A contractor took with them prepaid electricity units to the value about R2 000 after recently replacing a prepaid electricity meter with a splitmeter used for solar power exchange at a house in Kleinbron Estate.
The City in May this year rolled out specific electricity meters for residents to sell their excess solar power back to the City under the Cash for Power programme.
According to the resident who wishes not to be named, the contractor installed the splitmeter, and took the prepaid electricity meter containing 900 units with them.
They only returned 300 units back to the resident.
“They told me they had to have the meter tested to see if the units were still valid, for what I don’t know? Nor did I get any explanation. They said they would get back to me, but never did,” he told TygerBurger.
“I was informed that it was standard procedure to take the old meter back, but in the case of ‘some clients’ they take the actual electricity units too.”
Investigating
On enquiry the City of Cape Town infomed TygerBurger that the units should have been issued back to the resident, and that they will be investigating the matter.
“The City makes use of contractors to replace older prepaid meters.
“All faulty prepaid meters are tested when the display is blank and the contractors cannot confirm the number of units displayed. The contractor is not allowed to take what the customer claims at face value, it must be verified objectively,” says Mayco member for energy Xanthea Limberg.
“All removed prepaid meters are returned to the City’s meter test laboratory for end-of-life interrogation and testing and confirmation of the remaining units on the prepaid meter. Once the remaining units have been confirmed by the City’s meter testing laboratory, the City then contacts the customer to issue the remaining units or the balance.
“In this case, because the meter being replaced was not faulty and the contracted field staff could see and confirm the remaining units on the meter, the field staff could have issued all the units owed to the customer.
“The City apologises to the customer for any inconvenience caused and endeavours to issue the balance of the units soon,” she stated.
