Action: Electric bill seems out of line with her use of power

I have been getting extremely high bills from Florida Power since I moved here a year and several months ago. The bills for the past two months have been outrageous, $59.80 for December and $60.85 for January. I live in an efficiency apartment and do not work at home. I do not cook (I buy already cooked food from the supermarket) and use only one lamp. I did not use the air-conditioning at all the past summer, only the fan.

I have been in touch with this electric company numerous times, and it refuses to do anything such as inspect the apartment to see what's wrong.

I called in December and spoke to a supervisor, who insisted the fault lies with my refrigerator, which was fixed about six months ago. I requested again that someone come out, but my request was refused. My neighbors run their air and heat and get bills only in the low forties.

I am a retired, not well, senior citizen and am afraid to use my heat because of the high bills. Please help me with this problem. Margaret Hall

Response: Monica Forbes with Progress Energy-Florida's consumer affairs department in Clearwater said that while it is the company's desire to help you figure out why your bills are running high, it does not currently offer a program for checking the efficiency of your appliances. She said your winter bills are in line with bills for this season, when the main source of the billing is related to heating. Given the recent low temperatures, it is not uncommon for heating bills to escalate quickly.

Forbes said she was sending you a brochure outlining the average electric cost for most household appliances. If you suspect that you are having a problem with a particular appliance, she suggested you take it up with your landlord.

Progress Energy-Florida offers several programs especially designed for customers living on a fixed income, she said. Signing up is quick and easy. Call Progress Energy's customer service at toll-free 1-800-700-8744 for detailed information and to enroll in the program.

Company tries, tries again

Enclosed is a copy of my canceled check for $13.73 as well as a copy of my letter of Jan. 9 to ClearPoint Direct.Com informing it that my Oct. 24 order had not been received. This was the second time I wrote to the company.

I still have not received a response from the company and would appreciate your following up on this matter for me. Virginia Buell

Response: Barbara Craig, customer service supervisor for ClearPoint Direct.Com, said your order was originally shipped Nov. 14 and returned Feb. 12 by the post office as having a wrong address. The address on the order form matched the address on the package label, so the package was going to be reshipped and, in fact, should be in the mail now.

Craig said she has tried to call you, but there was no answer and you don't have voice mail. Let us know if you don't receive the package within the next few weeks.

Ultimate Chopper mixup

In September, in response to an infomercial, I ordered an "Ultimate Chopper." When I received my credit card statement in late October, I discovered I had been charged $177.50, about twice what the cost should have been. I called the customer service department and discovered the company had doubled my order. When I said I would not accept the order, I was told it had already been shipped.

Since then I still have not received the order, which I ultimately canceled. I did finally receive a credit, but for only $129.75.

In possible explanation of why I received nothing, "Larry" told me Nov. 7 that the order had been shipped to my physical address, where I can receive no U.S. mail. When ordering anything, I do not give my physical address until I am assured it will not be used unless an alternate means of delivery such as UPS, FedEx, etc., is used.

This I am very conscientious about since I have had a P.O. box for 20 years and know what to expect if U.S. mail is sent to my physical address. (I have no mailbox in front of my house.) Hence, if the company shipped the order to an improper address, any expense for shipment should be its responsibility.

Do I want you to pursue the $47.75? Yes. All goofs but one were committed by Ultimate Chopper. My goof was even responding to its TV ad. Harold Coburn

Response: Collena Brown, customer complaint specialist for Ultimate Chopper in Los Angeles, said your account has been credited for the disputed amount of $47.75. She asked that you allow one billing cycle for the credit to show up on your credit card statement.

You were not the only reader who ordered an ultimate chopper that never arrived. Marion Lang, we're happy to tell you that your missing order was to be reshipped by FedEX second-day air, along with a gift of a free set of "miracle blade III." Let us know if you haven't received the shipment yet.

- Action solves problems and gets answers for you. If you have a question, or your own attempts to resolve a consumer complaint have failed, write Times Action, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731, or call your Action number, (727) 893-8171, or, outside of Pinellas, toll-free 1-800-333-7505, ext. 8171, to leave a recorded request.

Requests will be accepted only by mail or voice mail; calls cannot be returned. We will not be responsible for personal documents, so please send only photocopies. If your complaint concerns merchandise ordered by mail, we need copies of both sides of your canceled check.

We may require additional information or prefer to reply by mail; therefore, readers must provide a full mailing address, including ZIP code. Names of letter writers will not be omitted except in unusual circumstances. Letters may be edited.

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