Respond Power

At this time, I have been contacted directly by Respond Power, LLC regarding complaint ID [redacted], however my complaint has NOT been resolved because the explanation was ludicrous.  They explained to me that if I stayed with them longer over the years time I would have started to see a 10% reduction in my bill.  I was charged over the three months almost 100% more than the prior year.  My September bill was under $70 and I had the air conditioning on 24/7.
this company is fraudulent and needs to be thoroughly investigated.  They should not be allowed to make false statements to the public and not suffer any repercussions.  
If if you need anything else please let me know.
Sincerely,
[redacted]
 [redacted]
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Good Afternoon,
We are sorry the customer has been dissatisfied with her experience and could not find a resolution from our customer service department.  The customer's husband validly entered into a variable rate contract with our company, meaning the rates would fluctuate as...

determined by the energy market.
As has been widely reported, there
has been a spike in the wholesale energy market which was reflected on the most
recent bill. This is merely a reflection of the current energy market where a
shrinking supply of electricity is under the strain of massive demand due to
one of the coldest winters on record. We are referring customers to the
February ** press release from the PUC regarding this issue. (Please see
attached)  In addition, this is not just happening in Pennsylvania. 
Please see this link relating to New York prices as well.
[redacted] 
Finally, the account has been
canceled and it is now up to the utility to process the cancellation.  Please contact your utility for budget
billing concerns.
We are truly sorry for your
experience and advise you to sign up on a fixed rate that will ensure price
protection.
Regards

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:]When the agent came into my house, she told me we WOULD save 10%, not MAYBE save 10% depending on the cost of the electric that Respond Power has to buy and then sell to me. I asked her if my bill would go up and she said "NO", my mistake for believing her and thinking that Respond Power was actually looking out for my best interests.
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,[redacted]

Good Afternoon,
We are sorry the customer has been dissatisfied with her service. The customer was enrolled in a variable rate plan, meaning that the rate would fluctuate with the energy market. Unfortunately, the energy market performed very poorly this past winter due to decreases...

in
energy supply and increases in demand due to the cold weather. While suppliers
like Major Energy/Respond Power base the rate on a daily rolling average and
hedging, most utilities purchase energy in massive block and adjust quarterly
or semi-annually. Because of that, sometimes suppliers find themselves with
higher rates than utilities. Eventually trends reverse and utilities are forced
to adjust their rates to make up for losses due to underpriced supply sold to
customers during high markets.
 
Please note that all billing issues should be addressed directly with your utility. We do not bill you separately from the utility and we do not send collection notices. Payment plan and budget billings questions should also be addressed to your utility. 
Regards,

Good Evening,
We are sorry the customer is unhappy with our response.  The customer enrolled in a variable rate program, meaning the rate charged would be determined by the energy market.  We have attached the customer's sales agreement for verification.  The commodity charge is determined by multiplying the monthly rate by the kwh's the customer used.  We will not be issuing a refund in this case.  Please contact your utility for budget billing plans.
Regards,

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

I offered Restore Energy a reasonable compromise in my original complaint to you to adjust my outrageous electric bill, which they completely ignored. Instead they offered me excuses as to the reason for my variable rate hike.  I believe their excuses are ludicrous...first of all, because I can see on my [redacted] bill that if I had stayed with [redacted] for my transmission/generation charges, nothing at all would have happened to adjust my rate, regardless of the alleged "supply bottleneck," polar vortex issues, gas consumption increases, etc. that they listed.  If it hasn't been a problem for [redacted], then why are all these things such a problem for them?  Secondly, when I signed up with Restore Energy it was explicitly explained to me by their door-to-door salesman [redacted] that my variable rate was going to be based on the amount of electricity I used (i.e. the more we consumed in our home above a certain amount, the less it would cost compared to the going regular rate being offered by our regular company, [redacted]).  There was absolutely no mention of the "energy market" having any effect at all on the rate.  
Third, I tried before I even received the last bill (the one with the outrageous rate hike) on several occasions to cancel my contract with Restore to no avail because no one ever answered the phone or returned my emails, as I also explained in excruciating detail in my original complaint.  This issue was also not addressed in their rebuttal. 
I would like to say that I have absolutely no plans to pay the money that I owe Restore Energy at this point.  I will continue to pay [redacted] their part of the bill and any future bills that I receive from them, which will not allow my electricity to be shut off and the balance owed Restore Energy will remain on my bill until they agree to a fair compromise.  Until then, they will not see a dime from me.  
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

