Northcentral Electric Power Association

I called to pay my Bill. Company said my bill had been paid. Today there was a collector outside for which the company said I was to pay extra.account [redacted]After being advised of what the company did, company refused to vacate additional amount. Company said I should have known it had not been paid even though they said it had been paid. I had asked if they were sure it had been paid when I called in, they said yes. I own property next to my parents. They said this was the reason for the error. But blamed me for not paying it.Desired SettlementA refund and correction of any derogatory credit information.Business Response Northcentral is unable to discuss an individual member's account information with anyone other than the account holder. We mail out monthly bills with due dates listed on the bill and if the bill isn't paid by that date we mail a late notice to the member outlining that if account wasn't paid the cutoff date.

a place to deposit I'm turning on my utility light over $300 I paid all my current bills on time and as scheduled turn my utilities off and now they're telling me that's going to take up to 6 weeks just to get my deposit back they didn't give me six weeks to pay my deposit I currently do not owe any money and requesting for my money it's funny how they can take my money in less than 6 weeks but I can't get my moneyProduct_Or_Service: Electric Account_Number: XXXXXXXXXDesired SettlementI would just like to have my money back the same way I gave it to them they did not give me 6 weeks or 4 to 6 weeks to pay them a deposit I had to give it to him that day to get my utilities on I would just like to get my money back in a reasonable respectable amount of timeBusiness Response When a customer disconnects service we obtain a final meter reading and produce a final bill and any membership/deposit is applied to the account. We then run a report that shows our inactive accounts with credit balances. We look up each account on this report to see when the last payment was made and the type of payment. If the last payment on the account was by check we wait 6 weeks to issue a refund to assure that the customer's check is not returned to us for insufficient funds.

Northcentral EPA has deplorable business practices and insensitive and rude customer service representatives. They do not communicate with their members, they do not provide disconnection services, they do not provide real-time account updates so that their members have an opportunity to correct a problem. They quote one price to restore your service but when you call to pay that amount they demand $100 more dollars to reconnect. If you call after 4:30p.m. expect to be disconnected. If you call a few minutes until 5:00p.m. you encounter rude customer reps who advise the call could be disconnected and you will 'roll to the after-hours line'. They offer no payment plans, no levelized billing, and have on concern for those they serve. This co-op is deplorable and poorly run. Shame on the board members for doing nothing to protect their members, especially since they conduct business in one of the poorest states in the nation. They have a monopoly in the area and use that to their advantage while exploiting their members.","neg-1

Northcentral EPA disconnected my electric without notice even though I had no previous outstanding balance and my current bill wasn't yet due.On October 27, 2014 Northcentral EPA disconnected my service without notice of a returned check. My electric bill was due on the 14th and I requested an extension. I was informed they could only extend until the 20th and agreed to pay on October 17th (an approximate amount of $308). On October 17th I paid the bill from my secondary bank account. The check was returned on October 21st. No contact (via mail or telephone) was received from NCEPA so that I had an opportunity to remedy the situation. On October 27th my electric was disconnected without warning. I called customer service, explained I had no idea the check was returned and asked if I could pay my bill to reconnect my electric. CSR[redacted] was rude and short-tempered. She offered no options and no empathy and raised her voice to inform me "Ma'am you're just complaining about everything". Poor customer service resulted in my request to speak to her supervisor. After an audible sigh and the threat that I might get disconnected and have to speak to after hours I managed to keep her on the line until the supervisor was available. When transferred I spoke with [redacted]) who informed me that because I requested a 3 day extension NCEPA was not required to inform me by mail or telephone of the payment issue. She provided no payment options, no offer for payment arrangement, and no opportunity to pay half the bill and restore service. NCEPA holds a security deposit for my residence in the amount of $250 but offers no opportunity to use that as collateral to secure service or a post-dated check for my payday. My new bill isn't due until 11/05/14 and so I was only in arrears for the returned payment. [redacted] informed me it was the end of the day and suggested my two young children and I 'try to make it through the night' with no electricity. She had no solution for what we should do until I was paid on Friday. I found your CSR's to be unsympathetic and lacking in the empathy department. [redacted] read off a phone number that has never been associated with my account and informed me it had received a text message about the returned check. When I told her that wasn't my phone number she said it was the one associated with my account but, the after hours line read off my correct phone number and said that was the one associated with the account. [redacted] informed me that I could pay $407 if I 'made it through the night and paid during regular business hours' and informed me that if I reconnected after hours I would have to pay $447. Upon calling the after hours line I was informed I actually needed to pay over $500 and was only reconnected when I referenced the incorrect information provided by [redacted] and paid the reconnection amount of $448. Apparently, [redacted] failed to note any part of our conversation on my account or the amount she stated was due to restore service. Finally, NCEPA apparently does not show real-time updates as my account was listed as active while disconnected, there were no alerts on my online account about a returned check, and no message on my homepage. Finally, att 7p.m. my service was restored but I find your practices deplorable. I could have avoided a disconnection fee altogether if your organization felt any type of obligation at all to the members who support it. Your slogan says your members are 'more than just a meter' but that is an empty sentiment. You do business in one of the most poverty stricken states in the United States but you do not offer budget billing, levelized billing (year round), or payment options for your members who find themselves in dire straits. Your CSR's are rude and unhelpful, they aren't even able to refer anyone to a community organization that could assist with the power bill. I have dealt with many co-ops as an adult but NCEPA is an embarrassment to co-ops everywhere. Desired SettlementI want my reconnection charge refunded as NCEPA should contact members directly by mail or telephone when a check is returned. At the very least, you should update the customers online account system so that they know there has been an issue with a payment. Had I been offered the opportunity to remedy the situation I could have paid a significant amount less than what was required to restore this evening. Furthermore, your CSR's need sensitivity training and perhaps a resource list so that they can refer customers to community resources. CSR's should never talk down to a customer (regardless of account status), become impatient, or be insulting (as [redacted] was because not having electricity was an issue for me). I am also in customer service at a Fortune 500 company, I wouldn't dream of speaking to my customers in that manner especially when they are making a concentrated effort to resolve a situation. Furthermore, perhaps your board of directors could show some concern for your members and require a door hanger notice or notice via mail before disconnection. I can't imagine what would happen if someone with a medical condition that required electricity was treated in this manner by your company. It is negligent of your company to disconnect someones service without warning. Finally, perhaps your company could offer payment arrangements because you conduct your business in a county where over half of the households are below poverty line. It is terrible that you have a million dollar building but can only offer a three day extension if a member is under financial duress. Business Response Northcentral is not able to discuss individual accounts with anyone but that accoutn holder. Northcentral mails bills to all members each month. If these bills are not paid by the due date we again mail out a late notice informing the member of the payment amount and possible disconnection.Northcentral does offer Levalized billing to members in good standing and also offer Prepay Billing to members. Consumer Response (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)Northcentral provided a generic response and did not address any specifics part of my complaint. Obviously,my bill was paid on time and an issue caused a problem with the payment clearing my account. Northcentral fails to address why they don't alert account members via their account page on website or via mail/telephone if an issue arises, especially when the account is in good standing. Furthermore, your customer service department leaves much to be desired. As stated in my complaint, I attempted to discuss this with two of your employees who were less than helpful. I assume you don't want to provide a real response simply because this would provide some transparency and expose your deplorable business practices. You have not attempted to contact me privately since receiving this complaint to resolve or refund the extra $175 you stole. This response is ludicrous and it seems that northcentral failed to even read the complaint. The response, much like the business is subpar.Final Business Response