Gas bill audit checklist: units, heat content, service and settlement

Start with the unit printed on the invoice

A gas meter may record volume while a commodity price uses energy. Ccf, Mcf, therms and MMBtu are not interchangeable labels. Record the billed unit, meter multiplier and heat-content factor for the actual period. Use the utility's published bill explanation to understand where those fields appear; do not replace a missing factor with an internet average.

Keep commodity, utility delivery, transportation, storage and balancing records distinct where those services apply. Columbia's bill guide is one specific utility example. Nicor's service schedules show why a gas review also needs the applicable rate class and service arrangement.

Reconcile in the order the documents specify

1. Match the meter, location and billing dates to the service record.
2. Identify actual, estimated and subsequently corrected reads.
3. Reproduce any multiplier and conversion on the stated units.
4. Apply the executed commodity price to the correct quantity and dates.
5. Reconcile delivery and fixed charges against the effective utility schedule.
6. For transportation, obtain the scheduled, delivered, consumed and settled quantities required by the agreement.
7. Match any credit or true-up with the account ledger and original period.

The same molecule is not a reason to assume every gas supplier invoice includes the same cost components. A commodity rate can exclude transportation or balancing obligations that appear elsewhere. Conversely, two documents can describe the same settlement without representing two amounts payable.

Worked example: a conversion difference is a question, not an automatic overcharge

Illustrative bill inputs: metered volume is 8,000 Ccf and the documented factor is 1.025 therms/Ccf. The expected energy quantity is 8,200 therms. At an assumed $0.60/therm, the commodity line is $4,920.

If an invoice shows 8,400 therms, the difference is 200 therms, or $120 at that assumed price. Check whether the factor, read, multiplier or billing period changed before calling it an error. A corrected meter read may explain the difference. These factors and prices are teaching inputs and are not the current conversion or tariff of a named utility.

Review a settlement without hiding the sign

For an imbalance or cash-out, record whether the account owes money or receives a credit, what period is being settled and which prices apply. Separate a carry-forward quantity from the month's consumption. Confirm whether a bill's positive number is a debit or a credit under that statement's conventions.

Keep the dispute file reproducible: document, clause, quantity, formula, expected result and billed result. Ask for an explanation tied to the tariff or contract. Do not assert a universal imbalance tolerance, penalty, lookback or refund period. Track a promised correction until it is actually posted.

Sources and limits

EIA units supports distinguishing energy and volume. Columbia's bill guide and Nicor rates are utility-specific references. The example is original arithmetic, not an actual customer billing result. See the 17-check guide for recordkeeping and escalation.