Start With the Document That Controls Everything: Your EFL
Before calling your provider, pull your Electricity Facts Label (EFL). Texas law requires every retail electric provider (REP) to give you one at enrollment. It is the binding document that specifies your rate, all recurring charges, and how the provider calculates your bill at different usage tiers.
The EFL is available on the Power to Choose website (powertochoose.org) or through your provider’s account portal. Download the version tied to your plan’s enrollment date, not the current version, because providers update EFLs when they change terms. If you signed up in January 2025 and your bill is from March 2025, you want the January version.
Here is what to read first:
- Base charge. A flat monthly fee that appears regardless of how much electricity you use. Some providers set this at zero. Others set it above $10. If your bill shows a base charge that does not match the EFL, that is a billing error.
- Energy charge. Stated in cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Multiply it by your usage on the bill and compare the result to the line item on your statement. The math should match within rounding (typically less than $0.50).
- Tiered pricing. Some plans charge a different rate above or below a usage threshold, commonly 500 kWh or 1,000 kWh. If your plan has tiers, the EFL will show each rate separately. Verify that the provider applied the correct tier based on your actual usage.
- TDU delivery charges. These come from your transmission and distribution utility (Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP Texas, etc.) and are passed through on your bill. The provider cannot control these amounts, but they must pass them through accurately without markup.
- Renewable energy certificates or credits. If your plan includes a renewable content percentage, it should appear on the EFL. Some providers charge a premium for this. Others include it in the base rate. Either way, verify the charge matches what you agreed to.
Do the arithmetic yourself, line by line. A spreadsheet takes about ten minutes and removes all ambiguity before you call anyone.
Common Reasons Texas Electric Bills Are Wrong
Billing errors fall into a small number of categories. Identifying the category before you call your provider shortens the conversation and makes it harder for a representative to give you a vague answer.
Estimated reads. If your smart meter fails to transmit data, your TDU may submit an estimated read rather than an actual one. Your provider bills based on the estimate. When the next actual read comes in, the provider issues a true-up. If the estimate was significantly high, you may have paid too much for a billing cycle. You can request actual meter read data from your TDU directly.
Switched-meter billing. In multi-unit buildings or areas with recent meter infrastructure work, a meter number can be associated with the wrong account. This happens infrequently but when it does, the error compounds over multiple months.
Incorrect plan rate applied. Providers occasionally apply a rate from a different plan than the one you enrolled in. This is more likely around the time of a plan renewal, especially on month-to-month contracts.
Unauthorized plan changes (slamming). Texas law prohibits switching a customer to a different plan without consent. PUCT tracks complaints about slamming. In the PUCT complaint dataset LightCompanies holds on file (covering July through December 2025, normalized to complaints per 10,000 estimated customers across the 34 providers under active coverage), slamming and unauthorized-change complaints represent a consistent share of billing-related filings, particularly among providers with aggressive door-to-door sales operations.
Deposit disputes. Some providers charge security deposits for customers without established credit history. Texas law caps deposits and requires refund after a defined period of on-time payment. If your deposit was not refunded on schedule, that is a recoverable amount.
Disconnection fees assessed incorrectly. Early termination fees (ETFs) must match the amount stated in your contract’s Terms of Service. If you were charged an ETF after your contract term expired, that is an error.
Step 1: Contact Your Provider and Document Everything
Your first formal step is a direct contact with your provider’s billing department. Not the general customer service line if a billing-specific line exists, because routing matters for documentation purposes.
When you call or write:
- State the specific line item you are disputing and the dollar amount.
- Reference your EFL (cite the plan name and enrollment date).
- Ask for a case or ticket number. If the representative says they do not issue ticket numbers, ask how you can reference this conversation in a future escalation. Write down the date, time, representative’s name or ID, and a summary of what they said.
- Request written confirmation of any adjustment they offer. An oral credit promise that does not appear on your next bill is not a resolution.
Email is preferable to phone for the initial contact if your provider offers it, because you automatically have a timestamp and a record. If you call, follow up with an email to the provider’s support address summarizing the call.
Give the provider a reasonable window to respond. Seven to ten business days is standard. Texas law gives providers 21 days to investigate a complaint you bring to them directly, but that is not a waiting period — you can file with PUCT as soon as you are dissatisfied with the provider’s review, and the provider then has 15 days to respond to PUCT.
