By Colin Teague and Lauren Keller – 11/18/2024
PECO’s Billing Issues Erode Trust in Energy Providers
If you’re a PECO customer, you may be aware that many customers are not receiving their energy bills. According to PECO, ongoing billing errors are being caused by problems with their new online billing system, which they advised is “under construction.” According to an article from Fox 29 Philadelphia, some customers stopped receiving bills as early as February 2024, and for many, the problem continued throughout the entirety of summer 2024, making budgeting very difficult for those who were affected. While some PECO customers have begun receiving bills again, the problem persists for many.
The Energy Co-op serves over 2,000 members within PECO’s service territory, and by our calculations, roughly 6% of them have experienced issues receiving their bills from PECO. For some members, recent bills included a notice stating, “supply charges are delayed,” while others did not receive this information. We spoke to a few of our members who were willing to share their experiences.
“One thing PECO could have done was send provisional or estimated bills to avoid an unpleasant, possibly unmanageable surprise when the bills start coming again,” said one member who took proactive measures by setting aside the funds to cover the eventual arrival of past energy bills.
While acknowledging that the PECO customer service representatives she spoke with were friendly and informative, our member expressed frustration that the utility company failed to proactively communicate with customers to keep them updated on the situation. “I’m concerned, a bit frightened, and disappointed that this company which literally holds the power of light, dark, heat, cold, had such a serious and protracted issue but had no contingency billing plan in place and left it to citizens to make the call to even find out what was happening.”
Another Energy Co-op member noted having persistent trouble with PECO’s auto-pay service. “Every time I called, they admitted they were at fault and most of the time did the right things to fix the problem, though I had to call back more than once to get rid of late fees and return payment fees.” She noticed the issue stopped once she disabled the auto-pay feature.
Recently, we have heard from several Energy Co-op members who have resumed receiving their PECO bills only to find they were charged double the anticipated amount. One member, enrolled in direct debit with PECO to pay her bill, informed us that the last time she was billed was July 5. “When I go to my PECO account online, it shows that we owe 10 times what was debited on 7/5/2024,” she said. “I would expect it to be 4-5 times the amount we were billed in July because a current bill should cover the last 4-5 months of electricity use.” She went on to note that her home is equipped with solar panels and anticipated the bills to be much lower given the exceptionally sunny weather Pennsylvania has seen over the past few months.
Yet another member informed us she was charged double by PECO for her electricity supply over the past two billing cycles. PECO indicated a need to install a new antenna for remote meter reading, though they were unable to explain details. Importantly, when an electricity supply meter reading is transmitted to PECO, it directly affects the distribution cost per kilowatt-hour that they then charge for delivery. The meter should provide an accurate account of the amount of electricity consumed, allowing PECO to calculate the delivery charges based on actual usage. Since distribution charges are tied to the electricity delivered to a customer, a meter pulling incorrect data will directly impact the overall bill total, including both electricity supply and the cost of transporting electricity from the grid to a home or business. That means that when a customer is charged the incorrect supply charge, PECO’s delivery charges will be based on that kWh usage.
As PECO continues to struggle with its billing issues, many of their customers and our members alike are left in difficult and uncertain situations. While some have resumed receiving their bills, the persistence of billing discrepancies and lack of communication leave customers frustrated and concerned. The Energy Co-op urges PECO to address these issues promptly to ensure that affected customers are properly informed and explore alternative lines of communication to ease the burden on those who have been left in the dark. The Energy Co-op will continue to monitor the situation and advocate for our members, pushing for solutions that not only resolve these billing issues but also help restore trust in the energy industry as a whole.