Facts And Help: PGW Can Shut You Off in the Winter

It was only less than a year ago that I wrote about this specific topic, and how no one was covering it.

They still aren't.

So, lets get some history and facts out there. First off, yes, PGW is legally allowed to turn off your heat in the winter. Not only that, but so can PECO and the Philadelphia Water Department.

In February of 2005, Governor Rendell passed the ironically named Responsible Utility Customer Protection Act. The law allowed for all utilities in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania to shut you off during the winter.

There was a loophole written into the law for just PGW Customers, but it isn't a big one:

PGW Specific

For PGW Only - Shut-Off of Utility Service - We have different rules for winter shut-offs. If your income is more than 150% but less than 250% of the poverty guidelines, PGW may turn off your service beginning January 1 unless:

• A person in your house is 65 years or older;

• A person in your house is 12 years or younger;

• A person in your house has a letter from a doctor;

• You have paid half of your last 2 bills or

• You have paid 15% of your household income in the last 2 months

For PGW Only - If your household income is low, we will turn on your service if you join PGW's Customer Responsibility Program (CRP). For example, this means if there are 3-people in your household your monthly income must be below $1,959.

For PGW Only - Based on your income, the amount of your deposit may be equal to one or two average bills. If you enroll in CRP, you do not have to pay a deposit.

So there are measurements in place to make sure you're OK with PGW during the winter. PECO, on other hand, doesn't. So if you're behind on those, you could face a shutoff. I talked to a few people about that, and they understood the PECO turning you off, despite the fact that you most likely will need electricity to turn on your heat.

My thoughts?

The fact that we allow this to happen in this state is APPALLING. The reason it shouldn't be legal is actually very obvious since, as I mentioned already, the toll on the person is astounding and the toll on the house or property can be incredibly costly. During the summer months it's not quite as bad, but winter is understood to be the worst time possible to carry out a shut off in this city.

At the same time, this effects the poorest of our friends and neighbors, and it's a devastating thing to happen to a persons emotional toll. I had my power turned off once and aside from the feeling of disappointment you feel in it happening, your angry and sad at yourself for falling so far from society. You feel like an outcast and a pariah.

The toll on the neighbors properties is debatable, but it is likely that a house that is flooding due to bad pipes in a row home will effect the neighbors.

In the end, this isn't helping anyone but the utilities and needs to go.



Photo Courtesy of I Am My Avatar

DEBTORS REVOLT: Chase Card Services!

Today was the final straw.

A few years ago I signed up for a Amazon Visa Credit Card. Whenever I ran up debt on it, I would pay it off the next month with no problem. This went on for a few months and even a full year, and all was right with the world. Then, I hit hard times. It got harder and harder to make payments and I soon fell behind. It even got to a point where I had maxed out the card. I decided then and there that I would do everything I could to fix the card and straighten out my finances! With a new job, more money, and a fresh start, what could go wrong?

That was back in April of 2008. Today, things are worse.

Starting April of 2008, I was put on a plan to pay off my then $700 Chase Card bill. The plan was simple: In exchange for making $50 a month payments, Chase would in turn not raise my interest rate or charge me an over-limit fee of $35 a month. My limit was only $400. The agreement was to get it back below $400 and work from there. To me, that was more than fair, so I complied. I still received statements but rarely opened them since, to me, there was nothing to see since the money was being taken from my account every month.

So imagine my shock when, April 2009, I took a look at my statement and saw that, once again, my bill was $700!!!!

HOW did this happen, you ask? It turns out that a check had bounced. Not only had it bounced, but Chase STILL got the money anyway and then dropped me from the plan because I had "missed a payment"! I found that out after calling them to find out what was going on. I never got a letter, never got a phone call, I was just dropped off their plan!

In April of 2009 I called Chase Card Services back to get onto a new payment plan. There was still some time left to pay off the card and still use it (about 5-6 months), so I asked the person if the money I had been paying on the plan could go towards the current bill since I was taken off the plan without ANY notice. They said no. Without much of a choice, I took the hit and agreed to a new plan with the same terms: $50 a month, no fee, and we pay off the entire debt.

There was a new twist: MY CARD HAD BEEN CANCELED!

I repeat: My Credit Card was CANCELED! WITHOUT ANY NOTICE AT ALL my card was canceled! Never got a letter, never got a call, it was CANCELED FIVE MONTHS EARLY! I was informed of THIS when I said I was willing to cut up my card to make sure nothing like this happened again.

So, let me sum up what happened within a year:

• Put on a payment plan to pay off debt
• Taken off payment plan without notice
• Not allowed to put past payments toward current debt
• Credit Card Canceled without ANY notification 5 months early

The solution? I did the only thing I could: Get on the same plan as before and hope for the best.

Fast-forward to November 2009.

I'm looking over the finances as November comes to a close and am living on the edge. Knowing that I owed Chase their $50 payment for the month, I did what I could to ensure the money was in the account. Sadly, it didn't work, and here's why:

The agreement with Chase says the money will be deducted from my account on the 20th of the month. Sometimes it isn't. Sometimes it's deducted late. Or, sometimes, even earlier. Either way, they get their money. In this case, the money wasn't taken from the account until THE 25TH OF THE MONTH. Is it Chase's fault? According to them it isn't. Is it the bank I do business with? Possibly, but I doubt it.

