Hiko Energy

In regard to the complaint filed by [redacted], please see our position below. 
HIKO has investigated and resolved this customers complaint. The customer has agreed to a monetary settlement which was accepted as a final resolution to this complaint.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me and the matter has been resolved.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

[redacted]
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
I was also sent that recording, that is not me. That is not my phone number and that is not my voice number one. Number two this bill is in my husband's name, [redacted],I am nowhere on that bill, so how can they legally let me sign up for anything. Number three I have written a total of 6 emails when this first started, some of them where because they were sending people to knock on my door, these people were rude and wouldn't get off my porch. I threatened to call the police, after that they signed me up not once but twice, So I have  talked to them numerous times, this is not my voice it is not me. Our last bill had a charge of 170.00 dollars this is what I want back.
Thank You 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

We received the rebuttal from this customer. The check refund was mailed out 04/**/2014 check # [redacted]. We feel that we have been compliant and at this point there is nothing further that we can offer this customer.

In regard to the complaint filed by [redacted], please see our position below.
Q: The customer states he went to the HIKO Energy website and typed in his utility account information and thought he signed up for an electric rate of .07 cents per kWh. 
A: Upon...

thorough review of this customers enrollment, our records indicate this customer enrolled using a Web Sight called [redacted], This sight is controlled and regulated by the state of Connecticut Public Service Commission. 
The webpage has a disclaimer which informs customers of the following information. "The offered information on this website is provided solely for educational and informational purposes and may not represent a complete and/or accurate listing of all offers in the Connecticut marketplace. As with any contract, you should call individual suppliers to confirm offers, terms, and conditions before enrolling." 
As an extra layer of protection customers are prompted to check two boxes before the enrollment can be submitted. 
1. HIKO terms and conditions, which clearly specifies that HIKO only offers a variable rate. 
2. The consumer Bill of Rights.
Once the enrollment has been processed, HIKO sends customers a welcome packet which is mailed to the service address provided by the customer. This also includes the terms and conditions of the agreement, and the consumer bill of rights. It also clearly specifies that HIKO only offers a variable rate service for electric and gas supply. Thirdly the customer is also notified with a letter from the local utility company advising of the switch to HIKO. 
Variable rates increase at any moment without notice because they are subject to market conditions, in that retail prices fall and rise due to supply and demand principles on a daily basis. Periods of extreme weather such as this unusually cold winter can cause substantial price fluctuations. As opposed to a fixed rate contract where the rate will remain the same for a set period of time. 
Q: Customer states he wants full refund for the term of his enrollment at the utilities price to compare.
A: We feel that we have been compliant with the enrollment and at this point there is nothing further we can offer this customer.
The customers account has since been canceled as of 5/**/14 without penalty.

Our call volume had drastically increased during the period the customer tried to contact us, but to ensure that customers are able to reach us, we have doubled our Customer Service staff.
Upon thorough review of the enrollment, the customer agreed to the term and conditions of the third party verification enrollment. The recording clearly explained that the enrollment offer is a variable rate with savings over the course of one year plus one free month of energy supply after 12 months of services. Because this winter we’ve seen some of the harshest weather in years. The cold affected electricity generation systems, particularly natural gas, in the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast such that supply weakened and prices skyrocketed, catching many homeowners and business by surprise. Because we only offer variable rates, our rates went up to reflect our cost. The account was cancel and went back to the utility 03/**/2014. A copy of the verification recording is available if the customer wishes to listen to the enrollment offer by calling our Customer Service Department at [redacted]. Unfortunately, because our rates went up to reflect our cost we will not be able to honor the customer request of a rate adjustment.
The customer emailed us on February **, 2014 2:53 PM and we responded March **, 2014 the following.
From:[redacted]
Sent: Friday, March **, 2014 12:50 PM
To: '[redacted]
Subject: [redacted]
Hi [redacted],
Thank you for emailing Hiko Energy.
We do apologize you are having a difficult time trying to reach one of our customer service representative.
The rate that we offer is a variable rate. Unfortunately, due to the big increase in the cost of the energy, our rate has gone up. Although we can't guarantee savings every month, it is always our intention to do so. On a variable rate there will be times we can be higher or equal to the utility company’s rate.
The variable rate is determined by HIKO Energy, based on numerous key factors, including current market conditions and climate.
If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me or any of HIKO’s customer service representatives at [redacted]. Thank you!
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
 there representative who came to my door gave me false information he told me that it will always be lower then presen.t utilitie co .they need to train there people not to lie
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
First, on the contract, it printed clearly that on the first 6 months, HIKO will be 1-7% LOWER than the utility's price. They are cheating what they will charge me. They actually charges me triple price.
Second, they overcharged me for Feb, and they again overcharged me on Mar. And according to their words, they will still provide me gas until Apr which means that I will also be overcharged on Apr. This is totally unacceptable.
Their one-time "courtesy refund" is only 164, and can not even cover what they overcharged me for Feb!
I will attach the photo of my contract. It clearly showed that they didn't follow their contract. And I will attach the pictures of my bills showing that they overcharged me.
Also, I request that they fully refund the money they overcharged me, totally
430.46(301.98 for Feb and 128.73 for Mar)+ what they will overcharge on Apr's gas
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

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Upon thorough review of the customer’s complaint, the account was enrolled 01/**/2014 through the door to door sales channel. The Third Party Verification recording is available if the customer wishes to hear the offer. The account was canceled without penalties and went back to Con Edison 04/**/2014. We have reached out to the customer with our resolution via email.

