Electrical question

[Barry_J]

So we have a camper at a seasonal camp ground. Our meter has not moved for months, we keep getting electrical bills for $0.00. Yet we still have electricity coming to our camper. All the sites have individual meters that get read every month.When we first noticed the low bill, we contacted the front office to say “we think the meter is defective, we had an extremely low bill”, their response was “don’t worry, next time they read the meter, it will catch up”…..well it hasn’t.
My question is : is the park being charged for the electricity, and I am not getting charged
Or is the town paying and the campground is not being charged for my monthly usage?
I think I am going to mention it again…I just do not want to have it come back at me.
Any suggestions?

[Old-Biscuit]

OP paid for Site PLUS Metered Electricity

CG pays for ALL electricity used on property....(OP notified them/they are obvious owners of meter...he pays them not the Utility company)

They can/will back charge him based on 'estimate' of their previous usage (seasonal site....OP is not just a monthly user but long time user)

Electric Company I worked for would/did send make up billing based on 'estimates'/previous usage if/when meter could not be read
It is NOT rocket science....just accounts receivable/billing

Simple..........




Odd thing is NO response/follow up by OP
So who really cares!

[way2roll]

cummins2014 wrote:
if its metered what part of that are you not understanding. You can have all the moral obligation you want ,doesn't change the facts here of what he is SUPPOSED to pay.

My point is at some point its coming back on him, one conversation apparently didn't get it done . Something in writing, then its on them
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Apparently it's not being metered - lol.

Getting it in writing doesn't put the onus on them - it's always been on them. In good faith he let them know, but he has no legal obligation to address a broken piece of equipment he doesn't own. They own it - their obligation. CYA is a different conversation and to that point I agree, but none of this is- or has ever been on the OP. And if they fix it and it comes back with a hefty bill, to your point - he owes it. What difference will it make if he has it in writing he told them or not? The contract he had about paying electric is already in place.

[cummins2014]

way2roll wrote:

cummins2014 wrote:

Bobbo wrote:

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He notified them. His conscience is clear. He can't force them to fix the problem.

Sure his conscience is clear, does that change the fact he should be paying the same as the rest . Sounds like from a few of you its okay as long as he can get away with it, he did his part :h

It is ok. If he notified the proper people and they don't fix it, the Onus is on them. This is not the OP's problem to solve. He doesn't own the park. Moral and ethical obligation was met. Exactly what else would you have him do? If the OP takes any further action himself it could actually be considered overreach. I'd have no trouble sleeping.

He mentioned it once to them, as said put it in writing ,email etc. A conversation with them will be forgotten, and then possibly comes back to bite him . After all he does owe for electricity ,if its metered what part of that are you not understanding. You can have all the moral obligation you want ,doesn't change the facts here of what he is SUPPOSED to pay.

My point is at some point its coming back on him, one conversation apparently didn't get it done . Something in writing, then its on them .

[way2roll]

cummins2014 wrote:

Bobbo wrote:

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He notified them. His conscience is clear. He can't force them to fix the problem.

Sure his conscience is clear, does that change the fact he should be paying the same as the rest . Sounds like from a few of you its okay as long as he can get away with it, he did his part :h

It is ok. If he notified the proper people and they don't fix it, the Onus is on them. This is not the OP's problem to solve. He doesn't own the park. Moral and ethical obligation was met. Exactly what else would you have him do? If the OP takes any further action himself it could actually be considered overreach. I'd have no trouble sleeping.

[mr_andyj]

meters are not perfect, there are things that cause the meter to read high or low or not at all, even the ones on your house.
I suspect that the campground has one big meter at the street that they pay based on, and the ones at your site they use to add up everyone's portion. I suspect that the portions are enough to cover the electric company's bill and CG not losing money here. It is your neighbors paying for your power, not the CG.
The CG would spend more money trying to figure out the issue, your issue alone,or to replace one meter that is not costing them anything to leave alone than they would to just ignore it.

[cummins2014]

valhalla360 wrote:

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He paid for a site that includes an electrical connection, the park has an obligation to provide that connection. Should he accept a product that doesn't meet the standard he paid for?

If he notifies them (preferably in writing), his moral obligation is met and he is under no obligation to stop using electricity.

Now if he started stringing cords to neighbors RVs or purposely used more electricity that would be different.

No, he should probably get it straightened out sooner then later, to prevent having to make the argument on a bill he thinks is unfair or whatever . It sounds like he's had ONE conversation. Somewhere along the line its going to come back ,and bite him in some way. Yes in writing ,and then go from there .

[cummins2014]

Bobbo wrote:

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He notified them. His conscience is clear. He can't force them to fix the problem.

Sure his conscience is clear, does that change the fact he should be paying the same as the rest . Sounds like from a few of you its okay as long as he can get away with it, he did his part :h

[momentum_rv]

CavemanCharlie wrote:
Many people have commented on the fact that they might try to charge him later for the electricity he has used. But,without the meter working how would they know how much he has used ? Maybe they could use previous bills and come up with a estimate but, he could argue that number down lower.

Still probably best to send them a notice in writing and after that if they don't fix it and then try to charge you for past usage you could say that you tried to tell them and it's their own fault.

If there is a master meter and the sub meters the park could try to figure out the difference, but hard to prove OPs actual use. But they may try at some point and provide a big bill.

[CavemanCharlie]

Many people have commented on the fact that they might try to charge him later for the electricity he has used. But,without the meter working how would they know how much he has used ? Maybe they could use previous bills and come up with a estimate but, he could argue that number down lower.

Still probably best to send them a notice in writing and after that if they don't fix it and then try to charge you for past usage you could say that you tried to tell them and it's their own fault.

[p220sigman]

I agree that once he notifies them of the problem, his obligation has been met. He can't fix the problem himself and stopping the usage isn't an option. Now, the park may come back with an amount owed that he may be responsible for that they will have to justify the amount.

To me, it is much like a situation I had one time where I had a store clerk argue with me about the bill that I gave her to pay for my purchase. She gave me change as if I gave her a $20, but I actually gave her a $10. I know it was a $10 because it was the only cash I had on me at the time. When she handed me the change, I tried to hand her the $10 bill back and told her that I had given her a $10. She got very defensive and told me in no uncertain terms that I had given her a $20. At that point, I felt I had met my obligation and left with a clear conscience. I'm sure she thought about our conversation at the end of the night when her register was short.

[valhalla360]

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He paid for a site that includes an electrical connection, the park has an obligation to provide that connection. Should he accept a product that doesn't meet the standard he paid for?

If he notifies them (preferably in writing), his moral obligation is met and he is under no obligation to stop using electricity.

Now if he started stringing cords to neighbors RVs or purposely used more electricity that would be different.

[Bobbo]

cummins2014 wrote:

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

He notified them. His conscience is clear. He can't force them to fix the problem.

[cummins2014]

Barry J wrote:
Yes, just want to do the right thing

I agree .

[cummins2014]

Grit dog wrote:
Lol, meter is broke.
IMO, you did you due diligence...

So in other words ,just continue with your free electricity , although you should be paying for it.

[larry_cad]

Your problem is going to come when they realize the problem and attempt to charge you for previous, un-metered usage. Do as others suggested and tell them in writing.

Seldom do campgrounds have hundreds of meters that are read by the utility. Most likely there is a main meter that is read by the utility, and the park owns the smaller meters at each site. The CG is losing money, not the utility.

Keep us informed.