Verde Energy USA Inc.

Review: I have been using Verde Energy as my provider for a two years. I noticed my electric bill higher than normal and found that Verde had increased the rate to 17.39 cents per kilowatt vs 10.97 cents my electric company normally charges. I called Verde to cancel the service on Feb 07 and received a letter from [redacted] that my third party agreement was canceled. A few weeks later I received my new bill in the mail, the highest bill I have ever received, I found that Verde is now charging me 19.00 cents a kilowatt which should be canceled. I have never had a rate that is DOUBLE what the electric company would charge. This is legal scam.Desired Settlement: I would like a refund for the Verde portion of the bill, and to make sure they actually canceled the service.

Business

Response:

Mr. Bahian enrolled with Verde Energy in January 2011 under a monthly variable rate offer which can change with market conditions. He began service on 1/29/11 at a rate of $0.1075/KWH. this rate decreased to $0.1065/KWH in June 2011 and stayed at that lower rate for over 2 years. the rate recently began to increase because of increases in Verde's energy supp;y costs. His cancellation was processed by Verde on 2/7/14 when he called us and his account was dropped at the end of that billing cycle on 3/3/14. As a goodwill gesture we will send him a billing refund check of $44.92 which lowers his rate on his last bill to $0.1065/KWH.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Sincerely,

Roy Bahian

Review: I received bill in July with a generation rate of .01499 so I called Verde and spoke to a rep. on 7/12 and was told I was on a variable plan which I was not aware of. The rep. told me that for being a long standing customer she would send me a $25 rebate check and put me on a fixed plan for .099. I had not received the check as of 7/23/14 so I called Verde again only to find that the first rep. on 7/12 had not changed my rate. The rep. I spoke to on 7/23/14 corrected that and doubled checked that I would be receiving the $25 rebate which I did. However, I received my electric bill for August which is dated 8/8/14 with the same generation rate of .01499. I again called Verde only to be told that the electric company had not updated the generation rate on their end for my account. I was also told by the Verde rep. that she would send me a $78 check to make up the difference in generation rate change, but I would have to wait 10-14 days.Desired Settlement: I would like Verde to double check that indeed $78 is the correct amount I should be receiving as the rep. was very hesitate about the total value of the refund. I would also like in writing that my electric company has the updated generation rate on my account for the next billing cycle. I feel that it is costing Verde more money to cut me a check than it would to follow up with electric companies to be sure customer account's have the most current information.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following email today

[redacted],

Review: I signed up for electric supply at 6.9 cents per kwh fixed for 6 months. Service started in Oct 2014 I received 2 months at 6.9 and then in Jan-Feb it was 10.99 and then in Feb-Mar it was 15.99.Desired Settlement: Fix the billing and allow me to move on to an honest company.

Business

Response:

replied via email 3/20/15:Dear [redacted],

Review: I had been a customer of Verde Energy since 2012 and appeared to be locked into a fixed rate for 1 year. I would like to report negligence on the part of Verde I called them 3 times after signing up and never ever did get a welcome packet to clarify what I signed up for and still continued to call and never got one. My rate was good about .1065 and even lower in the beginning which was a good market rate.In Oct 2013 my rate slowly started to increase first .1305 per kWh and then Feb March 2014 to 0.1867 ! I called Verde 3 times in the past week April 21, 2014, and you are unable to speak to anyone in billing they send a message and tell you it will be 4 days or more because they are overwhelmed. They also state you have a better chance of getting a call back if you remain a customer which is forcing the consumer to stay with a very dishonest customer.They admitted negligence to me in all phone calls stating they should have but didn't send a letter they just took our hard earned money - and neglected to inform their customers them their rates would be changing DOUBLING !, the admitted what they did was wrong and if you stayed a customer they could make it right if not oh well. I am very angry as this is a clear case of unjust enrichment, negligent customer service and clearly wrong. All my bill were paid on time and in full.Since you can't get a billing rep, they admit they were negligent in sending letters out to offer there customers new contracts for lower rates, they are trying to force your hand to stay with them which at this point I don't trust them and feel they stole money from me. I would like my my money back.Desired Settlement: I would like a refund Oct 2013 Nov 2013 Dec 2013 Jan 2014 Feb 2014 March 2014 April 2014 also my May and June bills till my new company takes effect in the amount of the difference. They charged 0.1867 and 0.099 was my start rate.They were clearly deceptive, negligent, dishonest in not telling their customers. This can not, should not be allowed to happen to consumers and put undue financial hardship on my family during the cold winter and unjust enrichment in their pockets while we struggled

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following email today

Ms. Price,

I reviewed your Revdex.com inquiry and calls from the other day. Sorry for the delayed response on your calls.

