Flat Rate Program

[mickeyd]

My utility provider has a program (as I suspect others do) that offers to level out my rates over a 12 month period. If anyone else is also enrolled in such a program, could you compare your monthly rates with mine? I have been in the program for several years and I appreciate the way that the monthly statements are less volatile than they previously were.

Electricity rate~0.10 per kilowatt-hour (kWh)

Natural gas- $1.42 per hundred cubic feet (CCF)

Minimum monthly electric charge $15. Minimum monthly gas charge is $15. (I suppose this means that no matter how frugal I take it, I still have to fork over $30.)

[Brat]

You really need to ask your utility provider how they calculate your monthly payment. Frankly a monthly charge of $15 for each is VERY reasonable. Odds are the minimum charge for the service wouldn't be a lot lower than that.

[ERD50]

I guess I don't understand what you are looking for. Utility rates vary across the nation. Comparing your rate to another region doesn't tell you anything about your flat rate deal.

Factors Affecting Electricity Prices - Energy Explained, Your Guide To Understanding Energy

If you're asking if the flat rate deal is better than a variable rate, you need to compare your own sources. But offhand, I doubt the utility is looking to give anyone a 'deal' with the flat rate. Maybe break-even, but generally you need to pay to reduce volatility. Only you can decide if that price is 'worth it' to you.

I prefer to pay-as-I-go. KISS principle for me. The bill is on auto-pay, EZ. I don't care to guess whether the utility hedge is going to hurt/help me. From what I've seen, you have to essentially have some of that in an 'escrow' - so you are pre-paying. It might not look that way, but they don't want to loan you money, so you start paying the higher level rate during the low season, or have to start with a big balance or something.

FWIW, the fixed part of my electric bill is ~ $11.00. I would pay that if I used zero KWHr.

-ERD50

[Moemg]

I have used the twelve month budget plan for years in Florida and in New Jersey . I like it because it keeps me from getting shell shocked in the summer or the winter in new Jersey . Is it cheaper ? Well it saves my sanity so for me it is worth it .

[JOHNNIE36]

I will tell you what I have but don't think you can draw comparisons that easily. Our home is 100% electric. Our rates are as follows:
Energy Charge (the cost to produce the electricity we used). Does not include fuel.
$.05774/kwh for first 1000 kwh
$.06774/kwh above 1000 kwh
Fuel Charge: Cost of fuel is passed through with no mark up by our utility company.
$.04167/kwh for first 1000 kwh
$.05167/kwh above 1000kwh

Last month we used 1843 kwh. 2050 sq ft house. Our utility bill was $210.57 plus $5.40 tax =$215.97

Biggest used is A/C which we keep at 78 degrees all the time. Two TV's and a computer on most of the time. All lights are CFL's. Come next April we will go on a "levelized" payment plan (kind of an average of one years charges).

Does that help you? We are in Tampa area so A/C is biggest usage.

[Ronnieboy]

I am on equal pay (that is what they call it here) and I like it because of the expected monthly amount. They 'review' your account every 6 months to make sure you are not creating to big of debit or credit on your account. I guess that way you are not loaning them money or vice versa for too long.
The bill shows actual usage and then you pay the equal pay amount. So every month I see if I am building a credit or debit. It will of course just lower or raise my payment in 6 months or less, but it isn't a drastic jump. My electric just reset and thanks to being in a new house with no history of electric usage, it went from $190/mo to $230. But my actual usage last month was $580.

Now where am I going to put that windmill

[aaronc879]

I prefer to pay-as-I-go. That way when I get a bill for over $200 in Jan for the month of Dec. it's a reminder that I need to be careful how high I turn the heat up the rest of the winter. Summers are no big deal as electricity only costs me <$50/mo and nearly half of that is hot water. My average over the course of a year is <$100/mo. and everything is electric(no gas,etc).

I would only go with the "equal payments" plan if I was living paycheck to paycheck which I will hopfully never have to do again.

[WhoDaresWins]

I am on the "budget" amount for my natural gas provider: $63.00 a month. I keep the heat set at 65 in the winter and use the gas log fireplace in my den if I am chilly at night.
I pay a variable amount for my electricity, anywhere from $18.00 to last month's high of $43.00 with the A/C set at 70. I should say that I live in a newer, small-ish house with really good windows and what my builder told me was a high insulation rating.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aaronc879 I prefer to pay-as-I-go. That way when I get a bill for over $200 in Jan for the month of Dec. it's a reminder that I need to be careful how high I turn the heat up the rest of the winter.

I think this would be true for most people. It's human nature that you respond to more immediate feedback. The new 'smart meters' are showing real-time, hourly, daily, weekly and monthly usage. If we are interested in conservation, they really should make these sorts of 'level billing' plans illegal.

Please, I mean no offense to anyone here saying they are on a flat billing plan. You have chosen what works for you. But I do think that overall, these plans are a negative for conservation practices.

-ERD50

[LOL!]

Help me with my confusion. We have available "average billing" where you pay the same amount every month ... more than you use in the winter (no A/C), less than you use in the summer (more A/C) ... that is meant to help folks with budgeting.

But that is not flat rate, where it seems to imply that you might get a break on the cents-per-kwh.

To compare to JOHNNIE in Tampa, we are in a similar climate (temp & humidity) and used 1935 kwH the last 32 days in a 3100+ sq ft home for a cost of $196.

[Bestwifeever]

Here is a Citizens Utility Board site that discusses four (!) different flat-rate plans from NICOR, a northern Illinois natural gas company:

Citizens Utility Board | Nicor Advanced Energy Plans

The CUB finds none of the plans to be advantageous to the consumer.