Complaints against Texas power companies rising
Complaints against power companies rose in 2014, following four straight years of decline, according to a report by the ratepayers group Texas Coalition for Affordable Power.
The report released Wednesday found in fiscal year 2014 Texas consumers filed more than 7,600 complaints with Texas Public Utility Commission, a 7 percent increase from 2013.
While almost half the complaints involved billing disputes, the largest increase came in meter related complaints. Almost all homes and businesses in Texas have now been outfitted with so-called smart meters, which relay usage data electronically to utilities.
But the report indicates customer dissatisfaction is still a long ways from a decade ago when Texas’ electricity market was first deregulated. In 2003 the PUC recorded more than 17,000 complaints against power companies.
And while 2014 marked the first increase in complaints in five years, the study’s authors pointed out 2014 was the second lowest year since deregulation in 2002.
“Complaints quadrupled with the transition to deregulation and have never returned to pre-deregulation levels, the analysis shows. Population growth and the increased use of the Internet to facilitate the complaint process can explain some of the overall increase during the deregulation years — but probably not all of it,” the study reads.