
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, April 2, 1994                   TAG: 9404020106
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C-2   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: HOPEWELL                                LENGTH: Short

CUSTOMERS PAY PRICE FOR MISREAD METER

Commonwealth Gas Co. issued corrected bills to about 100 customers who had been charged too little because of a meter reader's error, shocking some customers with bills two or three times their usual size.

Christine Callis said she received a $308 bill for a house she was renovating, despite keeping the thermostat set at 58 degrees. "It's just outrageous," she said.

Rosemary Pritchard said she kept the thermostat at her home set at 60 degrees during a recent three-week trip to Florida. Despite that, she received a bill for $197 instead of the usual charge of about $100 a month. "I just can't understand," Pritchard said.

The meter reader misread the amount of gas used in January. The mistake also threw off the utility's estimates of gas use in February, said Bob Innes, general manager of Commonwealth Gas.

"It's an unfortunate occurrence," Innes said.

The company reads meters every other month and estimates gas use in the alternate months.

Innes said an extremely cold winter also contributed to the higher bills. "It's compounded the situation," he said.

by CNB