Estimated Bill??????

I opened my gas bill the other day.  $12.04.  For a whole month.  On it was the note:  "Due to extreme weather conditions, we were unable to read some customer meters in January.  Your bill may be estimated for this period.  Due to the colder than normal weather driving energy usage higher, the estimate may be low.  If you have an estimated read, any shortfall in billed usage will be reflected on your next bill with an actual read posted to your account  We apologize for this inconvenience."

This was not an estimated bill!  All they were charging was the delivery fee, with no approximation of the therms I used.  Last month's bill was $130.  This month's use has to be at least that.  If I paid only the $12.04, next month I would be hit with a bill well over $300, even if the weather is good! I paid them $132.04 today, online, knowing that I can't change the weather, but I CAN somewhat control the bills.

I guess I should be grateful that they weren't charging me for therms they couldn't prove that I'd used, but people like me can't afford surprises.  When they say the bill is "estimated", they need to mean it!