Posted on 02/19/2021 9:08:06 PM PST by Berlin_Freeper
As the Texas power grid collapsed under a historic winter storm, Jose Del Rio of Haltom City, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, saw the electricity bill on a vacant two-bedroom home he is trying to sell slowly creep up over the past two weeks. Typically, the bill is around $125 to $150 a month, he said. But his account has already been charged about $630 this month — and he still owes another $2,600.
“If worse comes to worst, I have the ability to put it on a credit card or figure something out," Del Rio said. ”There is no one living in that house. All the lights are off. But I have the air at 60 because I don’t want the pipes to freeze.”
When he contacted Griddy, his electric company, they advised him to switch providers, Del Rio said.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
lived here my entire life, I have no idea what this article is referring to. You bill doesn’t just jump unexpectedly by thousands of dollars.
after reading a bit further, it appears they used some scam company for energy instead of someone legit like TXU which has fixed rate plans.
This has nothing to do with Texas, and more to do with a customer being scammed by a crooked company.
Should not be surprising. Griddy specialized in using the spot market pricing. People were flocking to then a few years ago to take advantage of the free power offered by wind generation.
Now, when the spot market pegged at $9000/kWh, they want to complain?
I have long known that the only way to purchase retail electricity is with a term contract. It also helps to shop.
Stay off the Griddy.
the texicans are going to burn ERCOT to the ground.
Media is really going after Texas now. The Libs are on overtime.
I’ve talked to many liberals who are pushing nationalization of electricity as a solution to temporary problems like this.
An ailing 75-year-old Vietnam veteran who left his house to fetch an oxygen tank from his truck.
A 60-year-old man sitting in a recliner beside his wife in their living room.
These are just a handful of the Texans who, authorities say, apparently froze to death during the devastating winter storm that has paralyzed the state, cut off heat and power to millions, and plunged a proud people into the cold of a pre-Industrial Revolution-like existence where basic necessities like food and drinkable water are now in short supply.
Absolutely. They don’t like us having any sort of independence or market-driven success here.
Not likely. Still better than anything else out there. Market force usually are. It’s one reason why the state recovered so quickly.
We can and will improve it. We won’t kill it.
Yeah - socialized utilities like in England will solve the problem!:
“The estimate of 2,556 excess deaths [2020] was the highest since the government launched a plan to manage the health effects of hot temperatures after an estimated 2,234 people died in England during a pan-European heatwave in 2003.”
This has nothing to do with Texas, and more to do with a customer being scammed by a crooked company...
It wasn't a scam. It was a result of deregulation. People could sign up with Griddy and pay a monthly connection fee plus wholesale rates for electricity. Most people saved money in normal times.
BUT, when wholesale prices went through the roof the people who signed up got hit with the very high wholesale prices. No scam, just an unintended consequence of trying to be very frugal.
I have never heard of a variable rate power plan before. Seems like it’s a recipe for getting gouged.
dont live in Texas but I have a story. Every year I get individuals that go door to door trying to get people to buy there power from another company. they advertise cheaper bills at the end of the month becouse of how the billing is structured but if you read the fine print you discover they can raise the price when ever they want and the more power that is used the more expensive the cost of the wattage. I never bit and never will bite.
I am grateful to be on propane. I was able to use my stove top to keep the house above freezing.
indexed or “told you so” purposes after the texicans murder most of ERCOT management and mutilate their bodies.
Variable rate power plan. You pay the daily going rate, which is usually pretty low, but when it’s high, it can be REALLY high. If you had a whole house natural gas generator, it would probably be cheaper to crank it up.
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