Texas utility customer files $1B lawsuit against Griddy after electric bill tops $9,000 - Fox News

The plaintiff, Lisa Khoury of Mont Belvieu, alleges in the suit that while her monthly electricity bills from Griddy were around $200 to $250, the company automatically withdrew $1,200 from Feb.

Khoury claimed she expressed concern over the withdrawals and bouncing checks to Griddy, but never heard back from the company and ultimately placed a stop payment order with her bank on Feb.

In addition, the lawsuit accuses Griddy of violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and seeks an injunction to prevent Griddy from billing and collecting payment for excessive prices and to assure the forgiving of any late or unpaid bills from affected customers. .

They noted that Gritty's wholesale rate reached $9,000 per megawatt-hour from the pre-storm rate of $50 per megawatt-hour, and said that Griddy told customers it was "seeking relief from utility regulators" after advising 29,000 customers to switch to another provider with a fixed rate. .

In a Tuesday release, Khoury's attorney Derek Potts -- who heads  the Potts Law Firm in Houston -- said there are likely thousands of customers who received the bills and that the class action would "be the most efficient and effective way for Griddy's customers to come together and fight this predatory pricing."

"What happened financially to all of the customers of Griddy both in terms of the exorbitant prices charged and the manner in that they were collected from peoples’ bank accounts and credit cards literally in the middle of a catastrophe while many were without power, heat, and water, is clearly contrary to Texas laws in place to protect consumers," he said. 

However, in a statement to Reuters, a spokesperson said the lawsuit was "meritless," shifting blame to the Public Utility Commission of Texas. 

An order from the utility commission said that "energy prices should reflect [the] scarcity of the supply."

On Sunday, the state's utility commission acted to temporarily prevent electric companies from cutting power to customers who don't pay and from sending out bills and cost estimates