Understanding Your Direct Energy Regulated Services Bill

Hilary

By Hilary

Updated on
min reading

Here we break down the important components of your Direct Energy Regulated Services bill, page by page.

Looking for more general information about your Alberta electricity or gas bill?

First Page

The first page summarizes your account information, and your payment history. You will also find any important information that Direct Energy Regulated Services (DERS) needs to communicate to you, as well as the payment stub that you need to send with your payment (if you pay by cheque or money order). Important information to look out for includes:

  • DERS Customer Service Phone Number: 1-866-420-3174
  • Your account information, including your account number and address
  • The statement date, and the late payment penalty due date (the deadline for payment before being charged late payment penalties)
  • Your payment history, including the date and amount of your last payment, as well as any amounts outstanding
  • The total amount due for the month (including GST)

Second Page

The second page provides definitions of the items that you will find on your bill (which include rate riders, local access fees, administration fees, the site ID and the meter number), as well as more contact information for DERS, and DERS's late payment policy.

You will also see your payment options for your DERS bill. You can pay your DERS bill by recurring payment (pre-authorized debit), credit card, cheque, money order, or through your bank. DERS is also set up for billing through Canada Post's epost service.

Third Page

This page provides a detailed breakdown of your monthly charges.Find your account number and statement date at the top right of your bill. It is important to ensure that your account number is correct so that you know that you are being billed appropriately. The rest of your bill is separated into two main sections: retailer (electricity and/or gas) charges and distributor charges.

Retailer charges

These are the items that DERS charges you for providing retail service. In this section you will find your:

  • Site ID: a 13 digit number that Alberta energy suppliers use to locate your meter to your account and to bill you for the energy you use
  • Billing dates: depending on your billing cycle, your consumption may be billed at several rates. Alberta regulated rate option electricity and regulated natural gas rates change every month, so it is possible that your consumption at the beginning of your cycle is billed at a different rate than your consumption at the end of your billing cycle. If this is the case you will see the breakdown of the charges, and the subtotal of the charges as "Cost of Gas" under the "Current Energy Charges" line.
  • Administration fee: this is an AUC-approved charge that covers DERS's costs in providing billing and customer service

Distributor Charges

These are charged by DERS on behalf of ATCO (Electric or Gas), which is responsible for ensuring the delivery of energy to your home. You should find ATCO's phone numbers (emergency and customer service) on page 2 of your bill. ATCO is also responsible for reading your meter, and you will find information about your meter (including the meter number, date of last reading, whether it was an actual or estimated reading, and conversion factor if this is your gas bill) towards the bottom-left part of your bill. 

You will also find the dates for your charges, and the total amount of gas used within this period. While some of your distribution charges are fixed, others are variable and depend on how much energy you have consumed. As energy distribution companies (utilities) often base their rates on anticipated costs, they use rate riders to adjust any differences between the costs they have estimated and the reality. Rate riders are usually variable (expressed as a certain amount per kWh or per GJ), and may be a credit or additional charge. They are temporary and approved by the AUC. The municipal franchise fee (also known as the local access fee) is not approved by the AUC, but is set by your local municipality.

Towards the bottom of the bill you will find the total of the amount due for the month, taking into account the retailer charges, distributor charges, and GST.