In the event of a dispute between a member and the Cooperative regarding any bill for electric services, the Cooperative shall make such investigation as shall be required by the particular circumstances and report the results thereof to the member. In the event the dispute is not resolved, the Cooperative shall inform the member of the complaint procedures of the Cooperative and any regulatory authority having jurisdiction.
The member shall not be required to pay the disputed portion of the bill which exceeds the member's average monthly usage at current rates, pending the resolution of the dispute. The Cooperative will attempt to resolve the dispute within 60 days. For purposes of this rule only, the member's average monthly usage at current rates shall be the average of the member's gross utility service for the proceeding 12-month period. When no previous usage history exists, consumption for calculating the average monthly usage shall be estimated on the basis of usage levels of similar members and under similar conditions.