Armenian Consumers’ Utility Bills Complaints Increase in Winter

Protection of Consumers’ Rights (PCR) NGO has appealed to the RA State Commission for the Protection of Economic Competition, presenting them with a proposal to reduce the issues connected with gas and electrical supply.

PCR President Abgar Yeghoyan, while meeting with journalists today, said that by keeping in contact with consumers, PCR found out that they had issues with the electricity in their homes. Consumers are dissatisfied by the fact that the date when the following month’s bill is due is not listed on the receipt and they are unable to find out how much electricity they’ve used in their homes. 

There are also issues with the expenses connected with nighttime meter readings. Yeghoyan stated that the proposals they’ve suggested will be implemented beginning from October 1, adding that consumers’ dissatisfaction connected with electricity and the amount of gas they’ve used intensifies particularly in December, when consumers assured that during that month their electricity and gas bills show amounts that are more than they’ve actually used.

As for those periods when their electricity is shut down, the PCR president stated that those regular instances when electricity is cut due to an accident can last up to 2 hours for homes in the city and up to 8 hours for those living in the villages. And if the actual period of being without electricity exceeds that time, then residents have the right to contact their area’s electrical network and demand that their electricity bill be reduced by 1,500 AMD (about $4 USD) this month. According to Yeghoyan, PCR has registered that violations connected to gas supply have dropped drastically.

“The gas gets shut down in Armenia in those cases when there’s an accident in Georgia and it [gas] is shut off from there. Our investigations are based on consumers’ complaints,” he said.