Reviews

Review Details

• Review fromJessica P.

  Date: 08/22/2024

  1 star

  Jessica P.

  Date: 08/22/2024

  NH Electric Co-op discriminates against renters. If you rent a home your automatically assumed to not pay your bill and then charged astronomical deposits. We told were because you rent, you have a pay a deposit but when you purchase the home we will refund the money. It was also stated that they have been stuck with a lot of bills renters haven't paid, as to say that homeowners never not pay their bill. I understand charging deposit, if that's the case then it should be charged to everyone not just renters that they perceive as not paying their bills. It's a risky business to assume all Renters will not pay their light bill. We have personally used a few different light companies over the years, some as a homeowner and some as a renter and have never been required to pay a deposit. When I asked if they could just pull my personal and see that I pay my bills, it was stated we don't do that. Asking someone you think won't pay their bill to then pay $500-$1000 deposit to which most people cannot afford, is ethically wrong unless you're going to charge every customer!! Do better NH ********************** ***OP.

  NH Electric Cooperative, Inc.

  Date: 08/26/2024

  RE: Better Business Bureau Customer Review ID: ***** ******* ** **** – NHEC Account # ********* *** ****** ***** **** *********** ** ***** Summary Ms. **** alleges that NHEC unfairly requires renters to provide a deposit before electric service can be started. Unfortunately, this allegation is inaccurate. NHEC does require renters to provide a either letter of credit from their previous utility or a deposit. Members with poor credit history with NHEC are required to pay a deposit regardless of whether they are renters or homeowners. Ms. **** has been informed by NHEC representatives on four occasions in the past month that we require a deposit from her because she has poor credit. Please see below for details. NHEC communication with Ms. **** July 31, 2024 Ms. **** emailed NHEC Member Solutions department requesting to start service at the above address as she will be renting the property. Member solutions emailed her back that same day to inform her we will require a security deposit as she had a poor credit history with us in the past and we cannot waive it. She was given the option to provide a good letter of credit from a previous utility provider and sign up for automatic payments after 6 months of on-time payments or to sign up for prepaid billing. August 16, 2024 Ms. **** called again and wanted more information about the deposit requested by NHEC. It was explained to her again what our terms of deposit were, and she was going to call ********** to see if they can send a good letter of credit. August 22, 2024 Ms. **** called again to transfer service. She was informed again of her options for paying the deposit and that it is calculated based off the 3 highest bills in the previous 12 months at the property. It was offered to her to split the $756.00 deposit into 3 installments of $252.00 with the first installment being paid upfront. Ms. **** agreed and the initial $252.00 was paid that day. August 22, 2024 NHEC received notice from the New Hampshire Department of Energy (***) that Ms. **** had filed a complaint regarding the deposit. Robyn S******, NHEC Consumer Accounting Supervisor, responded to the email from ***** at the *** regarding the complaint about the deposit requirement with the information above. In her complaint, she alleged that NHEC discriminated against her because she is renting this property and had she purchased it, we would not have required a deposit. In the response to ***, it was explained that had she purchased a property, a deposit would still be required due to her poor credit history with us August 24, 2024 Ms. **** called NHEC Member Solutions department and was very upset about having to pay a deposit. She was informed after 6 months of excellent credit or on-time payments, the paid deposit can be refunded as a credit on her account. This was unacceptable to her and she wants the deposit refunded to her. It was explained to her with the approval from the Credit Department, the deposit could be issued as a refund check. As stated previously, she was advised if she can provide a good letter of credit from her previous provider, the deposit can be waived. Ms. **** stated she received a letter of credit but it showed a couple of late payments by only a few days. She was informed this is not acceptable at which point she accused NHEC of lying on our website and this is unfair practice. She asked if it could be put in her husband’s name and she was advised no. She stated she will be reaching out to a supervisor or the board of directors and ended the call.