Utility Bill Audit Shreds the Cost of One Client’s Energy Bill

When it comes to the East Coast’s largest privately owned scrap metal processor and recycling center, Upstate Shredding has no room for error. When Upstate Shredding signed as a client with Usource, as part of standard practice, the Usource energy advisor reviewed Upstate Shredding’s current and most recent utility bills for any errors. It was during this utility bill audit that the energy advisor discovered that Upstate Shredding was being charged for sales tax on twenty separate accounts across five different utilities, when it should have been tax exempt.

This initial discovery prompted the further review of years’ worth of utility bills as well as multiple on-site electric usage auditing to distinguish between all tax-exempt usage from non-exempt usage. Upon completion of the energy audit, Usource found that nearly all of Upstate Shredding’s utility accounts should have been tax-exempt, and that sales tax charges dated back several years. With these charges identified, the team gathered the necessary information on behalf of the client in order to submit the tax refund request to the state.

Usource’s standard utility bill auditing process ultimately saved the client a significant amount of money; Upstate Shredding received a check for over $154,000 from the state of New York. Aside from Usource’s procurement services, the team identified and corrected an ongoing billing error which cost the company thousands of dollars each year. Today, Usource advisors continue to monitor utility and supplier bills to ensure no errors have occurred, and Upstate Shredding remains a satisfied client with Usource.