Ameren explains high electric bills this summer

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) — First Alert 4 continues to follow your concerns over high Ameren bills. This comes after many viewers reached out to us, expressing bills that were triple and sometimes quadrupled what they were at the beginning of the summer.

Between a recent rate hike and a heat wave, we’re working to get answers for you.

First Alert 4 asked Ameren point blank, why people’s bills are so high, and whether it was because of the heat or because of that rate hike. Ameren officials responded by saying it’s because of the heat.

They said the 12% rate hike went into effect on June 1. It was said to increase bills by just $14 a month on average. The rate hike was to improve service and reliability for customers.

However, some people are questioning if that rate hike is playing into astronomically higher bills this summer.

To get answers, First Alert 4 sat down with a customer advocacy member at Ameren to do a walk-through of the energy manager tool. That feature is located on the homepage as soon as you log into your account. There you can see a breakdown of what each usage type costs you, and a comparison of past bills.

An example bill breaks down that the most significant reason why a bill increased was due to an increase in cooling, not the rate hike.

Officials also explained a number of ways to help lower that energy use.

“There’s a lot of things that we personally can do in our behavior or actions that can impact the bill. Closing the blinds during the day, if you know that the sun beats in and your home is going to have to work harder to cool it, turn off the lights, look for things that are always plugged in,” said Paige Selby, Customer Advocacy Manager at Ameren Missouri.

If you do get caught in a bind when given a high electric bill, there are payment assistance options for you. Officials say if you think you’re unable to pay your bill on time, before signing up for those options, you can reach out to them and they will work with you to get it paid.

As for customers who already use Budget Billing, a common payment assistance option which allows you to pay a set rate every month depending on your use, you may have noticed an increase in your average bill as well. That’s because every six months, that average is recalculated depending on your usage.

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