By Farah Wahida:
Despite their impressive exterior, many luxury houses along Lutong-Pujut road are practising electricity theft, according to the Sarawak Electricity Supply Corporation (SESCO).
Owners of some of these high-end homes are only paying RM80 per month in electricity bills compared to the higher bills being paid by owners of terraced units, said the utility company.
The amount is surprisingly low for such big houses with many occupants and electrical appliances, raising suspicion that their electric meter has been directly tapped to manipulate the reading. Overall, 28 percent of all the meters inspected in Miri were tampered with, which is a high rate compared to other regions.
Those found of guilty of electricity theft can be imprisoned for five years and/or fined up to RM100,000, under Section 33(5) of the Electricity Ordinance.
As these houses were recently developed, SESCO believes that the occupants had directly tapped the meter when they had moved in. Moreover, it explained that direct tapping is dangerous since it alters the safety wiring system, and jeopardises the protective system which prevents fire and electrocution.
Although the investigation team from SESCO were not able to inspect some meters as some gates were locked, under Section 32 (b) of the Electricity Ordinance, it can apply for a court warrant to enter customers’ premises to inspect their meters.
Farah Wahida, Editor of PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email farahwahida@propertyguru.com.my
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