“I was confused because it said you have chosen to be switched, and I thought, no I didn’t,” said Deby Allen, owner of Special Effects Styling Salon in Bethel Twp., who received a letter in the mail last week.
Resident Ronda Crank also was unaware of the change.
“I’ll have to look into it. That’s my money, so I certainly will be doing some research,” Clark said.
Aggregation has locked in an electric rate for Bethel Twp. customers at .o67 Kwh for a year, DP&L’s rate for individual customers was .073, as of Friday. Customers can opt out or switch suppliers at any time with no charge, said Bethel Twp. Trustee Nancy Brown.
Next week, voters in Pike Twp., German Twp., and Mad River Twp. will decide on electric and natural gas aggregation.
“Like anything else, if you buy in bulk you get a better price, and that’s what we are doing. The estimates are that this will save people up to a couple hundred dollars a year. Helping people save money for themselves, it’s one of the most satisfying things I’ve done in my 13 years as a trustee,” Brown said.
Brown said the utilities were required to send letters to customers giving them at least a 30-day notice of the switch.
She said she’s not sure if some people were inadvertently dropped from the original customer address list, or if some people thought the letters were an advertisement or junk mail, but she has had a few calls this week from concerned and confused citizens.
“Everyone we’ve talked to, after understanding the process, they say it’s a really good deal and they are going to go ahead with it,” Brown said.
Allen said she is still confused, but was pleased by no-fee opt out option.
“I’ve decided to just let it play out and see if my bill is more or less and go from there,” Allen said.
She urged any resident who still has questions, to call trustees at (937)-849-9499, and check price comparisons at www.energychoice.ohio.gov.
Bethel Twp.’s gas aggregation will be implemented the first of the year.
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