October 14, 2025 Sent via email
Keshni Nand Registrar
Registrar@bcuc.com bcuc.com
Suite 410, 900 Howe Street Vancouver, BC Canada V6Z 2N3 P: 604.660.4700 TF: 1.800.663.1385
Letter L-29-25
Re: FortisBC Energy Inc. – Complaint filed by D.C. – British Columbia Utilities Commission Decision Dear : The British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) writes regarding your complaint, submitted on February 27, 2025, regarding the notification of a rate increase effective January 1, 2025, for FortisBC Energy Inc. (FEI) gas services (Complaint). In the Complaint, you allege that FEI failed to provide adequate notice of the rate increase, which resulted in your inability to adjust consumption. You note that, due to your limited income, you would have had to lower your consumption to stay within the amount you could afford. Further, you state that you have informed FEI that you will not be paying the increase for your January bill, which amounts to approximately $18, but that in response FEI has threatened you with late charges.
When the BCUC reviews complaints, it considers whether the utility reasonably responded to the customer’s concern(s) and whether the utility followed its approved tariff and the Utilities Commission Act (UCA). The BCUC is an independent regulatory agency of the Provincial Government that operates under and administers the UCA.
Based on our review of your Complaint and related correspondence provided in this matter, the BCUC is satisfied that FEI has acted in accordance with its General Terms and Conditions (Tariff) 1 and the UCA.
This letter outlines the BCUC’s review process, and then provides a summary of your Complaint, the issues raised, the BCUC’s review of each issue, and potential next steps you can take.
Review Process In reviewing FEI’s response to your Complaint under the BCUC Customer Complaints Guide, 2 the BCUC has, among other things, referred to FEI’s approved Tariff, which contains the terms and conditions of service between FEI and its customers, to ensure FEI’s actions were in accordance with the Tariff.
The BCUC initiated the complaints process on February 27, 2025 following receipt of the Complaint. Both parties filed additional correspondence with the BCUC between March 14, 2025 and July 12, 2025.
1 The current version of the Tariff was approved by Order G-330-24 and came into effect February 1, 2025. 2 BCUC Customer Complaints Guide.
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Complaint Your position In the Complaint, you explain that FEI increased its rates without giving you adequate notification prior to the effective date of January 1, 2025. You raise concerns about how the delayed notification did not allow you the opportunity to adjust consumption and state that you would not pay for the increase to your January 2025 bill.
Further, you dispute FEI’s justification of its notification timing, citing that FEI posted a news release regarding the rate increase on its website on December 6, 2024, and accordingly suggest that notice could have been provided to you earlier (i.e. in your December 23, 2024 bill). You assert that FEI failed to comply with Directive 9 of Order G-325-24A, which requires FEI to notify customers in the “next monthly gas billing”. Additionally, you request that the BCUC hold FEI accountable and implement stricter customer notification guidelines for future rate changes.
FEI’s position In response to your Complaint, FEI submits that the rate increase applied on your bill was approved by the BCUC, by Order G-325-24A, 3 and that FEI implemented this increase in accordance with its Tariff. FEI contends that the first opportunity to notify you via bill messaging was the January 23, 2025 invoice due to the timing of related BCUC decisions. 4 Further, FEI clarified that multiple factors influence the timing of bill messages. These include the timing of all applicable rate changes decisions, the scheduling of bill messaging across its systems, and customer billing cycles. While acknowledging your concerns, FEI maintains that it complied with its Tariff and cannot waive the charges related to the rate increase.
Determination The BCUC has reviewed the Complaint and the submissions provided by the parties. For the reasons that follow, the Complaint is dismissed.
Regarding the notice FEI provided to you of this rate change, the BCUC notes that Directive 9 of Order G-325-24A required FEI to notify customers “with a bill insert or bill message to be included with the next monthly gas billing.” The BCUC made this directive on December 5, 2024. 5 The BCUC interprets the phrase “next monthly gas billing” to mean the billing for the next month, which, in this case, was January 2025. As such, the BCUC finds that FEI complied with Directive 9 of Order G-325-24A when it notified you of the rate increase in your January bill.
Regarding the amount of your January 2025 bill, the BCUC finds that there is no evidence that FEI failed to apply its approved rates in accordance with its Tariff.
Based on the foregoing reasons, the BCUC finds that FEI’s actions were consistent with its duties and responsibilities as set out in its Tariff and the UCA.
Accordingly, the Complaint is dismissed, and your file is now closed.
3 Order G-325-24 was originally issued on December 5, 2024, and was amended by Order G-325-24A on the following day, December 6, 2024. 4 FEI states that it had several line items on its customer bills (in addition to rate changes) that were being reviewed separately by the BCUC at the time (i.e. FEI’s Q4 Gas Cost Report approved on December 5, 2024, and FEI’s gas supply core market administration budget approved on December 18, 2024). 5 Order G-325-24, which was issued on December 5, 2024, contained Directive 9. Order G-325-24A, which amended Order G-325-24 the following day, made no changes to Directive 9.
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Office of the Ombudsperson If you have concerns about how the BCUC handled your Complaint, you may wish to contact the Office of the Ombudsperson. The Office of the Ombudsperson receives enquiries and complaints about the practices and services of public agencies within its jurisdiction. Its role is to impartially investigate complaints to determine whether public agencies have acted fairly and reasonably, and whether their actions and decisions were consistent with relevant legislation, policies and procedures.
If you decide to file a complaint with the Ombudsperson, it will review the BCUC’s process to ensure it was fair. Though this may not result in a different outcome for you, the Ombudsperson could request that the BCUC reopen its investigation. Provided is a link to the Office of the Ombudsperson’s website: https://www.bcombudsperson.ca.
Sincerely, Electronically signed by Keshni Nand Keshni Nand Registrar
AS/db cc:
gas.regulatory.affairs@fortisbc.com customer.advocacy@fortisbc.com
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