US man discovers he’s been paying his neighbour’s electricity bill for 15 years

Ken Wilson had been paying the electricity bill for his neighbour since 2009, which was three years since he moved in.

Man pays his neighbour's electricity bill for year (Representational image/Pexels)

A man in California was left startled when he found out he had been paying his neighbour’s electricity bill for 15 years. Ken Wilson, a customer of a company called Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), has been living alone in an apartment complex in Vacaville since 2006.

He noticed his electricity bills were rising and took measures to curb his consumption. However, he failed to restrict his bills and decided to probe the matter. According to ABC News, Wilson bought a device to help track the power use of his appliances and discovered that his electricity meter continued to run even when his appliances were off.

“Even after I turned off my breakers, I kept going outside to check my meter to see if it was still running and it was still running,” Wilson told ABC News.

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Wilson then contacted the discom, which sent a representative to his apartment to monitor his meter. The company’s inspection revealed that Wilson had been paying the electricity bill for his neighbour since 2009, which was three years since he moved in.

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“Our preliminary investigation has found the meter number for the customer’s apartment was being billed to another apartment since potentially 2009,” a spokesperson for the utility told ABC News.

According to The Guardian, Wilson is still paying his neighbour’s bill as the company said the error can be fixed only in the next billing cycle.

In this screengrab from a video posted on Sept. 4, 2025, Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the gathering during a meeting with National Awardee Teachers at his official residence, in New Delhi. (@NarendraModi via PTI Photo)

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