The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) is now swamped with more than 47,000 complaints from consumers who were shocked when they received their electricity bill.

ERC chairperson Agnes Devanadera disclosed this during the Senate energy committee’s hearing into the “bill shock” issue hounding power consumers, saying the agency itself is now experiencing “complainant shock.”

“Kung meron po tayong bill shock, meron naman po kaming complainant shock dahil 47,000 ho (nag-complain) na hindi namin in-anticipate at all (If there’s bill shock, on our end, we experienced complainant shock, because we received around 47,000 complaints which we did not anticipate at all),” Devanadera said responding to Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, chair of the Senate energy panel.

“We are organizing our people to respond to the 47,000 (complaints),” said Devanadera.

However, she said, the ERC is meticulously going through all the documents and reports submitted to them and so is not yet in the position to say whether Manila Electric Corp. (Meralco) overcharged its consumers or if there is any erroneous in the electricity rate imposed on the consumers.

“The bills are quite high and we need to really go through the different documents because in determining the rates we must be able to compare with what was approved,” she said.

She also said they have already required distribution utilities (DUs) and electric cooperatives (ECs) to submit bills from their suppliers, from the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) and from market operators should they have purchased from the spot market.

“Because our deadline is set on June 30, this process is still ongoing,” she pointed out.

Nevertheless, Devanadera said they have already issued an advisory to Meralco requiring a separate statement for the months covered by the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) saying it is necessary for consumers to easily know what should be covered by the installment payment option.

“We have been very specific that we required that the installment must be covered by a separate bill. Dapat ho kitang kita ng tao kung ano talaga yung subject ng installment payment.

“We also issued an advisory that the estimate should be clearly stated, kung alin dun. Ngayon nakita natin, narinig natin, na kaya nagkaroon ng kalituhan dahil contrary to the advisory of ERC, yung estimated billing, estimated billing for March and April, hindi naman specifically inilagay sa (electric) bill,” she pointed out.

“So this is why there is so much confusion and anxiety among our power consumers,” Devanadera lamented.

Though Meralco has responded to the ERC’s show cause order, this is still being evaluated.  Nevertheless, Devanadera said they have added additional workers to respond to consumer complaints saying they would be ineffective in answering their requests if they do not cooperate with DUs and ECs or other regulated agencies.

During the hearing, Meralco’s First Vice President and Head of Customer Retail Services and Corporate Communications Victor Genuino admitted that they failed to include customer’s estimated March and April power consumption in their May billing.

According to him, Meralco billed customers based on average consumption from December to February since meter reading could not be done in March and April due to the lockdown.

This did not sit well with Gatchalian, who also complained incurring over P23,000 in his personal electricity bill for the month of May.

Gatchalian complained his electricity bill did not indicate whether or not the March and April consumption included in the May bill were estimated or were already the actual consumption.

The senator said he was forced to pay it to avoid disconnection. “Maraming ganitong cases, and without clear explanation that you embedded the estimates for March and April. People will think that this is the actual reading,” Gatchalian told Meralco.

To which the Meralco official replied: “you are correct sir, in a sense that we weren’t able to reflect where all of these additions to the estimated bills were in your previous consumption.”

Meralco chief executive officer and president Ray Espinosa, however, assured that consumers who were entitled to pay in installments but paid their bills in full, may still refund their payment.

He said those qualified to refund their bill will receive letters itemizing an installment plan.

“Kung nagbayad na kayo in full nung bills niyo na dapat babayaran niyo ng installment, ire-refund po namin iyan and papadalhan namin kayo ng bagong sulat (If you paid in full when you are supposed to pay in installment, we will refund you for that and we will send you a new letter),” Espinosa said.