Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, August 24, 1995 TAG: 9508240031
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY REED
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
R.H., Salem & K.M., Roanoke
A: Customers who overpaid and want their money returned can call Roanoke Gas customer service and ask for a refund.
A check will be issued, and the customer's monthly bill for 1995-96 will be increased to make up the difference.
That's the word from John Williamson, Roanoke Gas vice president for rates and finance.
Two things were different about the company's budget payment plan for the year ended in June.
The weather was milder than expected, so people used less gas. In a separate action, the company had decided to stop its practice of automatically mailing refund checks, which usually numbered 3,000 or so in the $10-$20 range.
Williamson said lots of customers complained about receiving the small checks, so Roanoke Gas decided to save the expense of writing and mailing them.
The company thought people would appreciate the economic efficiency of crediting the money to next year's account, Williamson said.
The unforeseen result, though, was overpayments averaging $80 per budget customer because of the warm winter.
Excess payments in the $200 neighborhood are in the upper end of the scale.
Total overpayments from the company's 13,000 budget customers came to a little more than $1 million.
The legal aspect is not in question. The State Corporation Commission reports that Roanoke Gas' tariff schedule does not include a plan for handling overpayments. Therefore, the company can either return the money or credit it to the next year's bill. It is not required to pay interest.|
Wind gauge
Q: Hurricane Felix was described as a Category 1 hurricane. What does that mean?
M.L., Roanoke
A: Category 1 hurricanes are the mildest ones, the kind that rarely cause veteran coastal residents to leave home.
Hurricanes are ranked 1 to 5 on a government-established scale.
Category 1 carries winds 74-95 mph. Category 2 has sustained winds up to 110 mph; Category 3 up to 130 mph; and Category 4, 155 mph. Category 5 hurricanes are above 155 mph and cause catastrophic damage.
The United States has experienced two Category 5 storms this century. In 1935, a Labor Day hurricane hit the Florida Keys and killed 400 people; in 1969, Hurricane Camille devastated the Mississippi coast and killed 256 people. That includes about 150 people in Virginia - mostly in Nelson County - killed by flash flooding caused by the remnants of Camille.
There have been 13 Category 4 hurricanes recorded, the most recent being Andrew, which hit south Florida with 140-mph winds in 1992.
Andrew's predecessor in Category 4 was Hugo in 1989, with 135-mph winds near Charleston, S.C.
Got a question about something that might affect other people, too? Something you've come across and wondered about? Give us a call at 981-3118. Maybe we can find the answer.
by CNB