How to avoid those high heating bills
PECO confirms we are using a lot more energy, and no wonder when you compare temperatures last week to the same week the year before.
Temperatures were 48-percent lower last week, and PECO says its customers used about 10-percent more electricity and 35-percent more natural gas.
And you know what that means - bills are going to be higher.
If you aren't turning down your thermostat now, the Kurz's last bill might motivate you. It was $643!
Jo Ann Kurz tells us, "It's a tremendous amount of money for us... I almost cried when I saw it."
The cold weather is only partially to blame. The Kurzs tell me their contract with their third-party electricity supplier expired without their realizing it, and their fixed rate became a much higher variable rate.
Cathy Engel Menendez from PECO explains, "You know, certainly consumers can save money by shopping with a competitive supplier, but it's very important that customers pay attention to their contract terms."
Action News called PECO for help and the company kindly sent an energy auditor to the Kurz's home.
PECO will send an energy auditor to your house, too. The cost is $50 to $100.
Or you can do a FREE online energy audit yourself.
And if you've already received a natural gas or electric bill you can't afford to pay, both PECO and PGW urge you to call immediately for help.
"Because we do have programs that can help. We can do one-time payments arrangements," explained Menendez.
You can also get on budget billing, which spreads your annual costs evenly over the year.
But be advised - with Peco and PGW, you must have an account in good standing to get on budget billing. And with PGW, you must also pay your past due amount for a zero balance.
Meantime, both companies also urge customers NOT to leave money on the table.
Barry O'Sullivan from PGW tells us, "The reason we say that is we know that there are tens of thousands of families in Philadelphia who don't apply for programs like LiHeap every year, even though they're eligible."
You can apply for LiHeap right now and get a grant of up to $1,000.
For Pennsylvanians alone there's still $60 million available.
And PGW and PECO offer a number of other programs to help customers. For instance, PGW has a program called CARES. It offers help to households going through temporary financial hardship and allows them to pay a percentage of their bill.
More information
Program information:
PGW - http://www.pgworks.com/residential/customer-care/payment-assistance
PECO - https://www.peco.com/savings/pages/default.aspx
Tips to conserve energy: http://www.pgworks.com/residential/savings/savings-rebates-incentives
Electricity supplier chart: http://www.papowerswitch.com/shop-for-electricity/
http://www.nj.gov/bpu/commercial/shopping.html