My response to the message from Respond Power:
 
Thank you for once again explaining to me how a variable rate plan works but this is not necessary since I know how a variable rate plan works. You are not addressing the issue here but instead keep telling me how a variable rate plan works.
 
The issue I have with Respond Power is the fact that the representatives that were sent to my house representing Respond Power used unethical sales practices. They misled me in order to get me to sign the contract. I did not sign the contract right away. I questioned them for a VERY LONG time and they told me that Respond Power’s variable rate would always be lower than [redacted]’s variable rate and this is how I would save up to 10%. They did explain that I may not save a whole 10% but I would save because the rate would be lower than [redacted]’s rate. The letter Respond Power mailed to me said “You have now joined the hundreds of thousands of others who have chosen Respond Power to be your Energy Service Company and in saving up to 10% annually”. This letter did not say “and maybe save up to 10%” or “possibly save up to 10%”. In this letter Respond Power was stating the same thing that the representatives told me: that I would save “up to 10% annually”. I understood that, since this was a variable rate plan, I may not save a full 10% but may only save 1% but I would be paying less than [redacted]’s variable rate. If I would have saved even one tenth of a percent there would be no issue here. Instead Respond Power increased my rate 322% over 6 months. The rate I was paying at the beginning of those 6 months was already higher than [redacted]’s rate. There is no possibility for savings with a rate that high, yet when I called and spoke to [redacted] at Respond Power on 3/**/2014 he lied to me and told me that if I locked in at a fixed rate 0.987 I could still save up to 10% this year. [redacted]’s rate was 0.0877 at the time and I tried to explain basic math to him but he was sticking to his false statement. So it was not just the representatives that came to my house that lied to me. Your customer service representative [redacted] was still trying to deceive me in March when I first called about this. Why does Respond Power condone this deception? If Respond Power had any ethics you would apologize to me for deceiving me and give me a refund of $282.72, the amount I was overcharged during the 6 month period mentioned in my complaint.
 
The fact that Respond Power sent representatives to my home without a valid permit just adds further proof that Respond Power is operating unethically and does not respect the law.
 
Please do not respond to this with another explanation of how a variable rate plan works. Please respond to the real issue or refund my $282.72 please.
 
Thank You 
 
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Good Afternoon,
We are unable to locate the customer in our database.  If the customer could please provide the account holder name or account number, we can better respond to the complaint.
Regards,

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[My complaint is in no way resolved. I find it odd the company was unable to answer my question as to why they are able to offer new customers a low rate when "market prices" are so "high." I am not asking for a refund, I want the balance of $898.87 adjusted. I have spoken to [redacted] and they said I need to work it out with the company.]
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

This response is not fixing any of my problem. I had to over pay $120 on my December bill and I have to overpay on my January bill who knows how much. As I explained before, their sales person came to my door and told me "You will pay less on your bills, you are paying too much. look..." and he showed me numbers and he told me those numbers will go lower. He DID NOT told me that "Customers on the variable rate plan may see savings of up to 10% over the course of a year, in comparison to the utility company."  . He didn't mention about I "MAY SEE SAVINGS" (so it's not a guarantee apparently, I may or may not save)  and he didn't mention about "OVER THE COURSE OF A YEAR". This problem is not fixed. Reason I am asking refund is your sales person lied to me. Your sales person didn't mention those info on your response. In fact he told me almost opposite, I quote "You will pay less on electricity every month, because you are paying too much, here are numbers..."
You are sending these sales persons on our doors, you have to take responsibility on their lies. They lie, we got hurt and you only send me PDF document of your agreement and one sentence cover-up response. How is that fair? 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,[redacted]

