NEW ORLEANS — Entergy customers trying to beat the yearly summer spike in utility bills often turn to level billing, the company’s program which balances. The terms of the program are often misunderstood and some customers are surprised by the possibility of a large bill when they end their service.
Rather than paying for the amount of energy they used each month, a customer with level billing pays for an average of that usage, making their monthly bills more predictable.
Brooke Snare and her roommates opted for level billing when she moved to New Orleans a little over a year ago. “I was told by coworkers that levelized billing was good because it kept your summer bills from being outrageously expensive,” she said.
Snare and her roommates noticed their bill would climb every month. That is because Entergy bases each month’s level bill on a rolling average of the customer’s power usage over the last 12 months but adjusts it slightly over time.
The math is a little complicated. Essentially, that adjustment comes from the “accumulated difference,” which is Entergy’s term for the difference between the amount of energy a customer actually uses and their average usage.
One-twelfth of the entire accumulated difference a customer has accrued is added to their bill each month. That chips away at the accumulated difference and brings their bill closer to their actual usage. But the accumulated difference is still growing, and when the customer ends their service, they have to pay it.
When Snare moved out, she was surprised to see a $714 charge added, representing the accumulated difference from her year in New Orleans. “I freaked out and I called like three times,” she said.
An Entergy spokesperson pointed out to WWL Louisiana that when a customer signs up for level billing, they are notified that they will eventually have to pay “the difference between how much you paid and your actual energy usage prior to cancellation.”
Additionally, the difference can work in customers’ favor, “when the accumulated difference is a credit against payments above the leveled amount,” the spokesperson said.
But many customers are still surprised by the final bill, which can total more than $1,000. If you have level billing, you can check how much you owe by looking at the line right above the total on the back of your bill. It will say “prior month accum difference.” The number right before the “/12” is how much of a difference you have accumulated total, and approximately how much you would owe if you ended service in the next billing cycle.
Also keep in mind that if you move into a rental and immediately sign up for level billing, your average will be based on the energy use of the previous tenant. If you move into a newly built unit, it will be estimated based on square footage.
Snare says even understanding the program better now, she still warns others of her experience with level billing. “I’d be like, ‘do your research, look into it, ask other people,’” she said.
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