What is the best way to check the accuracy of the power companies meter. Had it checked by the power company, they said it is OK. I have my doubts.
I don't take offense at this (well....maybe a little :whistling2

, but just for the record, after 35 years in the business, I have never been party to, or seen anyone else, falsifying a meter test. And that's with four different companies.
There's really no reason to. For one, as noted, induction disk meters are extremely stable, accurate devices that if and when their accuracy declines, it is generally in the customers favor. Fast meters are a rarity, believe it or not.
And for a company dealing with millions of dollars in energy costs on a monthly basis, refunding or crediting a residential customer his rightful share is not big deal.
And for what it's worth, when we do a meter test, we usually stay and do exactly what has been described here....we help the home-owner go through his house looking for reasons for the high usage.
But let's take this a step further. A meter is not the only component of a bad bill. On apartment complexes, services get mixed up quite often and getting billed for your neighbors usage is much more common than a erroneous meter.
Meters are simply misread (although this should have been caught at the meter test).
AMR (automated meter reading) systems often fail. Did the electronic reading match the mechanical register? Admittedly a problem if you only have an electronic register, but billing/consumption histories can be looked at to see if there have been sudden changes.
But far and away the most prevalent cause of a high bill is,
something you are depending on to work, isn't.
Bad thermostats, leaking seal on refridgerator door, dust-clogged coils on a refridgerator or AC, leaking water well or water heater tank, strip heat coming on with the cooling (yes, this happens more than you'd think), or (also VERY prevalent) just using too much of everything. There is no free lunch....if you want your house to be 65 degrees in the summer, ya gotta pay for it!
