PHILADELPHIA, March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- PECO Energy has mailed termination
notices to some 68,000 residential accounts that have become seriously
delinquent with instructions to pay past due balances or risk loss of service. Many of these customers have failed to keep special payment arrangements
offered by PECO to bring their accounts up to date, or consistently have failed
to pay for their electric or natural gas service. In addition to the termination notices, these customers will receive two
follow up notices, and will have 10 days to make payments on their past due
accounts or face termination of service. The notices are being sent to electric
customers in Philadelphia and natural gas and electric customers in Delaware,
Chester, Montgomery, Bucks and York counties. PECO's customer service policies historically have encouraged open dialogue
with customers who have questions about or need assistance with keeping their
accounts current. This remains unchanged, yet PECO must be fair to those
customers who pay their bills in full and on time. "Everyone who has an account with PECO has a responsibility to pay for
the service they use. It is also the customer's responsibility to contact PECO
when situations arise that threaten their ability to pay," said Deb
Richard, manager, Credit. In turn, PECO provides reliable service and provides customers with as much
assistance as possible to manage their energy costs. Some of the payment options
include budget billing, online and direct payments deducted from a checking or
savings account and credit card payments. In addition, PECO has the largest program in Pennsylvania to help low- income
customers manage energy costs with five discounted Customer Assistance Program
(CAP) rates and access to Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP)
federal grants. PECO's low- income customers already have received about $5
million in assistance for the 2003-2004 heating season. Specifically, PECO's credit and collections activities involve: -- More consistent processes for negotiating special payment
-- Improved tracking of customer payment history and other credit risk indicators.
-- Early identification of low-income customers eligible for financial counseling and energy assistance.
-- Collecting deposits prior to turn on for credit risk customers, which will likely begin by September.
-- More timely collection of delinquent accounts, including the collection of deposits from some customers to retain service, and more aggressive schedules for those with the ability to pay and fail to do so.
These policies are consistent with the state Public Utility Commission regulations and other utility companies.
Under the initiative, PECO will be more diligent in denying service to customers when it suspects fraud. For example, customers' misuse of policies intended to help those with emergency medical conditions. Although these programs will continue, the ratepayers are still obligated to make payments.
Customers who receive termination notices should call PECO's Credit Call Center at 1-888-480-1533. PECO accepts payments by telephone using a credit card or electronic check, or in person at authorized payment locations.
Based in Philadelphia, PECO Energy is an electric and natural gas utility subsidiary of Exelon Corporation (NYSE: EXC). PECO serves 1.5 million electric and 456,000 natural gas customers in southeastern Pennsylvania. In 2003, its sales exceeded 36,753 gigawatt hours (gWh) of electricity and 88.2 billion cubic feet of natural gas to residential, business and institutional customers. PECO's energy delivery services generated $4.38 billion in revenue for Exelon. PECO is one of the largest employers and most active corporate citizens in the Greater Philadelphia Region.
Contact: Vonda Paige
215-841-5555 SOURCE PECO Energy