Good Morning,
We are sorry the customer has had a bad experience.  The customer enrolled in a variable rate plan, meaning that the rate would be determined by the energy market.  As the customer notes, the rate was different the previous month.  We cannot, however,...

arbitrarily offer a previous month's rate for this month.  If the customer is interested in savings, we encourage her to enroll in a fixed rate plan.  I have included some additional information about how rates are determined and why they have risen so steeply this year. 
Regards,
Why Have Energy Bills Increased – Explaining Price Volatility
It has
been a record cold winter across much of the country, and many have been
expressing deep concern as to why energy bills have been so high. Regardless of
whether energy is purchased from a utility or a competitive energy supplier,
customers have seen electricity and natural gas prices spike in many parts of
the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Why did
prices rise?
Simply
put, the issues at hand are the cold weather, electric grid and natural gas
pipeline capacity, and the increasing use of natural gas not just for heating
purposes, but to create electricity.
There is
ample gas supply in the United States, especially given the boom in shale gas.
What customers are feeling are the results of a strained transportation and
infrastructure system that delivers electricity and gas. When demand is high
and capacity is constrained, costs increase.
This
winter’s “polar vortex” has increased the demand for both natural gas and
electricity, resulting in significant congestion in the natural gas pipelines
and on the electric grid (the highways of the energy system). Everyone relies
on these natural gas pipelines and the electric grid to get energy from where
it is produced to where it is used by the homeowner, the tenant, and the
business owner. Just like only so many cars can efficiently travel along a
highway, only so much natural gas and electricity can move through the natural
gas pipeline system and the electric grid.
Also,
while more and more people are using natural gas directly for heating purposes,
electricity generators are also increasingly using natural gas to produce
affordable power. In the short-term, this electricity generation is putting
further strain on the natural gas capacity in certain parts of the country. At
the same time there are also bottlenecks on some parts of the electric grid,
preventing electricity from getting from the generators to the consumers in an
efficient manner.
It’s
known from economics that constraints on supply (such as not being able to get
gas from where it is plentiful to where it is needed) cause prices to rise, and
this has occurred in the wholesale energy markets. The result? Competitive
energy suppliers and utilities alike are paying higher than normal prices when
purchasing from the wholesale market in order to provide energy to homeowners,
tenants, and business owners. This is causing everyone’s bills to rise.
As the
winter weather gradually improves and temperatures rise, the demand for energy
to heat homes and businesses will decrease, placing less pressure on the
nation’s electricity grid and allowing energy prices from suppliers and
utilities to normalize. However, winter weather may very likely be around for
some weeks to come. Despite the unusual weather, the gas and electric delivery
systems have proven to be highly reliable this winter. A number of new natural
gas pipelines and electricity transmission lines are planned or under
construction which should reduce the chances of a similar price spike in the
future.
In the
meantime, there are some things that can be done to help manage energy bills.
Conserve energy as much as possible. For example, make sure
doors and windows are well insulated, seal any air leaks, and lower the
water temperature setting to 120 degrees on the water heater.
Customers using a competitive supplier and who are on a
variable rate plan or whose fixed contracts have expired, should review
their contract to confirm the accuracy of the pricing and call their
supplier if they have any questions.
Customers interested in price stability can also investigate
fixed price options that many suppliers offer.
Customers in need of financial assistance should investigate
their state’s home heating assistance programs. In many states, a customer
can stay with a competitive supplier and still receive assistance paying
utility bills.
Customers should visit their
state’s “energy shopping” websites to compare offers from different suppliers.
For a list of shopping websites, visit [redacted]

