NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- A New Jersey woman was hit with a nearly $4,000 electric bill after the electric company discovered she had been charged for the wrong electric meter for decades, according to NJ.com.
Alyse Liebowitz of Holmdel had been paying between $30 and $60 per month for electricity in her condo for the past 23 years. After her neighbor passed away in 2018, his daughter, Jane Gentile, discovered that his electric bill of $70 to $100 per month kept coming, even when the apartment was mostly unused, she told NJ.com.
The electric company, JCP&L, discovered that the meters between the two apartments had been switched when they were installed.
In October, Liebowitz tells NJ.com that she received a letter from JCP&L saying she would be billed for an adjusted account balance. Two weeks later, the company charged $3991.99 to her credit card.
Liebowitz appealed the decision to the Board of Public Utilites, but was told that she owed the money. She has since filed a formal complaint.
Gentile said that despite Liebowitz being charged, she has not yet recieved a refund for her father's overcharges.
The Board of Public Utlities says that customers of a utility have the right to have their meter tested for free once a year.