Electric Company wants to collect for a year of service when I wasn't living there.

[ryonekora]

I live in Wisconsin. The electric company in question is Xcel Energy. Here is the situation.

I lived in Blair, WI for a little over half a year. At the time, I had Xcel for my energy provider. I paid all of my bills, not having owed them a cent when I moved out.

I now live in Eau Claire, WI with a friend as my roommate. We have Xcel again as our energy provider, and have been living here for about four months. Last month, Xcel added a $150 charge to our bill. Confused, I gave them a call. They said it was a transferred balance that I owed them from my old residence in Blair. I explained to them that I had paid all of my bills there and had moved out in September of 2003. They told me that the energy had just been shut off in September of 2004. So, for a whole year of not living there, I was charged for service. The man on the phone told me that I might not have called to cancel. I accepted that might be true, I could have forgotten. However, if it is, I should not have to pay for more than a month or two of the service for my mistake. My reasoning is these people had my phone number and email address on file and not once did they even attempt to contact me. All I got from the man on the phone was "the bill has to be paid."

Legally, am I in the right? I need to settle this somehow so I can pay what I actually owe for my current service in Eau Claire, as I have not been able to pay my bill because they want the whole amount, including the service I do not owe for. Thanks.

Joseph

 

[You Are Guilty]

I live in Wisconsin. The electric company in question is Xcel Energy. Here is the situation.

I lived in Blair, WI for a little over half a year. At the time, I had Xcel for my energy provider. I paid all of my bills, not having owed them a cent when I moved out.

I now live in Eau Claire, WI with a friend as my roommate. We have Xcel again as our energy provider, and have been living here for about four months. Last month, Xcel added a $150 charge to our bill. Confused, I gave them a call. They said it was a transferred balance that I owed them from my old residence in Blair. I explained to them that I had paid all of my bills there and had moved out in September of 2003. They told me that the energy had just been shut off in September of 2004. So, for a whole year of not living there, I was charged for service. The man on the phone told me that I might not have called to cancel. I accepted that might be true, I could have forgotten. However, if it is, I should not have to pay for more than a month or two of the service for my mistake. My reasoning is these people had my phone number and email address on file and not once did they even attempt to contact me. All I got from the man on the phone was "the bill has to be paid."

Legally, am I in the right? I need to settle this somehow so I can pay what I actually owe for my current service in Eau Claire, as I have not been able to pay my bill because they want the whole amount, including the service I do not owe for. Thanks.

Joseph

Oh, I see good things for you in the 2005 Dumbest Post of the Year contest. Good luck!

 

[ihatearizona]

If you didn't cancel the service, or have proof if you did, you are indeed responsible for this payment.

 

[ryonekora]

Oh, I see good things for you in the 2005 Dumbest Post of the Year contest. Good luck!

yeah, this doesn't really help at all.

I'm admitting I'm at fault for not calling, if you read my post, you'd see that the case isn't that I'm trying to completely get out of paying them anything. I'm saying that I'd be willing to pay for two or three months of the service, (in which time they should have made an effort to contact me, as they had my phone number and email address on file).

 

[You Are Guilty]

yeah, this doesn't really help at all.

I'm admitting I'm at fault for not calling, if you read my post, you'd see that the case isn't that I'm trying to completely get out of paying them anything. I'm saying that I'd be willing to pay for two or three months of the service, (in which time they should have made an effort to contact me, as they had my phone number and email address on file).

And exactly why is it their burden to "track you down"? Particularly when you not only knew wher they were, I am quite sure your contract/terms of service state that it's on your head to notify and confirm any cancellations.

You screwed up. Might as well pay it now before it starts collecting interest, its a cheap lesson.

 

[Happy Trails]

The problem with you not canceling is that they didn't know you were no longer there. (This is your responsibility and you should always get your last meter reading)

Was it an apartment? Who moved in the place you moved out of? Do you know who should have been responsilble for the electrical use after you no longer lived there?

Obviously, someone had been paying on the bill. Unless in Wisconsin your electric expense is extremely low. If they lived there for a year, then left with an outstanding amount due, this could be the amount they are seeking from you since it was still in your name. They had to have been paying part of the time, possibly with a check, that might be a way you could track down the actual users of the service.