Meralco apologizes for bill shock during lockdown

The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) expressed a public apology for the confusion the company caused in its electricity billing during the enhanced community quarantine.

As reported by ABS-CBN News, Meralco president and CEO Ray Espinosa admitted that the company failed to clarify the actual and estimated meter readings to the customers.

“I believe it is necessary now for Meralco to send each of our customers a separate clarificatory letter to show the reading in February, in May or in June, and explain to them clearly,” he said during the hearing with the Senate Committee on Energy.

Previously, Meralco explained that March and April  2020 bills were estimated based on the past 3 months’ average daily consumption following the Distribution Services and Open Access Rules (DSOAR) issued by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

Espinosa said that it will release corrections in the previous electricity bills in 30 days and strengthen its customer service on its various channels including social media.

Earlier last month, the ERC required the electric power distribution company to submit a document explaining its side regarding its non-compliance with the advisories that the former has issued. This includes the usage of the word “estimate” for distributing consumer’s bills, which reflects their past 3 months’ average daily consumption and the amortization of electricity bills within the ECQ period for four succeeding billing months.

Source: ABS-CBN News