There have been many complaints of consumers not receiving their deposit back from Duquesne Light after they stop service.
If you are like many individuals who have had an issue with Duquesne Light returning your security deposit, here's what you can do.
Contact Duquesne Light
Before you can contact any other agency or authority, you must establish that you have contacted Duquesne Light on at least three occasions to try to resolve the situation. You can contact Duquesne Light at the following phone number:
Ask to speak with a supervisor. At this point, you will be transferred to the supervisory line. And most likely, no one will answer the phone. Ask for a callback from a supervisor. Most likely, a supervisor will not call you back. After you have contacted them at the above number at least three times, move to the next course of action.
The representative will tell you that billing and accounting are two separate departments. They will tell you that accounting is responsible for your security deposit, and they will give you a date stating that accounting sent out your deposit check. This means that accounting would have to verify that the check "they sent" has not been deposited before they can issue a new check.
You won't be able to get through to accounting. You won't be able to speak to a supervisor. And the representative will tell you that you will have to wait an indefinite, undetermined amount of time for your issue to be resolved.
If you are like many individuals who have had an issue with Duquesne Light returning your security deposit, here's what you can do.
Contact Duquesne Light
Before you can contact any other agency or authority, you must establish that you have contacted Duquesne Light on at least three occasions to try to resolve the situation. You can contact Duquesne Light at the following phone number:
- Customer Service Line: 412-393-7100 prompt for "Billing"
Ask to speak with a supervisor. At this point, you will be transferred to the supervisory line. And most likely, no one will answer the phone. Ask for a callback from a supervisor. Most likely, a supervisor will not call you back. After you have contacted them at the above number at least three times, move to the next course of action.
The representative will tell you that billing and accounting are two separate departments. They will tell you that accounting is responsible for your security deposit, and they will give you a date stating that accounting sent out your deposit check. This means that accounting would have to verify that the check "they sent" has not been deposited before they can issue a new check.
You won't be able to get through to accounting. You won't be able to speak to a supervisor. And the representative will tell you that you will have to wait an indefinite, undetermined amount of time for your issue to be resolved.
You can call accounts payable using the following number and prompting for that department; 412-393-6000. To reach the director of customer care, press one when calling that number, and prompt for the employee directory; follow the instructions.
- Accounts Payable
- Michelle R. Sandoe (Customer Care Director)
Contact the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission
At this time, you can move forward with contacting the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission. This utility commission is responsible for overseeing the code of conduct and proper compliance of established utility companies in Pennsylvania. File an informal complaint with the commission detailing your situation.
The Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission will ask that you contact Duquesne Light directly to try to resolve the situation. This is why we mentioned that you should call them at least three times, and exhaust all efforts to resolve the situation with the company before contacting outside sources. Use the online form or print the PDF form to mail to the following address:
Bureau of Consumer Services
Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission
P.O. BOX 3265
Harrisburg, PA 17105-3265
Contact the Pennsylvania Attorney General's Office
Your next course of action would be to contact the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office. Visit their consumer complaint form fact page, which will give you tips on how to resolve the situation with the utility company. Most likely, you have already exhausted the tips on this page. This page also asks that you write down the name of the representative you speak with, which is why we ask you to do that in that in the beginning.
Finally, either choose to print your complaint form if you have supporting documents, receipts, or contracts with the company, or use the online form if you don't. If you chose to print your form, you can mail it to the following address:
Office of Attorney General
Bureau of Consumer Protection
15th floor, Strawberry Square
Harrisburg, PA 17120
If these efforts do not result in mediation or the resolution of the problem, contact an attorney to file a formal complaint with the Pennsylvania Public Utilities Commission. A formal complaint may result in legal proceedings in front of a PUC administrative law judge.
We hope that this information will help you get your deposit back from Duquesne Light. Keep in mind that you can always call local news and media stations like WPXi-TV Pittsburgh, and speak with consumer reporting journalists like Robin Taylor. Remember to keep all documentation, and if possible, ask the representative at Duquesne Light to send you written correspondence with the status of your case and what steps have been taken to investigate the "missing deposit."
EXPERIENCE OF A CONSUMER WHO CONTACTED US
The customer who contacted us says that they are overdue a total of $192.98. Duquesne Light stated they sent the returned deposit to their home on 29 June, however, this deposit never made it to them. After contacting Duquesne Light over three times and attempting to speak with the supervisor, the consumer states that supervisors refuse to answer the phone. The representative who took the call claims to have requested three separate callbacks for the consumer by a supervisor, no one ever called them.
According to the representative, accounting is responsible for the situation. They must first verify if the check has been deposited before they can issue a new one. However, accounting has not done anything to contact the consumer. The consumer has not gotten any written correspondence as to the status of their case, documentation detailing that a deposit was sent, or documentation stating that the current status of the deposit is "missing"... In other words, Duquesne Light has not made any attempt whatsoever to establish any communication with this consumer regarding where their money is.
On the final call to Duquesne Light, the representative, whose name was "Zain or Zane" (We are unsure of the proper spelling, as he was not helpful in providing his name, according to the consumer), told the consumer that they did not have an account with Duquesne Light.
EXPERIENCE OF A CONSUMER WHO CONTACTED US
The customer who contacted us says that they are overdue a total of $192.98. Duquesne Light stated they sent the returned deposit to their home on 29 June, however, this deposit never made it to them. After contacting Duquesne Light over three times and attempting to speak with the supervisor, the consumer states that supervisors refuse to answer the phone. The representative who took the call claims to have requested three separate callbacks for the consumer by a supervisor, no one ever called them.
According to the representative, accounting is responsible for the situation. They must first verify if the check has been deposited before they can issue a new one. However, accounting has not done anything to contact the consumer. The consumer has not gotten any written correspondence as to the status of their case, documentation detailing that a deposit was sent, or documentation stating that the current status of the deposit is "missing"... In other words, Duquesne Light has not made any attempt whatsoever to establish any communication with this consumer regarding where their money is.
On the final call to Duquesne Light, the representative, whose name was "Zain or Zane" (We are unsure of the proper spelling, as he was not helpful in providing his name, according to the consumer), told the consumer that they did not have an account with Duquesne Light.
After the customer stated that they had already contacted the office of USPS to verify whether or not the deposit check had been mailed, and that they were unable to verify this, and that the consumer had intentions of contacting the local police department, the representative miraculously found their account only to give them the response below:
As of right now, the representative's last statement was that he could not help the consumer. They would have to wait and indefinite, undetermined amount of time for the situation to be resolved. The deposit is currently overdue by more than 30 days, and the resolution of the problem has gone on for more than 10 days, and the consumer has not even gotten so much as a call back, leaving them to believe their money has been stolen.
As of right now, the representative's last statement was that he could not help the consumer. They would have to wait and indefinite, undetermined amount of time for the situation to be resolved. The deposit is currently overdue by more than 30 days, and the resolution of the problem has gone on for more than 10 days, and the consumer has not even gotten so much as a call back, leaving them to believe their money has been stolen.
Update: After the consumer reached out the PUC and the Attorney General's Office, this article was published. Within a few days of this article's publishing, Duquesne Light reached out to the consumer to apologize for the mishandling of their case. A deposit check was mailed to the consumer soon after.
Article originally written by C.L. for The Mother's Diary.
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