Penticton electrical utility audit stepped up after error found

PENTICTON – An audit of Penticton’s electrical utility is being ramped up following the discovery of an over billed account.

A four-year audit of the City of Penticton’s top 100 commercial energy consumers uncovered some incorrectly installed electrical equipment that resulted in overbilling of a single account, chief administrative officer Peter Weeber says in an emailed statement.

The audit process examined physical installation of commercial services of more than 200 amps, in addition to looking at the meter multiplier calculation and the associated rate code, he says.

"Maintaining customer confidence in the process by which billing amounts are calculated is a priority for the city’s electrical utility. When our audit discovered a single installation problem that could be replicated at other commercial consumer locations, we made the decision to expand the scope of our original top 100 review,” Weeber says.

Steps are being taken to ensure the problem, which may have gone unnoticed by some commercial energy consumers, is resolved quickly, he says.

A contracted service provider knowledgeable in commercial electrical connections has been hired to help review the city’s commercial energy consumer group for the rest of the year.

Commercial energy consumers found to be impacted will be contacted to arrange for an inspection and if issues are discovered, the city will follow up.

Weeber says 97 per cent of the city’s billing accounts are not impacted by the issue, but the city still believes an expansion of the current audit program is the quickest and most responsible way to resolve the matter.

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