When you're PG&E, 0.08% wrong makes headlines

For most other businesses, a defect rate of 0.08 per cent is pretty darned good … practically something to brag about. For Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E), though, that level of malfunctioning is enough to generate news stories like this one.

Sitting as it does at the centre of the controversy between utility companies and a small but vocal movement against smart meters, PG&E can’t avoid attracting attention when it announces that a small number of the meters it’s deployed will have to be replaced because of a “rare defect.” And it really is a small number: fewer than 1,600 out of the two million meters — that’s the 0.08 per cent rate quoted above– supplied by Landis+Gyr have been found to have the fault, which resulted in inaccurate billing.

Finding itself under the public’s microscope whenever the words “smart meters” are used, PG&E did what it needed to do upon deciding the replace the defective devices: issue a press release, along with refunds and credits to affected customers.

“We take this issue very seriously and will do the right thing for our customers,” said Greg Kiraly, vice president of SmartMeter operations for the utility.

PG&E will replace the meters at no cost to customers and issue full refunds to customers who received inaccurate bills. The average refund will be about $40 per customer. PG&E will also issue a $25 credit for customer inconvenience and offer a free in-home energy audit to affected customers.

Landis+Gyr meters with the defect occasionally run fast when experiencing a narrow band of high temperatures, resulting in a miscalculation of energy bills. The problem was discovered by PG&E’s quality assurance program and the advanced diagnostics available through the SmartMeter technology. If any additional meters malfunction, the diagnostic signals will flag the meters for immediate replacement.

“We are confident that we have identified the small population of meters with this defect based on the diagnostic flags and extensive additional testing in our labs and in the field,” said Jerry Figurilli, chief  operating officer for Landis + Gyr North America.

PG&E will share the technical analysis of the meter issue with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) for its review, and with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), which approves the relevant testing standards for the metering industry.