You

were enrolled in a variable rate offer which started at $0.0990/KWH on

7/20/12 and did not change for over a year. The recent rate increases

were a result of record increases in energy supply costs.

Your account has been dropped per your request and will leave

service with Verde at the end of the current billing cycle on 5/19/14.

We will send you a billing adjustment check for $66.83 which lowers the

effective rate on your 4/16/14 bill to $0.1049/KWH and we will use this

lower rate on your final bill in May. You should receive your check in

approximately 2 weeks.

Regards,

Tony Menchaca

Consumer

Response:

Review: 10028142

I am rejecting this response because:

As I stated clearly in my correspondence to Verde Energy and the Revdex.com. I did not receive a welcome kit, even after attempted calls and online enrollment. They admitted negligence in NOT sending letters to their customers to notify them their contracts were up for me that would have been July 2103. I should have received a welcome package and I should have received notification at least a month before hand that my contract was up or an email NOTHING. They continually raised my rates for a total of 10 months in the case of the last 2 months they doubled their rate.

Review: In February of 2014 I saw an article about Verde being investigated for bait and switch tactics. I called Verde and cancelled my service with them. During the following months I did not realize that I was still being serviced by Verde Energy. I noticed my bills were high but I did not realize until this August when I received a bill for $900.00. We were away for 2 weeks and we had a very cool summer so we did not use our air conditioner. When I called [redacted] they told me the extra charges were from Verde. I explained that I was no longer a customer but they said Verde never cancelled our service. I had [redacted] do a search since March 2014 and Verde charged me almost $600.00 more than [redacted] would have charged for the same service. When I call Verde they told me that I was under a variable rate. My question to them was when did I agree to a variable rate. I never did. I wonder how many people are unknowingly paying a higher rate with their permission.Desired Settlement: I feel this is deceptive billing. Customers are being billed to a higher rate that I am sure they would not agree to. I am not opposed to paying the rate [redacted] would have charged. I feel Verde should refund me for the over billing of $600.00.

Business

Response:

We sent the following email to the customer today

Ms. [redacted],

Review: Renewed 6month fixed rate offer. Was notified by [redacted] that Verde ended my contract in April 2015. Received bill from Verde for $160 in April. Contacted billing several times (Stephanie voicemail) never received response. Just received bill from a collection agency for $2446.21!Desired Settlement: I would like someone from Verde to contact me regarding this issue. If I owe for delivery then I want to know the rate I am being billed at. I would also like to know why they ended the contract before the 6 months was over.

Business

Response:

Verde Energy has tried to make contact with customer via telephone. We await [redacted]'s return phone call to our billing specialist, Stephanie [redacted]. Karen M[redacted]Customer Support | Verde Energy USA[redacted]

Review: I am receiving 6-7 phonecalls a day from the phone number ###-###-#### (f[redacted]r). They never leave a message. When I call the number back it says thank you for calling Verde Energy, we have been trying to reach you for marketing purposes, we will try you again later. There is an option to opt in to their do not call list via the automated message and I have tried twice to add myself to that list. Apparently this has been unsuccessful. I do not have a business relationship with this company and never have. These calls amount to harassment and are unwanted and unsolicited.Desired Settlement: Please remove any information germane to my account from your database completely and do not call me ever again. Do not deactivate me, you must delete my account entirely. I do not want any record of my account to remain in your databases.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following message today

Mr. Pupik,

Review: This company has called me more than two dozen times in the last week. They have failed to leave voice mails, yet they keep calling every couple of hours. I am not interested in their service, as I do not live in their coverage area whatsoever. I have requested on four separate occasions for my phone number to be removed from their system, yet, they still call me.Desired Settlement: I want my phone number taken out of their system effective immediately.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following emailMs. [redacted],

Review: I was told my rate would be .1149/kwh yet I've been charged .1299/kwh. I asked for a retroactive adjustment and they refused. I asked then for them to refund me the difference and they refused. They have admitted to pocketing the difference at my expense. And they've told me they will continue to do this going forward so that every time my rate is available to adjust down, they will still collect the higher rate for the next two billing cycles. They blamed this issue on [redacted] for not making the adjustment in a more timely manner but they are not willing to force [redacted] to correct the problem nor are they willing to reimburse me on the difference. In other words, they are running a scam with [redacted] cooperation.Desired Settlement: My electric supply rate should be .1299/kwh for January, .1149/kwh for February and March, and .0999 going forward. The difference between these rates and what I actually paid should be refunded immediately. And future rate adjustments need to take effect immediately - not after 1-2 billing cycles.

