BC Hydro has sent a letter to customers who oppose having a smart meter installed on their home, saying they will instead have to pay a monthly fee.
Hydro says the $35 monthly fee is necessary to offset the cost of manually reading meters for customers who don’t want a smart meter. The meter wirelessly transmits power usage directly to BC Hydro so for customers with a smart meter, a manual reading is not necessary.
Customers who accept a smart meter can also pay $100 to have the radio transmitter turned off if they like, or $20 a month for a manual reading.
The Coalition to Stop Smart Meters is calling this move ‘extortion’.
What we’ve received is yet another form letter from BC Hydro announcing their intention to put a smart meter on our homes. Everyone who has an analog meter is receiving or will receive this letter. Hydro believes that this announcement will push more customers to accept what they do not want or need. Many are understandably upset and confused by this latest ultimatum.
From the wording in the letter, BC Hydro would like you to believe that you have no choice but to accept the smart meter or pay a significant amount to do otherwise. They are saying they will even be charging for a non-functioning smart meter with the transmitter turned off. This is their intention, but not the reality.
The Coalition says BC Hydro must apply to the BC Utilities Commission in order to charge this fee, and if approved the fee would go ahead immediately. However, if the Coalition wins their class action lawsuit against BC Hydro the fee would be stopped.
The next step is for the judge to certify our class action, based upon evidence from our lawyer and Hydro’s. We are not waiting for a counterclaim from Hydro, as the deadline for a counterclaim was 21 days after our application was made, and Hydro has chosen not to respond at all.
BC Hydro says the fees are to cover the extra cost of doing business, not to generate a profit.
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