Why some Albertans aren't yet seeing a rebate on their power bills

Rows of power lines are shown in a stock photo. (Nathan Denette)

Though thousands of Albertans have received a $50 rebate on their most recent electricity bill, not all have.  

The rebate, first announced by Premier Jason Kenney in March, is part of the provincial government's affordability initiatives.

Initially, the province said eligible Albertans would receive three monthly rebates of $50 each in an effort to cover high electricity costs, but later expanded the rebates for an additional three months.

It means more than 1.9 million homes, farms and businesses will receive a total of $300 in rebates from July to December.

Eligible consumers will automatically receive the rebate and no application or action is required by the consumer.

The province says rebates will appear as a credit on your bill listed under the "GOA Utility Commodity Rebate."

Though most Albertans started receiving the rebates in July, the province has warned the exact timing depends on your billing cycle.

CTV News reached out to the below energy providers for an update of the status of the rebate for their customers:

ATCO

In a statement to CTV News, ATCO said most Albertans will start to receive their rebates in July, but exact timing will vary depending on your billing cycle.

"Since eligibility is determined by the province, we've been instructed to tell people if you didn’t receive the credit and feel you should have, contact the Utility Consumer Advocate at 310-4822 or [e-mail] for support."

DIRECT ENERGY

In a statement to CTV News, Direct Energy said they are working with electricity distributors to facilitate distribution of the rebate to Albertans.

"Electricity distributors are responsible for determining customer eligibility. Once we receive that information, Direct Energy will credit eligible customers’ accounts, and the rebate will appear on their next bill.

"Customer billing cycles are based on when customers signed up with Direct Energy and their meter reads. Depending on their billing cycles, some customers may not receive the rebate until late August."

ENMAX

In a statement to CTV News, ENMAX confirmed the rebates will be automatically credited to bills starting in July, though exact timing within the month will vary depending on your billing cycle.

EPCOR

In a statement to CTV News, Epcor said it will ensure the electricity rebate is delivered to eligible customers as per the approved legislation.

"Beginning in the July billing cycle, eligible customers will see the rebate on their EPCOR bill.

"If the rebate is not on the July bill, customers should wait until the next bill as exact timing depends on their billing cycle – and this can vary for customers."

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOU'RE ELIGIBLE?

According to the province's website, you are automatically eligible for the rebate if you are an electricity customer who:

• Is currently connected to the system and receive a monthly bill directly from a utility provider;
• Consumed less than 250 megawatt hours of electricity within the past year; and
• Disconnected from the system for missed payment but is still enrolled with an electricity retailer.

You are not eligible for a rebate if you:

• Disconnected from the system and are not enrolled with an electricity retailer;
• Don't receive monthly bills directly from a utility provider because you live in a sub-metered residence (some condos and apartments); only the main site that connects directly to the distribution system is eligible to receive the rebate, if it consumes less than 250 megawatt hours per year; or
• Provide yard or street lighting services.