Provided by the Bucks County Department of Consumer Protection:
Q. I recently read an article stating that Pennsylvania utility companies are considering charging an additional fee to customers who prefer their bills in paper form as opposed to receiving their bill online. I understand that the trend may be moving away from traditional billing, however, I am sure there are a large amount of people, like myself, that prefer paper billing. I prefer paper billing because I do not own a computer. It sounds to me like those that do prefer paper billing are being penalized for preferring this traditional method of billing. Can they get away with this? – T.H., Point Pleasant
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A. The Pennsylvania Utility Commission (PUC) is currently considering rules that would prohibit these extra charges. The PUC has stated that by allowing utilities, including phone carriers, to levy a charge to recover their billing costs is “an unjust and unreasonable practice”. The cost associated with paper billing is already factored into the rates set for utilities operating in the state. It does not seem fair that these companies would be getting even more money because of how their customers choose to pay their bills.
Although there are telecommunication companies that have petitioned the PUC to allow these charges, the PUC stands firm that either paperless or online billing is fine but “must be offered on a voluntary basis and free of any condition, such as to avoid a charge.”
For additional information and brochures on various consumer related matters visit the Bucks County Consumer Protection/Weights and Measures Department athttp://www.buckscounty.org/government/CommunityServices/ConsumerProtection/ConsumerTips
