The Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority (AAPP) has ordered LUMA Energy to investigate whether the installation of smart meters caused the unusual increases customers have reported on their electricity bills. In an October 24 letter to LUMA president Janisse Quiñones, AAPP executive director and energy czar Josué A. Colón Ortiz demands a written report within five calendar days.
The AAPP has received "an unusual increase in complaints from residential, commercial and other customers about substantial and seemingly inexplicable increases in their monthly electricity bills." In several cases, customers allege their bills rose by thousands of dollars from one period to the next with no matching rise in consumption. The complaints followed the latest quarterly reconciliation, while LUMA continues installing smart meters across the island.
Colón Ortiz asks LUMA to examine the accuracy of readings, the correct pairing of each meter with its account, data migration, and adjustments between estimated and actual readings. The letter says quarterly reconciliation adjustments alone do not explain extraordinary changes in recorded consumption or meter readings. Colón Ortiz also said the complaints do not by themselves establish a billing error or equipment fault.
LUMA must provide a breakdown by customer class of complaints received, accounts reviewed and confirmed errors, plus causes, financial impact and corrections, including credits, and any interim measures to protect customers. The certified report goes to the AAPP and the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau. In written statements, LUMA said its billing systems are reliable and it has identified no irregularities so far.