Seasonal rate errors
A seasonal rate error is the application of seasonal pricing, usually higher summer rates, to service dates outside the season the tariff defines. The math on the bill is correct; only the rate is wrong for those dates.
How to test for it
- Find the seasonal effective dates in the utility's tariff (for example, June 1 to September 30).
- List the service dates of every billing period around each changeover.
- Check which rate was applied to each portion, and whether the tariff requires proration.
- Repeat for every prior year in the recoverable window. Errors in recurring processes recur.
A real example
A Missouri protein plant was billed summer rates for April 28 to May 27, 2020, about five weeks before the June 1 start. The same error appeared in May 2019. Recovered: $108,739.13 plus $58,218.42, a total of $166,957.55.
Questions buyers ask
How do seasonal rate errors happen?
Billing periods rarely align with calendar months. When a period straddles the seasonal start date, the system may apply the new season's rate to the whole period, or switch early.
Would an accounting review catch it?
Rarely. The invoice is arithmetically correct. Catching it requires comparing each period's service dates with the tariff's seasonal effective dates.
Find out what your bills should have cost.
Send one recent bill per site, or a list of accounts. We tell you where we expect findings before you sign anything. No upfront audit fee.