Good Evening,
According to the complaint, the
customer is unhappy with the recent rate being charged.
The customer agreed to a variable
rate contract, meaning the rate would be determined by the energy market.  I have attached a copy of the sales...

agreement and the third-party verification call.
As has been widely reported, there
has been a spike in the wholesale energy market which was reflected on the most
recent bill. This is merely a reflection of the current energy market where a
shrinking supply of electricity is under the strain of massive demand due to
one of the coldest winters on record. We are referring customers to the
February **press release from the PUC regarding this issue. (Please see
attached)  In addition, this is not just happening in Pennsylvania. 
Please see this link relating to New York prices as well.
[redacted]
Finally, the account has been
canceled and it is now up to the utility to process the cancellation.  Please contact your utility for budget
billing concerns.
We are truly sorry for your
experience and advise you to sign up on a fixed rate that will ensure price
protection.
Regards
 
In addition please see this informative article.
Why Have
Energy Bills Increased – Explaining Price Volatility
It has
been a record cold winter across much of the country, and many have been
expressing deep concern as to why energy bills have been so high. Regardless of
whether energy is purchased from a utility or a competitive energy supplier,
customers have seen electricity and natural gas prices spike in many parts of
the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions.
Why did
prices rise?
Simply
put, the issues at hand are the cold weather, electric grid and natural gas
pipeline capacity, and the increasing use of natural gas not just for heating
purposes, but to create electricity.
There is
ample gas supply in the United States, especially given the boom in shale gas.
What customers are feeling are the results of a strained transportation and
infrastructure system that delivers electricity and gas. When demand is high
and capacity is constrained, costs increase.
This
winter’s “polar vortex” has increased the demand for both natural gas and
electricity, resulting in significant congestion in the natural gas pipelines
and on the electric grid (the highways of the energy system). Everyone relies
on these natural gas pipelines and the electric grid to get energy from where
it is produced to where it is used by the homeowner, the tenant, and the
business owner. Just like only so many cars can efficiently travel along a
highway, only so much natural gas and electricity can move through the natural
gas pipeline system and the electric grid.
Also,
while more and more people are using natural gas directly for heating purposes,
electricity generators are also increasingly using natural gas to produce
affordable power. In the short-term, this electricity generation is putting
further strain on the natural gas capacity in certain parts of the country. At
the same time there are also bottlenecks on some parts of the electric grid,
preventing electricity from getting from the generators to the consumers in an
efficient manner.
It’s
known from economics that constraints on supply (such as not being able to get
gas from where it is plentiful to where it is needed) cause prices to rise, and
this has occurred in the wholesale energy markets. The result? Competitive
energy suppliers and utilities alike are paying higher than normal prices when
purchasing from the wholesale market in order to provide energy to homeowners,
tenants, and business owners. This is causing everyone’s bills to rise.
As the
winter weather gradually improves and temperatures rise, the demand for energy
to heat homes and businesses will decrease, placing less pressure on the
nation’s electricity grid and allowing energy prices from suppliers and
utilities to normalize. However, winter weather may very likely be around for
some weeks to come. Despite the unusual weather, the gas and electric delivery
systems have proven to be highly reliable this winter. A number of new natural
gas pipelines and electricity transmission lines are planned or under
construction which should reduce the chances of a similar price spike in the
future.
In the
meantime, there are some things that can be done to help manage energy bills.
Conserve energy as much as possible. For example, make sure
doors and windows are well insulated, seal any air leaks, and lower the
water temperature setting to 120 degrees on the water heater.
Customers using a competitive supplier and who are on a
variable rate plan or whose fixed contracts have expired, should review
their contract to confirm the accuracy of the pricing and call their
supplier if they have any questions.
Customers interested in price stability can also investigate
fixed price options that many suppliers offer.
Customers in need of financial assistance should investigate
their state’s home heating assistance programs. In many states, a customer
can stay with a competitive supplier and still receive assistance paying
utility bills.
Customers should visit their
state’s “energy shopping” websites to compare offers from different suppliers.
For a list of shopping websites, visit [redacted]