Good Afternoon,
We received this customer's rebuttal.
on 04/**/14 we received the original rebuttal and as per further review at that time a full rate adjustment and refund has been given to this customer.
At this time, we have done everything in our power to settle this with the customer. We feel that we have been compliant and at this point there is nothing further that we can offer this customer.
Thank you.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because: I would like a timeframe of when the HIKO energy staff will contact me and reimburse me as they say they will as well as solid proof. Thank you

[Your Answer Here]
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

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Good Afternoon,
This customer signed a written contract on August of 2013 authorizing enrollment for his natural gas and electricity supply accounts with Hiko energy. A copy of his contract has been sent to him.
This customer enrolled on a variable rate plan. As stated in our Terms and Conditions, our variable rate is based on the market, cost, supply and demand, and other determining factors. During the winter, however, the cost of energy skyrocketed, causing our rates to increase as well. Because of this recent rate increase, HIKO has been experiencing extremely high call volume. Because customers were having difficulty reaching our Customer Service Department, we expanded our CSD over the past few weeks. We have representatives working around the clock to respond to all customer calls, messages, and inquiries.
This customers electricity account has been cancelled with us as of 02/**/14 an his natural gas account was cancelled with us as of 04/**/14 without any penalty.
As a one-time courtesy a rate adjustment will be sent to the customer.
A copy of this resolution has been sent to this customer.
Thank you.

In regard to the complaint filed by [redacted], please see our position below.
This customer was enrolled with HIKO Energy on a variable rate plan. Although we only offer a variable rate, we have kept our rates lower than the utility’s supply rates for most of the year....

Variable rates increase at any moment without notice because they are subject to market conditions, in that retail prices fall and rise due to supply and demand principles on a daily basis. 
Periods of extreme weather, such as this unusually cold winter can cause substantial price fluctuations. As opposed to a fixed rate contract where the rate will remain the same for a set period of time. We feel that we have been compliant with the enrollment and at this point there is nothing further that we can offer this customer.

This customer sent a rebuttal to our resolution, however we do not feel that we are required to do anything further to satisfy this customer. We have tried to explain the terms of her enrollment. We explained that our terms and conditions which indicate that our variable rate is based on the market, cost, and other determining factors. This variable rate fluctuates with the market. We do try to keep our rates as competitive as possible, however this is still a variable rate. We feel that we have been compliant and at this point there is nothing further that we can offer this customer.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

Since HIKO Energy can not resolve this matter I am forced to hire an attorney. Thank you for your time.
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

[Your Answer Here]
 To whom it may concern,
We remain unsatisfied with Hiko's response.
1) We have not yet received the $95 check as promised by Hiko so NO we have not received the full refund as promised by the company. This is contradictory to what they have written in their response. They have previously cited incorrect/false information in their responses (ie. our contract was started in December not October).
2) The company has only been available to address these issues after the involvement of Revdex.com. Prior to that, we were UNABLE to get a hold of them - this does not really indicate compliance to the customer as we were forced to seek other channels to open communication.
3) HIKO is in direct violation of their OWN contract. We do not understand, as consumers, how this is legal. It is not sufficient to say that "the market changed and so did our rate," when the purpose of switching providers was for a fixed-rate schedule. Also, we consider this a breach of contract. They did not honor their "GUARANTEED 1-7% rate reduction" for the first 6 months as compared to our prior provider's charges. We feel we have continuously paid higher than normal as per our previous utility charge trend. We therefore do not feel as if enough renumeration has been provided. The simple fact is that we feel taken advantage of by this company and it's dishonest claims and promises. We feel there should be greater attempt on Hiko's part to at least match PSnG (our prior provider) prices if they cannot meet their own claims of lower rates and renumeration should then be made accordingly to that standard. 
 
Thank you for your time,
[redacted]
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved becauseour Answeagr Here]
 
once again due to legal blindness I must rely on my daughter for assistance in pursuing this complaint. on or around july *, 2014  a Hiko representatve called my home to offer "two checks" which supposedly would be mailed to me.  Since Hiko is not trustworthy  i advised them since I did not trust them I did not wish any services.   the rep stated that due to my complaint they would send the money anyhow.   to date nothing has been received so how can they turn around and say case was settled?   all I  want is for Hiko to cancel  charges of $104.05 and should they require more information they should call my daughter [redacted] at [redacted].   if they wish to make  payment to [redacted] that would be the right thing to do.  i will not settle for any less. thankyou for your assistance and prompt response.In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID# [redacted], and have determined that my complaint has NOT been resolved because:

Hi
HIKO immediately cancel my account after I called them [in FEB 2014], but they still charged me more in March 2014
as well, so one side they settled me with $80 amount and at other end they again over charged me next month.
If they keep over charging then I don't see any logical connection with 7% saving over the period.
I am completely disagree with HIKO.
Thanks
[redacted]
 
 
 
 
In order for the Revdex.com to appropriately process your response, you MUST answer the question above.
Sincerely,
[redacted]

This customer sent a rebuttal to our resolution, however we do not feel that we are required to do anything further to satisfy this customer. We have tried to come to a settlement and explain the terms of his enrollment but he will not accept our response. At this point there is nothing further that we can offer this customer.