Delaying Utility Bills

I once received an electric bill for $11,000! Of course it was a mistake and was quickly corrected after a brief phone call. But I did receive a nice brochure from the electric company listing all my legal rights and I found the brochure very interesting.

Few people know that there's a law that gives you the right to question a utility bill's accuracy. In the past there have been cases where gas and electric meters have provided erroneous readings. Laws were passed that give you the right to question any bill which will force the utility company to stop billing you until they've properly investigated the situation and resolved the discrepancy.

To save money, many utility companies will only bother to read the meter every other month and just estimate the bill for the months in between readings.

Of course, their estimates are often much higher that might be expected which is their way of giving their income a little boost. But you have rights that they must respect.

In my area I know that I am entitled to request a verification of a bill once a year. When I make this request the outstanding balance on my bill is suspended until a reading can be taken by an actual human meter reader. This ploy can easily gain you a two or three week long delay - which may be all you need to come up with more money.