We apologize for the inconvenience the customer experienced with our customer service department. Unfortunately, we are unable to provide any recordings from our call center due to company policy prohibiting the distribution of the recordings. The specific recording will be reviewed for quality assurance.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:
 
[Your Answer Here]
Variable rate is not what I was told by Respond power. I was told and I qoute "[redacted] is charging you 9 cents Per Kilowatt hour, Respond power can offer you a rate of 8 cents per Kilowatt hr." When I spoke to [redacted] about why my bill was so high they told me that right away Respond Power took my rate from 9 cents to 12 cent to 13 cents to 19 cents , etc.. all the way to 35 cents per Kilowatt hr. which is not a variable rate but a balloon rate. The bottom line is Respond Power was deceitful, and does not do business in good faith and I want my money back that they over charged me over 8 cents per Kilowatt hr. Meantime I have a close to $600 electric bill and [redacted] is demanding that it be paid along with a $200 deposit for security or they're gonna shut my power off. Respond Power created this mess they need to fix it. I had no issues with my power supplier until Respond Power showed up on my door step.
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Good Afternoon,
We are sorry the customer was dissatisfied with our service. The customer enrolled in a variable rate plan with our company. The rates on a variable plan
fluctuate with the energy market. Unfortunately, the energy market performed
very poorly this...

past winter due to decreases in energy supply and increases in
demand due to the cold weather. While suppliers like Major Energy/Respond Power
base the rate on a daily rolling average and hedging, most utilities purchase
energy in massive block and adjust quarterly or semi-annually. Because of that,
sometimes suppliers find themselves with higher rates than utilities.
Eventually trends reverse and utilities are forced to adjust their rates to
make up for losses due to underpriced supply sold to customers during high
markets.
For information on budget billing and payment plans, please contact your local utility.
Regards,

Good Morning,
We are sorry the customer has been unhappy with our service.  As the customer notes, he enrolled in a variable rate plan, meaning that rates would fluctuate with the energy market.  While we can't get into the specifics of the customer's bill in this public...

forum, please note that we are only responsible for the commodity charge that appears on your bill.  We are sorry to lose you as a customer.  Please speak to your utility directly for budget billing options.
Regards,

Good Afternoon,
We understand the customer's concerns and will keep them in mind as we continue to evaluate the sales practices of our partner vendors. The customer's account has already been cancelled and we will not appear on anymore bills. We note, however, that we have no control over the time it takes the utility to process a cancellation. We apologize if the customer has had a bad experience.
Regards,

Good Morning,
According to the complaint, the
customer is unhappy with the recent rate being charged.
The customer agreed to a variable
rate contract, meaning the rate would be determined by the energy market.
As has been widely reported,...

there
has been a spike in the wholesale energy market which was reflected on the most
recent bill. This is merely a reflection of the current energy market where a
shrinking supply of electricity is under the strain of massive demand due to
one of the coldest winters on record. We are referring customers to the
February 14 press release from the PUC regarding this issue. (Please see
attached)  In addition, this is not just happening in Pennsylvania. 
Please see this link relating to New York prices as well.
[redacted] 
Finally, the account has been
canceled and it is now up to the utility to process the cancellation.  Please contact your utility for budget
billing concerns.
We are truly sorry for your
experience and advise you to sign up on a fixed rate that will ensure price
protection.
Regards
 
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me and the matter has been resolved.  It is ashame that I was not able to contact the business directly and had to involve the Revdex.com to have my service terminated.  Thank you for your assistance in resolving this matter in a timely fashion.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my...

complaint has NOT been resolved because.
 
 I want to come to some agreement on what we owe this company I do not want to pay $466 for one month of service when I can't afford this. Nor do I want my electric shut off because of this company's shady practices. I was told I would get lower electric bills. I was never told my bill would more than triple or obviously I would have sent them on there way. I was LIED to and this type of conduct should be illegal!!!
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]