November 2011

PowerPay Program Can Help Financially Struggling Members

Dear Member:

Midstate Electric is constantly seeking new ways to improve our services and offer options to our members. This spring, we launched the MyUsage.com Powers Awareness Program. The program is comprised of two very different options, PowerPay and PowerView. PowerPay allows you to prepay for your electricity before you use it, and PowerView allows you to take a more active role in monitoring your electric use.

The focus of this article—PowerPay—is ideal for members who are facing financial hardship. To assist them with paying their electric bills, the member’s existing deposit is applied against what is owed. If there is any remaining amount, it is used as a credit on their PowerPay account.

With PowerPay, payments are made prior to using power, so there’s no risk of being charged a late fee. If the balance drops below zero, service is electronically disconnected with no additional fees. This helps financially strapped members avoid the cycle of being disconnected month after month because they can’t keep up with late fees, disconnection/reconnection fees and added deposits.

PowerPay members can decide when they want to put funds into their account. They can time their payments to match when they are paid (e.g., weekly or bi-weekly), and can “fill up” their electric account just like filling up the gas tank in a car—one gallon at a time or with a full tank.

Once PowerPay is activated, participants can monitor their usage. They can elect to be notified of low balances, daily balance, pending disconnect, disconnection and reconnection via phone, email and/or text messaging.

Statistics show that those who monitor or track their energy use on a regular basis, use less energy. By knowing how much energy is used every day, they are empowered to adjust their lifestyle resulting in energy savings of 10-15%.

As of October, more than 500 accounts have signed up for Midstate Electric’s PowerPay Program. Some are new members and some are existing members switching from the traditional billing model to the prepay system.

If you would like additional information about our PowerPay Program, please call Customer Service at 541-536-2126.

Bill A. Kopacz
General Manger

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