The customer service provided by Con Edison has been described as appallingly inadequate.
During a recent perilous cold snap, Con Edison left some residents of Brooklyn without power for several days. Now, these residents claim the company is failing to address their reimbursement claims, leaving them feeling abandoned once more.
Numerous locals have reported that Con Edison’s handling of their refund requests has been less than satisfactory. Some have had their claims dismissed prematurely, while others remain in the dark about whether their submissions have been processed or acknowledged.
James Kilmeade, a Park Slope resident, expressed his frustration: “Trying to resolve this with Con Ed, I was on hold for two days. They were just so disrespectful.” Kilmeade went on to explain how he had to book a hotel for two nights to ensure the safety of his pet bearded dragon from the freezing temperatures.
He shared further grievances, noting, “The people wouldn’t give me their last names or any employee ID, and they never called me back.” Kilmeade submitted a $200 claim for food that spoiled during the power outage, yet he still awaits a response.
He hasn’t heard back.
Kilmeade said he hasn’t even asked to be reimbursed for the hundreds he spent at the hotel, which he booked because there was no power for his 9-year-old pet’s heat lamp.
“I had to smuggle her into a hotel, basically, in a blanket,” the 30-year-old said.
The blowback comes after Con Ed got the green light to hike electric bills by 10.4% and inflate gas bills 15.8% over the next three years – a move which is set to cost the average Big Apple resident an eye-watering $600 more per year by 2028.
A Con Edison representative said the company is in the process of paying “validated claims” for the hundreds of residential customers in Brooklyn who were without power for more than 48 hours during a massive outage that began on Jan. 31 — smack in the middle of an extended Arctic deep freeze in the city.
Con Edison offers up to $655 in reimbursements for customers facing spoiled food and prescription medication after some power outages that last over 12 hours, according to its website.
The roughly six-day blackout across Park Slope, Gowanus and Boerum Hill was sparked by a manhole fire started due to melting snow and salt on the road, which can corrode wires and underground equipment, according to the energy provider.
But resident A.C. claimed the utility provider said the outage didn’t qualify him for a refund.
“They said it was due to the salt getting into their equipment, and I guess they don’t usually pay out for those instances,” he said. “I think they should cover it, just because salt is foreseeable … It’s not like it was a surprise.”
City Council member Shahana Hanif (D-Brooklyn) is now demanding Con Edison reconsider claims and offer a plan on what it’s doing to prevent future outages.
“Neighbors carried food up dark stairwells, shared heaters and blankets, and boiled water for warmth,” Hanif wrote in a Feb, 27 letter co-signed by six other city and state lawmakers.
“Many incurred real financial losses and faced unsafe living conditions through no fault of their own,” the pols added, and “they should not be left to shoulder the burden of a prolonged outage that resulted from infrastructure failure.”