Business

Response:

responded via email 4/10/15Dear Mr. [redacted],

I was just contacted by Verde Energy USA Inc. The women who called stated she was going to help me file for a $75 rebate from [redacted]. If I would just give her my account information she would help Never did she say that I would be switching Companies. When I pressed her for more information on how and why she was helping me get a rebate, she started to back pedal and said that it wasn't a rebate and that she didn't realize I already had a different supply. I said you never asked, you just wanted my account information to help me file for my rebate. I was very glad I asked alot of question. I just hope she doesn't pull this with a older couple who just took her word that she was helping them get their $75 rebate

I decided to change providers due to my low fixed rate going to a variable one. It takes approximately 2 months for them to switch and in tge mean time my bill increased by 100$ in January and yet another increase in February of an additional 200$!!!! It's unbelievable and I can't aford this bill! I'm so upset and would NEVER in my life recommend this provider to anyone!!! Do yourself a favor and avoid this company at all costs!! To top it off you can't ever get theough on the phone because no one answers it!!!!!!!!

Review: I joined Verde Energy about 2 years ago . At that time they said they would save me money on my electric bill by providing a lower rate. They were good for a while but recently their rates have skyrocketed. I am a senior citizen, 92 years of age, and cannot afford these rates. I called Verde to leave and they said it could take 1-2 billing cycles to get out. I want to get out now. Their rate is almost 17 cents and [redacted] is about 10-11 cents. That is a big difference to me.Desired Settlement: I want to switch now and would like my last 2-3 bills to be adjusted to [redacted] rates. Please help me.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following email today:

Review: I just received my latest Verde Energy USA bill and my electricity bill is $207.06 dollars over [redacted] (151.75). I'm paying $118.31 over my local power company. I was told that I was on a variable floating rate .1999 and that they (Verde) had a bad winter. Well so did I, it was brutal in [redacted]. I requested credit and they will try to give me some form of credit but not guaranteed I immediately cancel my account because I was going back to [redacted] and they said that I had to wait for the next meter reading where I will pay Verde more money than my local power company. As a consumer this request should happen instantly but it's not. Now I have to wait another month and another expensive bill.This switch and bate to 3rd party electrical company should stop especially when they are offering a fix rate but change it to variable rate without notifying the consumer. Verde rep informed me that they send out notices to customers about rate increase but I have never received any form of notification by mail.Desired Settlement: I'm requesting a refund difference from Verde's rate of .19999 (270.06) to [redacted] rate .112324 (151.75) for the month of February.I would like a refund for February of $118.31.Thank You[redacted]

Business

Response:

replied via email on 3/27/15:Dear [redacted],

Review: This company has called me several times and never left a message and had called me from XXX-XXX-XXXX , I happen to be by the phone when they had called and gave me some talk about saving money on electric bill. I am also on the do not call list which seems to make no difference. The man who had spoken in very poor english claimed to be from Verde Energy and based in Norwalk, CT claimed to been in business since 2009 I never called to be called and when a place of a business calls several times and do not leave a message I do not respond.I had received calls in the past from this same company and asked them in the past to remove me from their calling list and then next several days received more calls from them. I do not care for any business calling me repeated times especially when tell them not to call again. I do not deal with any company which feel is a scam which feel this is one of them - I never asked them to call me, never signed up for anything and if they ever call again I will report them to the FBI

Desired Settlement: DesiredSettlementID: No settlement requested - for

TELL THEM TO QUIT ANNOYING PEOPLE AND TRYING TO SCAM PEOPLE

Business

Response:

Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2013/06/20) */

This phone number has been added to our internal DNC list and will not be called in the future. We apologize for any inconvenience.