So, the payment is missed and, ironically enough, this is the one that would have gotten me to my below-the-limit amount. It would have put me at $375.77.

IF I went down to $375.77, guess what would happen? If you said I would be under the limit and thus stuck with all the problems associated with it... you're right.

This means I would rack up more debt as my plan would expire. No matter what, the $50 payment would never be enough as I would be hit with $35 in return, plus whatever interest would occur on the account.

So far, over the last year and half, CHASE BANK has gotten $800 DOLLARS from me on a $700 DEBT!

Today was the last straw!

Today is Sunday. A day of rest.

I've gotten 10, count them, TEN calls from their Debt Collection Department! Every single time I answered the phone, NO ONE answered, no one said anything, and no one told me WHO they were are WHY they were calling! TEN GOD-DAMN TIMES ON A FUCKING SUNDAY! TWO OF THEM AFTER 8PM!

Finally, I had enough.

I called the number back and spoke to an agent. I told the person what I told you, and in the end, I got nothing. No apologies for the calls, no apologies for calling so late, and nothing towards just settling this entire thing.

For the last week, I've gotten a call or two from Chase and I've told them the simple fact that I was sick for the last week and a half and I can't work. I told someone calling to collect the debt the first time that I was sorry about the payment but I wanted to just work out a settlement on the account and pay it off. Granted, I couldn't do it all at once or soon since I was sick, but I wanted to pay them off and be done with it. They said I would get a call in a few days with a possible offer or a reason why it would be decline.

After today... I don't know. I have no idea where to go from here.

Here's what I want: I want to not owe you anything, and I don't want to keep getting calls from you to collect this debt. Either make a settlement offer and I'll do my best to pay it, or don't bother calling because it isn't going to go anywhere at all! Personally, I think I've been pretty fair about this. Again, I've paid you over $800 on a $700 debt, and I've done what I can to hold up my end the agreement.

IF you don't agree.... WELL, I'M WITH HER!!!!!!!!!




DEBTORS OF THE WORLD UNITE!!!!!!

Gas and Electric Shutoff's During Winter: The Unreported Threat

It was the winter of my discontent, a winter of brutal cold and destroyed dreams. I had lost my job, I was turned down for unemployment since my last job didn't last long enough, trying to apply for welfare, and was about to lose my house. At the same time, I was almost broke and hadn't paid my utilities in months. It was March and I knew that it was only a matter of time and, sure enough, I had until April to pay them. It was nothing short of a miracle that I made it through. In the end, I was thankful that PGW and PECO were not allowed to turn off their services during the winter as it would lead to costly repairs to my house and me possibly freezing to death.

Enter 2009.

My friend has had a hard time getting by; as a freelancer, that happens. You have your great months and your bad months. Despite some large projects keeping him busy, it's been a devastatingly slow few months. Then came the "pay now" letters from PGW and PECO, but this time with a twist: A shut off notice. In February.

We had discussed a few times before that they wouldn't turn off service during the winter for a list of reasons: First, the human reason. Not being able to pay the bill aside, turning off the gas or electric meant freezing the person inside, possibly to death, which is... well, wrong. Then the toll on the house itself. Without either or both on, the pipes could freeze, causing them to burst, and require even more money to fix. In the end, a bill of $1000 could wind up costing the homeowner $2000 and more after paying restoration fees and fixing anything that may have broken or been damaged in the meantime.

What is astounding to me are two things: Why is this legal in Philadelphia and why isn't this being reported?

The reason it shouldn't be legal is actually very obvious since, as I mentioned already, the toll on the person is astounding and the toll on the house or property can be incredibly costly. During the summer months it's not quite as bad, but winter is understood to be the worst time possible to carry out a shut off in this city.

At the same time, this effects the poorest of our friends and neighbors, and it's a devastating thing to happen to a persons emotional toll. I had my power turned off once and aside from the feeling of disappointment you feel in it happening, your angry and sad at yourself for falling so far from society. You feel like an outcast and a pariah.

The toll on the neighbors properties is debatable, but it is likely that a house that is flooding due to bad pipes in a row home will effect the neighbors.

There are 6200 residents without heat in Philadelphia because of PGW, and number due to rising unemployment and steeper fees and declining budgets will most likely make it rise even more. At this moment, we need our lawmakers to take a stand and demand that they take quick and immediate action in order to make sure no one is forced to freeze to death this winter. This is a city on the brink, and this is a public health concern. More people getting sick due to poor heating? Is that what we need?

All the while, we need reform in the CRP and how it's funded. We need to make PGW an agent for change and get it back on it's toe to make a profit for the city. PECO, at the same time, is sending shut off notices and I can only hope that the death of the man in Bay City, Michigan teaches them something about this horrible and inhumane practice.

Photo thanks to PhillyIMC.