DTE Energy: billing error
Dispute the bill by phone or the complaint form; if DTE does not fix it, complain to the MPSC.
What does this mean?
Grade A (high: almost everything comes from official pages read directly). 100% of 29 sources are the organization's own pages or government sites.
Collect
- the disputed bill
- previous bills
- meter photos with dates
- call notes with reference numbers
Steps
Call DTE residential assistance, dispute the bill and ask for a meter check if usage looks wrong. Get a reference number.
Put the complaint in writing through the File a Complaint form.
If not resolved, complain to the Michigan Public Service Commission.
Rules in force
- Restore Online Shoppers' Confidence Act (ROSCA) negative option requirements15 U.S.C. 8401-8405
A seller that charges consumers online through a negative option feature (for example an automatic renewal or a free trial that converts to paid) must clearly disclose all material terms before taking billing information, get the consumer's express informed consent before charging, and provide simple mechanisms to stop recurring charges. The FTC enforces ROSCA.
Source: law.cornell.edu, verified 2026-10-12
1 citable point
- Policy
The seller must obtain "a consumer's express informed consent before charging the consumer's credit card, debit card, bank account, or other financial account".
Source: law.cornell.edu, verified 2026-10-12
- Policy
If that fails, escalate
Go up one step at a time. Keep the reference numbers and dates from each contact.
Customer service
Supervisor
Ask the representative for a supervisor. Write down the name and reference number.
Written complaint
State agency
Your state’s utility commission. Find it in the list of state agencies (also as JSON:
states/<code>.json, for example states/ny.json).Michigan Public Service Commission (MPSC).
State agency
Your state’s attorney general. Find it in the list of state agencies (also as JSON:
states/<code>.json, for example states/ny.json).Michigan Attorney General.
Watch out
- Payment Agreements are set up in the online account (sign-in required).
- The Medical Certification Form must be completed in English by a physician or public health official.
Let your AI agent handle this
Escalate Anything is a free, open-source MCP server for Claude, Cursor, VS Code, Gemini CLI, Codex and other AI apps. Your agent gets this playbook, keeps a case log with reference numbers and follow-up dates, and drafts each message for you to approve.
1. Set it up (needs uv):
uvx escalate-anything setup2. Ask your agent:
DTE Energy charged me [amount] on [date] for something I did not order. Use Escalate Anything to get it corrected.Source code, other install options and the Claude Code plugin