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Jurisdiction, Pennsylvania Public Utilities

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  • 03-19-2010, 05:55 PM
    Moraval
    Jurisdiction, Pennsylvania Public Utilities
    I have a financial dispute with the provider of my gas service. Am I required to allow the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to resolve this dispute or am I entitled to have it adjudicated before a Magisterial District Justice?

    If it matters, details of the dispute are as follows: I had the gas company shut off service at our second home over the summer because we wouldn't be using any gas and it should have been cheaper to pay the restart fee in the fall than to pay monthly fixed charges of ~$12 (charged whether or not any gas is used) for 6 months. Well as you might have guessed the gas company continued to register these monthly charges (though oddly they never sent a bill) even though no gas was used, or even could have been used if we wanted to. But when I went to have the gas turned back on last November, they wouldn't do it until I paid the "overdue charges". With winter coming, I just wanted the gas turned on. So I paid them. But it bothered me, so I sent a letter, a pretty courteous one, to the company's "customer service" and requested a refund. They just ignored it, so I sent a second letter. And when that was also ignored, I sent a third letter which wasn't quite so courteous and in which I demanded to have the charges reversed. But they've continued to just ignore me or respond with completely inapplicable simplistic comments like "it's a fixed fee, everyone pays it no matter how much gas you use".

    So finally I've determined I just have to take this to a judge. I've never dealt with the Public Utility Commission, so I don't know what to expect. I'd definitely feel more comfortable filing my case with the local District Justice. But I don't want to pay filing fees then have the case thrown out on jurisdictional grounds. Any advice?
  • 03-22-2010, 05:25 PM
    Mr. Knowitall
    Re: Jurisdiction, Pennsylvania Public Utilities
    I suggest calling the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission and asking. You are free to dig through the state's code and statutes to try to figure out the jurisdictional issues, but a phone call would likely be the fastest and easiest way to get an answer.
  • 03-29-2010, 10:58 AM
    edlanza
    Re: Jurisdiction, Pennsylvania Public Utilities
    The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has exclusive jurisdiction over disputes with your natural gas distribution company. You should file a complaint with the PUC (no fees and the form is online). If you submit a complaint with your local magistrate, it will most likely be dismissed because of lack of jurisdiction. Call the PUC's bureau of consumer services for more guidance. They may tell you to submit an informal complaint first and then go to a formal PUC complaint (involving an administrative law judge) if you are not satisfied with the resolution in the informal process.
    In terms of the substance of the complaint, you may be stuck with paying for "stand-by charges" as they are called, if the PUC approved such charges for your particular gas company. You may want to do a little research on that issue before you prepare your complaint. Good luck!
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