One of the “constants” I’ve heard ever since the beginning of my researching and writing about the vagaries of AMI Smart Meters, not only in Pennsylvania where I reside, but in other states around the USA and from researchers I network with, is OVERBILLINGS / OVERCHARGES.
The Netherlands in the European Union had a huge overbilling problem! Here’s an article that talks about overbilling as high as 582 percent!
Overcharges seem to be an extremely ‘lucrative’ problem utility companies have, while always trying to pawn off overcharges as “better monitoring and/or measuring of customers’ actual usage”. What?
How can that be when, in reality, utility companies are billing customers for the electricity the utility sends to monitor the customer, which was never factored into utility bills rendered by analog meters for decades! Analogs only recorded what customers actually used; whereas AMI SMs record as customer usage the following:
Electric power spikes, aka “dirty electricity” or sinusoidal waves, sent as often as every 15 seconds.
Electric power signals to monitor “smart appliances” you have in your home. The AMI SM sends out electric signals until it finds a smart appliance to hook up with. Did you know that?
Electric power to send signals back to the utility of what it finds from the surveillance of your smart appliances; what those appliances were doing and the times—as often as utility AMI SMs computer programs are written to send that information over HAN or LAN networks to cell towers or other networks.
I bet the above are ‘shockers’! Well, that’s what happens with the AMI SMs which, in reality, are surveillance computers that will have to be replaced every 5 to 6 years; did you know that? Also, utility companies build into customers’ monthly bills, the cost of the computer! So, now can you understand why utility bills increase dramatically?
However, some customers are not taking it lightly and paying through the nose, as the saying goes.
On July 19, 2018, a civil action was filed against the Central Maine Power Company. It is a Class Action Complaint with Jury Trial Demand, Docket No. CV-18-324 filed by Mark Levesque in the State of Maine Superior Court, Cumberland, SS.
In the Introduction part of the Brief filed, we find this:
- CMP delivers electricity to more than 624,000 customers in an 11,000 square mile service area in central and southern Maine. On October 30, 2017, CMP switched from its 27-year old mainframe computer to a new electronic billing system. That is when the trouble began. Indeed, beginning the following month, as a result of the new billing system and metering issues, approximately 97,000 CMP customers saw their bills increase by 50% or more.
Some saw their bills double or even triple, which was financially devastating for many customers. Another 200,000 CMP have been overcharged up to 50%.
- This action is to recover the money that CMP unlawfully took from its customers.
There’s only one Count! It is “Unjust Enrichment” by CMP due to overcharges.
Two sets of attorneys signed and filed the Brief:
The Law Offices of Trafton, Matzen, Belleau & Frenette, LLP, Auburn, Maine, and
The Law Offices of Lipman & Katz, Augusta, Maine.
Good luck to all Mainers who have been ripped off by AMI Smart Meters and Central Maine Power.
Hopefully, others will file class action lawsuits against their utilities.
Catherine J Frompovich (website) is a retired natural nutritionist who earned advanced degrees in Nutrition and Holistic Health Sciences, Certification in Orthomolecular Theory and Practice plus Paralegal Studies. Her work has been published in national and airline magazines since the early 1980s. Catherine authored numerous books on health issues along with co-authoring papers and monographs with physicians, nurses, and holistic healthcare professionals. She has been a consumer healthcare researcher 35 years and counting.
Catherine’s latest book, published October 4, 2013, is Vaccination Voodoo, What YOU Don’t Know About Vaccines, available on Amazon.com.
Her 2012 book A Cancer Answer, Holistic BREAST Cancer Management, A Guide to Effective & Non-Toxic Treatments, is available on Amazon.com and as a Kindle eBook.
Two of Catherine’s more recent books on Amazon.com are Our Chemical Lives And The Hijacking Of Our DNA, A Probe Into What’s Probably Making Us Sick (2009) and Lord, How Can I Make It Through Grieving My Loss, An Inspirational Guide Through the Grieving Process (2008)
Catherine’s NEW book: Eat To Beat Disease, Foods Medicinal Qualities ©2016 Catherine J Frompovich is now available
Good luck. I hope the Judge and Jury have not been bought like the 17 Agencies that allowed all of this to happen in the first place.
Right on. All kakistocracy from top to bottom. Criminals all. Even those whom are ignorant or nascent to what is actually happening; well, ignorance is no defense in the eyes of the ‘law’ we are told by ‘justice’. Same applies here if people, more people, a lot more people, would grow some and become aware and learned. I concur Captain Trashman.
I think we are nearing a tipping point. At least i hope we are.
How about we begin naming these ‘smart’ meters extortion and surveillance application and device or ESAD’s?
I am in Newfoundland, Pa. They started this crap in Feb, I called and told them absolutely not, wanted it marked in the comments on my account, a guy (project manager) sent me a letter, basically saying I was misinformed, we care about our customers, we want to make it easier for you…blah, blah, blah, I left a message on his answering machine (after hours) with the facts on smart meters and some colorful commentary of my own. Got another letter, left another message after hours to both him, customer service and then the company that was actually doing the meter change out (Grid One Solutions), then I posted a letter of liability, laminated, next to the meter. I got a huge poster on a hanging sign (like a realtor sign) stating STOP SMART METERS & FIGHT BACK with the take back your power website info on my front lawn, then I printed out a 2 1/2 page Non Consent, Notice of Liability letter and sent it to PPL and Grid One (certified return receipt mail), then installed a small security camera INSIDE the window right next to the meter. Next up is letters to the editor of the 3 local Pa. papers., and I am trying to get the owner of the Our Town freebie paper to do an article. I also talk to everyone & anyone who will listen. So many, many, people, sadly, have no clue about these damn things. Now the electric companies are calling them ‘digital meters’ and fooling as many as they can…