CLP to revise sky-high bills

Power giant CLP promised to adjust electricity bills, which citizens saw significant increases in due to the suspension of meter checking by its staff during the pandemic.

In one case, a household complained that they saw their electricity bill go up to HK$5,270 from their previous bill of HK$1,220.

CLP's chief corporate development officer, Quince Chong Wai-yan, said they would adjust the bills as meter checking resumes amid a cooldown in the local Covid-19 situation.

Speaking on a radio program yesterday, Chong said the company suspended meter checking between July and August, when the city was hard hit by the third wave of infections.

"We evaluated customers' bills by looking at their electricity usage for the same period last year. It was an estimation," she explained, noting that those with smart meters were not affected.

"We resumed meter checking in late August. We will calculate the tariff for the past four months according to actual usage and issue revised bills."

In response to citizens' reports of their "expensive bills," she said: "I think two reasons have led to the increase of power usage this year. First, this summer was hotter than previous years," she said.

"Second, many citizens worked from home and students stayed at home due to class suspension, so they turned on air conditioning for longer periods than last year," she added.

Chong said meter checking was also suspended between February and March, when Covid-19 first broke out in Hong Kong, and the tariff for that period was also projected by customers' usage last year.

She said the bills will be adjusted accordingly, assuring customers they would not be overcharged.

"I stress that we will not charge more than we should. We welcome customers to call our customer center if they have questions," she said. "We will handle each case with flexibility. The deadline for payments can also be adjusted."

Customers can submit their inquiries via its online system at https://clp.to/2wAan7L or call 2678 2678.

Some netizens who have received the revised bills shared their statements on social media, with one complaining about her latest bill that totaled HK$5,272, more than a four-fold of her last bill, which was only HK$1,221.

A customer service officer said the revised bills are usually more expensive because previous bills based on estimation have not taken into account increased power usage during the third wave of local outbreaks.

She said citizens who are in doubt can check the meters themselves or request another officer double-check the meter for them.