3 On Your Side: Saving On Your Electric Bill
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Have you received an offer in the mail to save you money on your electric bill? If you haven't gotten one chances are, it's on its way.
3 On Your Side consumer reporter Jim Donovan tells us about a big push to get you to shop around for electricity and save on power.
Save 10 percent, save up to 12 percent, get a $25 bonus, or a gift card up to $150.
They're just some of the perks energy companies are offering hoping that you'll make a switch from your current electricity supplier to theirs.
You can choose an electricity supplier by price, by how the electricity is made, or both.
For instance, you could go green and switch to a supplier that generates electricity using wind.
"It's important to know what you are shopping for and what you are not shopping for," said Pennsylvania consumer advocate Sonny Popowsky.
He says when shopping around for electricity, there are several things to consider.
First is what's known as, the price to compare. Electricity is billed based on kilowatt hours.
In January, PECO's price to compare will be 9.92 cents per kilowatt hour.
So PECO customers would want to shop around to see if another company could beat that price.
"A typical customer may use 700, 800, a thousand kilowatt hours a month," said Popowsky.
Find a company that charges a penny less for each kilowatt hour than what you're currently paying.
And if you're using 800 kilowatt hours, you'd save $8 dollar a month, a 10 percent savings.
Be aware, some companies may lock you in at a lower price, but require you to sign a contract. If you want out early, you could pay a penalty.
If you decide to switch to a different supplier, the company that delivers your power stays the same.
The lines that run down Broad Street and Market Street, those are still going to be maintained by PECO, the meter in your home is going to be still read by PECO, the bill you get is still going to be received from PECO.
It's just an option, so you can save.
"I don't think people should look at this as a burden or something they have to do. It's an opportunity that they can exercise if they chose to do so and hopefully save some money," said Popowsky.
Residents in New Jersey, Delaware and western parts of Pennsylvania already have the ability to comparison shop for electricity. This expands to all of Pennsylvania in January.
In the case of natural gas, you can switch when ever you want. The problem is lack of competition, especially when it comes to residential customers. For example, in Philadelphia county, PGW is the only supplier.
New Jersey residents have probably the most options.
LINKS:
PA Consumer Advocate (Electricity)
http://www.oca.state.pa.us/Industry/Electric/elecomp/ElectricGuides.htm
PA Consumer Advocate (Gas)
http://www.oca.state.pa.us/Industry/Natural_Gas/gascomp/GasGuides.htm
PA Public Utility Commission (Electricity)
http://www.papowerswitch.com/shop-for-electricity/
NJ Board of Public Utilities (Gas&Electric)
http://www.state.nj.us/bpu/commercial/shopping.html#1
Delaware (Electricity)
http://www.depsc.delaware.gov/electric.shtml#choice
Reported By: Jim Donovan, CBS 3
