ECONOMY & WORK
MONEY 101
NEWS
PERSONAL FINANCE
NET WORTH
About Us Contact Us Privacy Policy Terms of Use DMCA Opt-out of personalized ads
© Copyright 2023 Market Realist. Market Realist is a registered trademark. All Rights Reserved. People may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.
MARKETREALIST.COM / ECONOMY & WORK

Woman discovers she paid utility bills for her entire building. She realized her mistake 2 years later

A woman named Brooke Patterson kept paying bills of nearly $400 because of a misstep.
PUBLISHED SEP 1, 2024
Cover Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69
Cover Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69

Amid soaring inflation and sky-high cost of living, getting big utility bills isn’t out of the ordinary. This is what TikTok user Brooke Patterson (@vapestar69) felt when she received an unusually high bill for her apartment utilities. After making hefty payments of nearly $400 per month for two years, Patterson was shocked to discover that she had been paying the utility bills for not just her apartment but for the entire building. She then took to TikTok to explain how it all happened.

Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69
Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69

In the video which now has over 9.7 million views, Patterson explained how she mistakenly overpaid the bills. Firstly, she explained that she initially found the prices unusually high but the power company San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) said that the bills were normal when she inquired about it.

Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69
Image Source: TikTok | @vapestar69

However, as per the reports, Patterson only discovered the error after SDG&E cut off power to her apartment. She explained that the bills were high due to an error caused by issues with an ex-partner. It turns out that her ex-partner had an account for utilities and when he moved out Patterson couldn’t open a new account as the older one had to be closed. However, in another attempt, Patterson was able to open a new account swiftly. This was only because she didn’t open an account for herself but instead, she opened an account for the entire building. This is why her utility bills were sky-high.


@vapestar69 I JUST THOUGHT THAT THE COST OF LIVING WAS THAT HIGH #apartmentstorytime ♬ original sound - Vapestar69

 

However, the comment section of the video wasn’t convinced at all. Several users were baffled by the fact that she did not know. “How did you now know?? Genuinely??????” one user wrote. Meanwhile, another user rightfully pointed out the fact that this means for two years everyone in her building paid $0 and said nothing.

Image Soure: TikTok | @vapestar69
Image Soure: TikTok | @vapestar69

To this, Patterson replied in a follow-up video explaining that she lived in a small apartment with small units. Furthermore, she was paying the bills during the winter months thus the bills of $400 seemed somehow justified in her head, which is why she didn’t question it right away.

Several users suggested things that she should do as well. While one user exclaimed that she should lawyer up and go after a refund, another user suggested that her landlord may be due for a lawsuit as well.

Thankfully, as per Patterson’s follow-up videos, it seems that the issue has been resolved and she is in the process of getting a refund. In her follow-up videos, she said that she took the matter up with SDG&E and they have promised a refund for the extra payments. However, the company had informed her that it would be a lengthy process as bills of the past two years had to be reviewed.


@vapestar69 The utilities company said they were sawwy 🥺 #apartmentstorytime #sdge #sandiegocheck ♬ original sound - Vapestar69

 

She even posted a video responding to a user who asked her to demand interest on the overcharged payments. She said she would like to explore the potential of it and asked if any of the viewers could help her out with it.


@vapestar69 Replying to @user3807335317164 any utilities industry baddies please hit my line #apartmentstorytime #sdge #utilitybill #sandiego ♬ original sound - Vapestar69

 

Follow @vapestar69 for more content.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on March 20, 2024. It has since been updated.

MORE ON MARKET REALIST
The comedian was impressed by the simplicity of the product and amused by the pitch.
10 hours ago
Harrison usually makes smart deals on the show, but this vintage car buy turned into a costly mistake.
13 hours ago
Had she started the game in a better way, she might have won the five-figure prize money.
14 hours ago
Barbara Corcoran made the exact same offer, and she wasn't happy about being rejected.
1 day ago
The guest believed that it was worth a modest amount of money, but that was clearly not the case.
1 day ago
With James Holzhauer in the lead, Amy Schneider and Andrew He decided to joke around.
1 day ago
Barbara Corcoran told the founders that she had never seen Greiner so passionate.
1 day ago
The guest said that it was left to her by her grandmother who passed at the age of 102.
2 days ago
The host was quick to latch on to his way of speaking and made a mockery of it on TV.
2 days ago
The contestant was clearly just happy to win the chance of being on the same stage as Drew Carey.
2 days ago
The player, Thomas Russo, nearly put all of his strength into spinning the wheel.
2 days ago
Things took a turn for the better with the shark as far as the entrepreneurs were concerned.
3 days ago
The expert pointed out the intricate details on the item and said it was a personal item of the royals.
3 days ago
The expert said that if the signature was on a letterhead when Garfield was President, it would be worth more.
3 days ago
Had the contestants not gotten their gamble right, they would have lost everything they'd earned.
4 days ago
The revelation came thanks to a fan who asked the question during a "Jeopardy!" taping.
4 days ago
The entrepreneurs' decision came as a big shock to the sharks, and they did not hide it.
4 days ago
Tina double-guessed her third answer, "Does April have 31 days?" Harvey gave her the stink eye.
4 days ago
All the theatrics didn't work when sharks started scrutinizing profit margins.
4 days ago
"Can I stop at any time?" the player nervously inquired. "You can stop any time you want, yes," Carey assured.
4 days ago