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Meagan Grabst found herself in a dire situation when she received a notification from Direct Energy indicating that her service would be canceled unless immediate payment was made. With a month of overdue bills and a growing family that includes two teenagers and a five-month-old baby, Grabst’s financial situation was becoming increasingly precarious.
“We earn a decent income, and when preparing for our new baby, we thought we’d manage just fine,” Grabst reflected. “However, the expenses have soared unexpectedly.”
Fortunately, she was expecting a child benefit payment to deposit into her account the following morning. “At 6 a.m., with my husband, I made the payment on my EasyMax bill right away,” she recounted.
Following the bill payment, her next priority was shopping for essentials. With only two diapers left and no baby formula at home, a trip to the grocery store was crucial.
“When I reached the register, my card was declined. It was a humiliating experience, especially when buying necessities,” Grabst shared. Overwhelmed with emotion, she left the store in tears, only to discover that her $281 bill had been deducted from her account twice.
She immediately contacted Direct Energy, where she was informed by a representative that this was a widespread issue affecting other customers as well. However, she was not given a clear timeline for resolution.
Desperately, she asked the agent, “How can I feed my baby? How do I provide diapers?” The response from the staff was sympathetic but offered little immediate help: “We understand your situation; it has been escalated.”
In a statement to Global News, Direct Energy acknowledged the situation, stating, “Some customers making payments via VISA debit cards experienced duplicate charges starting on Tuesday, October 15. These unauthorized charges are currently being addressed in collaboration with our payment processing bank.”
Direct Energy also asserted they only received one legitimate payment from the affected customers and are actively seeking to return any duplicated funds. “We apologize for the confusion this may have caused and recognize that this could create hardships for some customers. We encourage anyone experiencing financial difficulties due to this issue to reach out to us for support.”
In response to Global News’ inquiry, Direct Energy took the additional step of providing Grabst with a Visa gift card, helping her navigate the interim period until the refund process is completed.
Source
globalnews.ca