PENELEC FIXED RATE CUSTOMERS MAY HAVE TO PAY SURCHARGES When is a fixed rate not a fixed rate? 3/28/2014 You may be getting an unwelcome letter in the mail from your power company informing you that your fixed rate for electricity is not so fixed. In fact, First energy Solutions is informing its fixed rate customers that they will be charged a one-time fee of $5 to $15 to cover the company’s increased expenses from the Polar Vortex this winter. Ohio-based First Energy is the parent company of Penelec and has nearly 600,000 customers in Pennsylvania, including in Indiana County. The company’s variable rate customers have recently been receiving electric bills as much as four times as high as normal. The state Public Utility Commission this week held special training sessions for employees to handle the expected complaints. The agency says homeowners need to read the fine print in their electricity agreement. Older agreements contain language that says the company can charge fixed rate customers to recoup costs, and the PUC says there’s nothing they can do about it. Republican Representative Bob Godshall, the chairman of the House Consumer Affairs Committee, says they will take a close look at the issue. He says “Customers need to know that they have a fixed rate. A fixed rate is a fixed rate. Period.” First Energy says the fee will be charged to customers in their May and June electric bills.
Posted on: Fri, 28 Mar 2014 10:50:55 +0000
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