrowska asks Energa to present expert opinions. – If I was certain that what I see on the bills would reflect my consumption, I would pay immediately, but I don't believe them. I need proof. At the beginning of August, I receive a reply from Energa that they are directing me to the distribution system operator Energa Operator to obtain an expert opinion – she says and shows us a message from the electricity supplier.

– I can't count the hours I've spent on this matter. I've written emails, I've been physically in the customer service office in Konin, I've called the Energia hotline – she lists. – And I have to apply to another company for expertise? – she shrugs.

She points out that she has paid the current invoice, but is waiting for the rest. – It cannot be that they send the client invoices for a horrendous amount after several years without information, without explanation – she says.

Izabela Bobrowska recalls that she wrote for help to the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection, to the municipal consumer advocate. – I received no response from anyone. Such a state within a state – she assesses the situation.

We contact the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection. Małgorzata Cieloch, director of the communication department, tells us that “the problem between the power plant-meter-customer, especially when the consumer describes the relationship from 9 years ago, can be solved by the consumer advocate or the legal aid point at the Energy Regulatory Office (Energy Regulatory Office – ed.)”.

– It is also worth being aware that lawyers will probably also verify in such cases the possibility of the limitation of certain claims arising from the Civil Code – he points out.

We ask Magdalena Dąbrowska, spokeswoman for the Energy Regulatory Office, whether the consumer should pay for a wrongly connected meter? “The correction concerns the actual consumption and use of electricity” – we read in the response.

Tatiana Przychodzka-Gorzelańczyk, the Municipal Consumer Ombudsman in Konin, adds in her correspondence with us that “in matters concerning the energy sector, after exhausting the complaint procedure, the consumer may turn to the consumer ombudsman in accordance with the local jurisdiction with a request to undertake an amicable intervention in the matter.”

The spokeswoman emphasizes that “each case requires individual consideration and thorough analysis of the documents.”

Maciej Rylski, an attorney at Rylski/Seweryn, reminds us in an interview with tvn24.pl that such cases have already been the subject of court decisions. The point is that the energy consumption is calculated by a meter supplied and installed by the transmission operator, so it is the operator's responsibility to ensure its efficiency.

– However, the consumer, the recipient, is also burdened with certain obligations related to, for example, securing such a meter against damage to seals and interference by unauthorized persons. After some time, the electricity seller somehow found that the meter was not working properly and underestimated its readings, which affected the amount of bills paid by the consumer. In this case, this resulted in underpayment, which the seller has now filed a claim for. In a different, but similar case Supreme Court considered that the contract concerning the sale of electricity is a mutual contract and the equivalent of the amount of energy sold is the price payable to the seller – he explains.

He added that the court pointed out that the meter is a technical device that may break down for various reasons.

– He agreed that the consumer cannot pay extra for the price if the reasons are the fault of the seller. This is where the issue of the burden of proof comes in. The electricity seller, who claimed that the meter was not working properly and was charging less than it should have, should prove this fact – he emphasizes.

He adds that the consumer may file a complaint and then the seller will have to demonstrate the basis on which he states that these readings are incorrect.

– Going further, as a consequence, it may end up in a court case, where the expert opinion will be important. This is the theory, and the practice is that if the consumer disputes the settlement and does not pay it, the seller may stop the supply of electricity – he notes.

Rylski compares the matter to a situation when we buy some goods by weight. – For example, two kilos of candy, and due to a scale error we pay for the kilo. This does not mean that we are entitled to a kilo for free – he says.

He also adds that in accordance with the regulation of the Minister of Climate and Environment on the method of shaping and calculating tariffs and the method of settlement in electricity trading, in the event of errors in measurement or reading of the measurement and settlement system or other irregularities that resulted in overstating or understating the amount due for the electricity consumed, the energy company corrects the invoices issued.

– The basis for calculating the amount of the invoice correction is the amount of the error in the reading or indications of the measurement and settlement system. Therefore, the provisions of the law directly allow for the possibility of the discussed situation occurring – he points out.

At the same time, he explains that he would distinguish the issue of obligations related to correct connection and calibration from the actual electricity supplied.

– If the seller is able to prove that the meter was indeed connected and calibrated incorrectly, but at the same time is able to prove how much electricity he actually delivered to the customer for which he is due payment, then such compensation will then be justified – believes Maciej Rylski.

Considering that similar cases are already in the courts, he says he would draw the electricity supplier's attention to the issue of clear procedures for demonstrating to the consumer the reasons for any possible differences in price.

– This involves explaining what evidence was used to establish that the electricity actually supplied was higher than the fees charged in the previous invoices – advises the attorney.

We contacted the Energa press office and asked for a comment on the case of Izabela Bobrowska.

“The installed meter is a bidirectional meter, which means it allows for measuring the energy consumed as well as the energy delivered to the grid. Meters of this type are installed by Energa Operator for all recipients,” the press office explains in its correspondence.

Energa maintains that “the system was connected incorrectly”. “As a result, part of the energy taken was not transferred to settlements. During the execution of the order, the distributor restored the correct meter connection system and ordered correction of settlements” – we read in the response.

As added, “what is important – the electricity in the amount shown in the correction was in fact taken by the recipient, but incorrectly registered as delivered energy and as a result not settled on an ongoing basis.”

“The identified irregularity was the result of an error by the distributor's representative, which occurred during the meter installation. We sincerely apologize for the situation. We are committed to resolving it successfully. The company has prepared a solution that it will propose to the customer,” the Energia press office announced.

Read also: Revolution in electricity bills

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