Toronto woman accidentally overpays electricity bill by more than $8,000

It’s important to use caution when paying online bills, because mistakes may not be easy to reverse or fix. Pat Foran reports for Consumer Alert.

These days, many people pay their monthly bills online.

The pivot to paperless methods of payment is an easy and convenient method that is problem free most of the time.

However, if you make a mistake while paying a bill, it can be difficult to get your money back, sometimes even taking weeks or months.

One Ontario woman said she’s used to paying her bills online but when she went to pay her electric bill earlier this year, she accidentally forgot to put in the decimal point, overpaying her bill by more than $8,000.

“When it happened it was a hard blow, a slap in the face. I couldn’t believe it,” said Naomi Khan of Toronto.

Khan usually pays her bills on her computer, but in February she paid her electricity bill using her phone.

She owed Metergy Solutions $84.72 but when she went to type in the digits on her phone, she accidentally left out the decimal point and paid $8,472.

She only noticed the error days later when she needed to pay other bills and her rent, and thought the mistake could be corrected right away.

“I was hoping they could respond immediately and refund the money immediately,” said Khan.

However, Khan told CTV News her hopes were dashed when she had difficulty trying to find out how her funds could be returned.

She grew frustrated trying to get answers and said no one could tell her when the payment would be reversed.

“This is the song and dance for the entire two weeks and up until now no one has reached out to me to say anything,” Khan said.

Online bill payments can be tricky

Mistakes when paying bills do happen. Not too long ago, we reported on a story about a senior who overpaid her visa bill by $13,107, when in fact she was attempting to pay $131.07.

It took that woman more than three months to get her money back.

In Khan’s case, CTV News reached out to Metergy Solutions on her behalf and spokesperson said in a statement, “We confirm that Ms. Khan’s refund request was already being processed by Metergy. Ms. Khan provided Metergy with a void cheque on March 3rd to process the refund on an expedited basis by EFT (electronic funds transfer), which was scheduled for March 20th. Given the urgency of her request, we contacted Ms. Khan to confirm her e-transfer details. At her request, we will issue the refund via e-transfer.”

“We can confirm that our customer has received a full refund, following their accidental overpayment. As soon as Metergy was made aware of what had happened, we took all possible steps to ensure the money was returned as quickly as possible.”

Almost a month after making the mistake, Khan received a full refund minus her payment, which she said was a huge relief for her.

“I’m thankful for CTV. You guys are an amazing voice for people who have no voice or cannot go further,” said Khan. “I really thank God for what you guys are doing.”

If you overpay a utility or credit card bill, companies will typically return the money, but it can take weeks or even months to have the payment reversed.

When paying bills online, take your time and triple check before submitting the payment so you don’t make a mistake.