Review: Verde has been charging for energy with a cost that goes up and down that is quite high. The billfor Jan-Feb caught my intention because it was supposed to be lowered to 0.99 PER KWH that was agreed between Verde and the management of the village. It was instead 01.66350 PER KWH. I contacted the person who took care of the budget cost and asked him why I was not charged the 0.99. He looked into it and said he was going to put the credit on the Feb-March bill. When I received the bill the correct charge was on the bill. I called on March 14 and only gota voice mail with the name of a different person. I called back on May 17 and was able to speak to the person who was being trained for the budget position. I asked her whether I did get a credit. She looked it up and said that I did and a check for $43 was made out for me. She then transferred me to the manager who, also, confirmed that I was getting a check. I told her that I have looked back on a few bills and I was checking out some more. She said she would call on the next day, March 18. I never got the call and I have kept calling up to this day and just got the voice mail. The phone number for the budget division is 2[redacted]. I know that the residents living in the village who were customers of Verde were, also, calling. The man that was taking care of the budget was no longer there.I have written to [redacted]nd a cc: to [redacted] and mailed them yesterday, March 25. They owe residents a lot of money according to the bills I have. I, also, on March 24, switched to my previous company and will be in force by May 2014. Thank you for your attention,Sincerly,Janet McEvoyDesired Settlement: I would like my refund in a check not a credit. (I still have not received the check for $43.)The residents who live here changed to Verde because the cost was lower than the previous company. Instead the cost was going up and down through the year 2012. Beyond that, I have no bills because I shredded them. My fault was not checking the bills because I trusted Verde.This last agreement between Verde and the management here was the first and only time we weretold there was a raise in cost.

Business

Response:

We sent the following email to the customer. The issue was resolved with her 2 weeks ago.

Janet,

Review: I became a customer of Verde Energy in CT in 2010 because this company provides electricity from renewable energy sources. (For this "privilege" I pay an extra service charge to [redacted]). In 2010, I agreed to a fixed rate of .09/kwh for generation service from Verde, which went down to .08/kwh in 2012. In that year, the company (according to Verde) sent me a letter stating my fixed rate period was over and I had to contact the company to renew the fixed rate. I do not remember receiving this letter and thus I did not opt for a fixed rate again---I assumed it was continuing. I received no further letters about fixed rates or any information about increasing rates since that time, and Verde does not dispute this fact. In Jan. 2014 the generation service was at .09/kwh and since that time, the rate has increased especially since November, until now the rate is .21/kwh. Again, I have received NO NOTICE that the rate would rise at all, much less more than double in one year.Desired Settlement: For most of 2014, the generation service rate was at .09/kwh; however, in Nov. it went up to .16/kwh, in Dec. to .19/kwh and in Jan. 2015 to .21/kwh. Since Verde did not inform me ahead of time about the steep increase, I request that it refund the difference between these increased rates from November to January and .09/kwh, which I had been paying since 2012. I also request that Verde give me an opportunity to purchase this service at a fixed rate, if I wish to continue service with them.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following email today[redacted]

Review: To whom it may concern. My past 4 monthly rates from Verde Energy (PECO supplier): 10/21/13-11/22/13 @ $0.1099/kwh, 11/22/13-12/20/13 @ $0.1098/kwh, 12/20/13-1/29/14 @ $0.1399/kwh, and 1/29/14-2/26/14 @ $0.1599/kwh. In the past 2 months my bill has increased radically (37%) without notification of any kind nor my agreement. I telephoned them after the first increase(last month) to find out why it had raised dramatically and was given no answers save for "Market Flux" but was assured that the next month, the rate would be 0.0999 for next several months without me needing to do anything. Going into March this was obviously wrong information. I telephoned them after the second increase and was told the $.0999 rates would only ever apply to those who are part of their "fixed rate plan." When requested where current rate information for non fixed rate plan is located, I was informed it wasn't listed on their web site nor anywhere else.Desired Settlement: Refund for extra charge for the past 2 months. Using the rate from December ($.109898): 26.73 for the month of January, 22.51 for the month of February. Total being $49.24

Business

Response:

Ms. Janiszewski was enrolled under a monthly variable rate offer which can change with market conditions. Her initial rate with Verde Energy in March 2013 was $0.0854/KWH which was lower than with her prior supplier Rescom.

As a goodwill gesture, we are issuing a billing refund check totaling $61.84 which represents the difference between the rate charged on her last two bills with Verde versus the $0.0999/KWH she could have received if she switched to our 6 month fixed rate offer which is posted on our web site. She will receive the check within 2 weeks.

