Don't accept NICOR's treatment

Has everyone picked their face up from the floor since opening their most recent bill from NICOR Gas?

The shock of a three-month bill could quite possibly kill you and if that doesn't, the phone call to speak with a customer service representative probably will.

A 45-minute conversation that ended in an elevated blood pressure reading and absolutely no relief or assistance resulted in my first trip to CUB's Web site. From the outset, my request of the NICOR representative was that our meter somehow be checked, calibrated -- something that would help us understand a $1,000 gas bill presented to us for 91 days of use during part of February, March and April (this bill is an anomaly in our experience).

I was told the only way someone from NICOR would come to our home to check our meter was if I placed an emergency call for a gas smell or leak around our meter. (Note: And even then, according to the NICOR representative, a leaking meter does not result in an amended bill. We would still owe the $1,000 for a faulty piece of NICOR's equipment installed by the company on our not even 2-year-old home...)

The NICOR rep out right refused to send anyone to our home to check our meter. "We feel the bill is correct and the meter reading is accurate." How someone can "feel" the accuracy of a piece of equipment when sitting behind the desk at a customer service call center is beyond me.

Visiting citizensutilityboard.org was empowering. Did you know (because not one of the three NICOR customer service reps I spoke with offered this as an option) that any gas utility customer is entitled to one free meter test a year? This information comes courtesy of CUB's Web site publication CUBFacts Energy, Winter 2007 Reading Your Meter.

Not only do you have the right to this meter test, but also to be present during the test and receive a written report of the results. I commend CUB for the services they provide to the residential utility customer who essentially is powerless when dealing with NICOR.

NICOR has obviously sent the message to the front line that customers have no rights other than to roll over, accept whatever bill they're mailed, and pay it, no questions asked, no customer service required.

Sorry NICOR, but we don't have to accept this treatment, and while I'm on a roll, don't have to accept your deceptive pricing practices or your $140 million rate hike.

Kimberly R. Majewski

Fox Lake