Richmond residents living at an apartment complex say BC Hydro needs to offer fair compensation after a massive power surge destroyed thousands of dollars worth of personal property.
“They are responsible. They need to step up,” said apartment owner Cathy Oughton, who lost several items including her stove, microwave and laptop.
The incident happened at Chartwell Mews along Citation Drive.
BC Hydro says in mid-July crews – after a planned outage – tried to re-energize the system. But too much voltage was delivered through a specific transformer which resulted in more voltage than required.
“Our crews did make a mistake. There’s a tap that’s supposed to be installed on the transformer. That tap was not installed and that resulted in more voltage being delivered to these customers than required,” BC Hydro spokesperson Simi Heer said.
In a letter to residents, BC Hydro stated that it is governed by the Electric Tariff and is not required to reimburse customers for damage that may occur as a result of irregular voltage.
Hydro said it realizes the incident has caused financial hardship so it’s prepared to offer some compensation – a maximum of $1,000 to each customer.
Many residents say that’s not nearly enough to cover damages and worry their insurance premiums could go up down the road. “I disagree going to the insurance company when it’s not our fault. Why should we be penalized again,” Oughton said.
Michelle Morin who owns an apartment next door to Oughton says she hasn’t even received a letter offering compensation. She says she lost a stereo, a DVD surround sound system, a phone, and microwave.
Morin estimates the damage at around $3,000.
“Settle with the people. Give them a fair settlement, no strings attached. No going to our insurance companies and then our rates go up,” Morin said.
BC Hydro said it’s encouraging residents to reach out directly.
“The thousand dollars is a starting point. So I would like them to reach out to our claims department so we can come to a situation that satisfies them,” Heer said.
A letter from the strata corporation to residents at Chartwell Mews dated August 14, 2016 states approximately 55 claims have been made as a result of the power surge.
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