Step 2: Escalate Within the Provider
If the frontline representative cannot resolve the dispute or offers a resolution you believe is incorrect, ask to escalate to a supervisor or the provider’s formal disputes team. Many providers have an internal process that is distinct from general customer service.
At this point, put your dispute in writing if you have not already. A written statement with the following elements creates a paper trail that matters if you later file with PUCT:
- Your account number and service address.
- The billing period(s) in question.
- The specific charge(s) you are disputing.
- The amount you believe is correct and how you calculated it (show the math from your EFL).
- Any previous communication references (ticket numbers, email threads).
- The outcome you are requesting (credit, refund, corrected invoice).
Send this to the provider’s billing disputes email or mailing address. Keep a copy.
Step 3: File a Complaint With PUCT
Once the provider’s 21-day investigation window has passed without a satisfactory resolution — or at any point after the provider denies your dispute and you believe the denial is incorrect — the next step is the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
PUCT operates a Consumer Protection Division that handles retail electricity complaints. The process is straightforward:
- Online filing. Use the PUCT complaint portal at puc.texas.gov. You will need your account information and documentation of your prior contact with the provider.
- By phone. PUCT’s customer help line is available during business hours. Call 512-936-7120 or toll-free at 1-888-782-8477.
- What happens after you file. PUCT logs the complaint and contacts the provider, who is required to respond. PUCT staff review both sides and attempt informal resolution. If that fails, you can request a formal proceeding.
A filed complaint is a matter of record. Providers that accumulate elevated complaint volumes relative to their customer base draw regulatory attention. LightCompanies tracks normalized complaint rates from PUCT data as one of five scoring dimensions in provider assessments (the other four: rate transparency, billing reliability, plan flexibility, and renewable mix). A provider’s complaint trajectory over time tells you more than a single quarter’s number.
One practical note: PUCT complaint data is published in quarterly snapshots. The dataset LightCompanies holds on file covers July through December 2025. If you are reading this in late 2026, a newer release may be available directly at puc.texas.gov.
Step 4: Small Claims Court (When the Amount Justifies It)
Texas Justice Courts handle small claims up to $20,000. If PUCT’s informal resolution process does not produce a result you find acceptable, and the disputed amount is material, small claims is a viable path. Filing fees are modest (generally $30 to $150 depending on the county and claim amount).
Before filing, send your provider a written demand letter stating the amount owed and a deadline to respond (10 to 14 business days is conventional). Keep a copy. Courts look favorably on plaintiffs who gave the other party a clear opportunity to settle.
In a billing dispute, your evidence is documentary: the EFL, your billing statements, your meter read data (available from your TDU), and your correspondence record. The math you did in step one becomes your exhibit.
What Not to Do While a Dispute Is Open
Do not withhold the entire bill. Texas providers can initiate disconnection proceedings after a defined nonpayment window. Pay the undisputed portion of your bill while the dispute is pending. If you owe $180 and you are disputing a $40 charge, pay $140 and document why.
Do not cancel your service impulsively. Switching providers while a billing dispute is open does not eliminate the dispute, and it can add an early termination fee to the balance if you are still inside a contract term.
Do not assume the provider will correct the error automatically. Even legitimate system errors often require a customer-initiated request to trigger a credit. Passive waiting extends the timeline without moving toward resolution.
How Provider Choice Affects Your Dispute Experience
Not all providers resolve billing disputes with equal speed or accuracy. The dispute process described here applies universally under Texas law, but in practice, providers with stronger billing infrastructure generate fewer errors that require disputes in the first place, and providers with responsive customer service teams close disputes faster when errors do occur.
LightCompanies rates providers on billing reliability as a distinct scoring dimension, separate from rate transparency. A provider can offer a competitive rate on paper while running a billing system that generates errors at a higher-than-average rate. Among the 34 providers under active coverage as of September 2026, that variance is measurable across the PUCT complaint data and the third-party rating snapshots (last verified February 25, 2026).
If your current provider has produced multiple billing errors over your contract term, the dispute process will recover specific overcharges. It will not fix a provider with a structural billing reliability problem. At contract renewal, that track record is worth weighting in your comparison, alongside the rate on the EFL.
For a direct rate and reliability comparison of specific providers at common usage tiers (500 kWh, 1,000 kWh, and 2,000 kWh), see the head-to-head provider comparisons in LightCompanies’ coverage index.