Complaint Review: West Penn Power

Ok. In May of Last year, my Aunt set my Mother up with a Energy program to help with paying her electric bill. This program is called Pcap. Which I believe stands for Pennsylvania Care Act Program. When your a customer and your in need of help, paying your electric bill, this program seems like it is helpful. Escpecially for someone who is on Disability and has a very limited Income.

This program, is used to cover a certain amount each month, toward your electric bill.  Which at the time, is actually helpful.  

However, when you use this particular program, be on your toes and DO NOT, let the program end. In this situation it did. Both myself and my Aunt (Mom's Sister) cover bill pay, rent, etc.... She lives in Hud housing and like I mentioned before, is on Disability.

Mom is someone who isn't capable of handling a situation that requires coming up with a solution when faced with an issue.

Unfortunately, my aunt and I didn't communicate too much about her putting my mother on this program, only that she was now on it and that it will help out greatly with the due amount.

Toward the end of May, I, like I do almost everyday, checked her mail and like clockwork there was the energy bill, which up to this point, always read "Due Amount $0.00"

Yes I knew there would be a point where I would read an amount Due price, to start to pay back the program. What I read, gave me "Shell Shock!"

Without prior notice, the program contract ended and there was an amount Due, well over $1,000.00 and because the program date ended, the full Amount was Due!!!!

I immediately called the electric company to find out if there was a possible payment option and what would need to be done to be placed back on the program.

The first time that I spoke to somebody was the day after the program date ended. I was informed at that time, that if a payment of $110.00 was made, that she could be placed back on the program.  I told the person I spoke to, that my mother was on disabilty and that she wouldn't get her money until the 3rd of June.

He said, that, that wasn't a problem, that he would put into the memo section, that a payment would be made of the agreed payment amount and that once it was made, the program would be restarted.

Foolishly I thought, that this was the end of it. That my mother was placed back into the program and that, if the amount of $110 was paid each month, along with the monthly charges, to pay off the $1000.00 total, that all was ok.

It wasn't, a week later, there was a paper slid under her front door and it was a Shut Off Notice and of course, it the total amount was paid off within 10 days, the power would be turned off!

Again I was back on the phone with West Penn, only this time I was dealing with how to prevent a shut off as well as to get an answer as to why, the person that I spoke to, didn't follow through and place her back onto the program.

So this second call, I was told, that yes, they received the payment amount, but there was no memo mentioning being placed back on the assistance program and that, they would have to talk to the Assistance provider and that once an amount was determined, that I would receive a call back.

So here I was, looking at yet another payment amount, that would be due before getting back onto the program. I never received a call back.

Now i'm at the 3rd call, which was the final day before the power was to be shut off. This time I was told that, there wasn't any money left in the budget of the program and that in order to be placed back onto the program, that I would have to pay $367.00 which WAS half of the amount, after payments were made, bringing it down to a little over $700.

Keep in mind that my mother is on a fixed income. so all together it took $477.00 dollars to get placed back onto a program, that didn't seem to have a budget amount.

They basically put my mother through the ringer financially and put me through a nightmare, trying anything and everything I could think of to prevent the power from being shut off.

After thinking about it, I wasn't able to comprehend how this program would need a budget, when it basically just places the past due amounts into another account and continues to grow, month to month and is paid off by payments which are added onto the actual monthly bill.

It is ridiculous what West Penn or any other power companies charges people, for electricity and even though, the persons usage doesn't change month, the charges do! West Penn has people with limited income trapped in a never ending cycle!  The Pcap problem, only helps because the actual charges are placed into a sort of storage account and once the payment amount has been determined, it, as well as the current monthly charge are combined and expected to be paid in current, other wise, a single slip places the customer into an outrageous payment nightmare!

One last thing, if you do choose to switch to a different energy provider, DO NOT, have an amount due with your current provider, otherwise you end up with, the payment amount, the current charge and of course are being charged for services from the new provider.

Bottom line, is that because of miscommunication, West Penn came at my mother and I like vultures, demanding outrageous amounts in order to be placed back onto a program that just becomes an endless, outrageous cycle. It doesn't seem to matter that your on disablity, trying to survive on a limited income, that is well below poverty level.

West Penn Power doesn't care, they will get whatever amount they feel like charging you and it's no concern of theirs that you have a disability. They will make you think that they do, they don't!