Three Lagos residents, Christopher Awosika, Femi Shonubi, and Femi Osayintolu, have taken legal action against Ikeja Electric Ltd, IE, in the Lagos High Court, seeking N40 million in damages for what they allege as an unlawful disconnection of electricity to their residences due to a purported ‘fictitious debt.’
In the lawsuit represented by Evan Ufeli, the residents stated that they had been using a prepaid meter since 2019. They were surprised when, in 2022, IE officials suddenly presented them with an estimated bill of around N1 million on their old meter.
They argued that since the installation of the prepaid meter by Ikeja Electric in 2019, they had not received any notification of outstanding dues until 2022 when IE notified them of an alleged outstanding N1 million debt.
The customers further claimed that they had settled all previous bills on the old meter before the introduction of the prepaid meter. Despite this, Ikeja Electric continued to bill them based on the old meter, citing the absence of an official communication from them to halt the previous billing.
Following a complaint lodged at the IE office, the bill was reduced to N250,000. However, the residents asserted that they were not indebted and yet IE disconnected their electricity supply.
They contended that the disconnection by IE plunged their homes into darkness and that their complaint to the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, did not result in a resolution.
In their lawsuit, they seek, among other things, a declaration that the disconnection of their electricity by IE was wrongful, illegal, and a violation of their contractual agreement. Additionally, they are requesting N40 million in general damages for the distress, undue embarrassment, and hardship caused by IE.
A date for the hearing of the lawsuit is yet to be scheduled.
