How far back Virginia utilities refund overcharges
Dominion Energy Virginia's terms and conditions require refunds for three years of overbilling, or longer if the customer produces original bills showing the overcharge. Here is the rule behind it, what starts or limits the clock, and what it means for a business with a billing error in Virginia.
Virginia at a glance
| Virginia | |
|---|---|
| Rule | Dominion Energy Virginia terms and conditions, as reported by WHSV/AP (2017); 20VAC5-10 (SCC rules governing utility service) and each utility's SCC-approved terms and conditions |
| How far back refunds go | Dominion Energy Virginia's terms and conditions require refunds for three years of overbilling, or longer if the customer produces original bills showing the overcharge |
| What starts or limits the clock | Three years back from discovery, unless the customer's own bill records reach further; the SCC can order refunds beyond the tariff |
| Interest | Set in the utility's terms or by SCC order |
| Regulator | Virginia utility commission |
What it means for a refund claim in Virginia
- Keeping copies of old bills matters in Virginia: Dominion's three-year limit extends only when the customer has the original bills.
- In 2017 the SCC approved Dominion Energy's plan to refund about $11 million to roughly 24,000 small and mid-sized commercial customers overcharged from 2013 to 2016, a refund reaching back about four years.
- Read the utility's tariff rules on billing and meter error too: tariffs often repeat or extend the commission rule.
- Municipal utilities and cooperatives usually set their own billing rules.
Discovery Energy reviews 36 to 48 months of history on every account and pursues the longest period each jurisdiction allows. See how overcharge recovery works, or compare Virginia with every other state.
Sources
- Dominion Energy Virginia terms and conditions, as reported by WHSV/AP (2017); 20VAC5-10 (SCC rules governing utility service) and each utility's SCC-approved terms and conditions
- Pennsylvania PUC national list of utility commissions