This should resolve this inquiry

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

Review: I switched to Verde Energy USA in May 2013 after they enticed me with the promise of lower energy rates compared to [redacted] Although this never materialized (they always charged me 0.5 1.0 cent /KWH higher than [redacted] it only translated to about $5 or so increase per month. Starting in November 2013 the difference jumped to 1.5 2.5 cents/KWH. Last month, in the latest billing cycle, their rate jumped up by about 50% while the JCP&L rate stayed abou the same (a difference of 8.4 cents/KWH). This is truly outrageous and amounts to gouging. They never informed me about the increase in rates or the option of fixed rates. This is clearly false advertising and a bait and switch scheme. Im surprised they are still accredited by Revdex.com. Billing Cycle Verde [redacted] Difference Rate Rate 11/20/13- 12/18/13 0.12090080-0.10598632 = 0.0149145 X 877 KWH = $13.08 12/19/13- 01/20/14 0.12089696-0.10485545 = 0.01604145 X 1349 KWH = $21.6401/21/14- 02/18/14 0.12890141-0.10485446 = 0.02404690 X 1065 KWH = $25.6102/19/14- 03/17/14 0.18774739-0.10362027 = 0.08412440 X 1243 KWH = $104.57 Total Difference = $164.90 They should adjust the bills for the past four months to their qouted fixed rate of 0.1049 and refund the difference (the overcharge) which amounts to a total of $164.90. Based on the other complaints, Im afraid to cancel the service. They might charge me an even more outrageous rate during time of the cancellation process (one to two billing cycles).Desired Settlement: I would like them to issue me refund of $164.90 and cancel the service with a guarantee that they would not charge me more than 0.1049/KWH (their quoted fixed rate)during the cancellation process.

Business

Response:

We sent the following email to the customer today:

Mr. Vinjamuri,

Review: [redacted] Energy switched my account to Verde Energy in May 2014. When I called Verde about this they stated that a letter was sent out to announce the change. I did not see a letter. Over the past 9 months, my electric service price has increased in 7 out of the 9 months. I've gone from .093 per kWh in May 2013 to .159 in April 2014. Also, the Verde price is higher than the [redacted] price to compare in each of these 9 months. This got my attention when in April my budgeted electric amount went up to $435. This is copare to $257 in October 2013. When I go on the ** Power switch.com the Verde price is fixed for 6 months at .0999 per kWh. This is sinificantly lower than I'm currently being charge by Verde. Today, I cancelled my service with Verde and will go back to [redacted]. Unfortunately, I've been told that this switch could take 1 to 2 months, so I'm stuck with the exhorbitant rates that I'm being charged from Verde.Desired Settlement: When I copmpare the Verde price per kWh to the [redacted] price to compare it is higher in each of the last 9 months. I've calculated the higher pricing from Verde at $662 over the last 9 months. Unfortunately, I've been told that this switch could take 1 to 2 months, so I'm stuck with the exhorbitant rates that I'm being charged from Verde. Currently the Verde price per kWh is .1599 compared to a [redacted] price of .0877. A 100% increase! I've accumulated a budget deficit of $1079.Pls. Help!

Business

Response:

We sent the following email to the customer today

Hi Christian,

Review: I recently noticed I was still being billed by verde when I was looking into the outrageous electric bills I have been receiving. I contacted verde and spoke to two representatives who could see that I had cancelled my account with verde in January and should have become effective as of February 28. I was told that I would get a response from the billing department regarding the issue. I found out I was being charged double the rate that my electric company, atlantic city electric, was charging. I did receive an answer from the billing department through email who offered to reimburse me for the last month that I've been charged through verde. I was also told that atlantic city electric was to blame for my reinstatement. While I appreciate the offer of reimbursing me for the difference in my last months bill, I feel that this is not a sufficient answer. I did respond via email and have not received a response yet, I need this issue resolved quickly as it's been hard to maintain these costly bills. I have an issue with the fact that I'm being charged extra without my consent after I had already cancelled my enrollment. I understand energy increases do happen, but feel that for a "low cost energy provider" I've been unfairly charged double for that past several months. I feel that for future people who choose to enroll in such programs, it needs to be decided who is allowed to choose your provider, the electric company, or the customer.Desired Settlement: I am seeking a refund for the difference in rates that I've been charged from February 28-June2 (the date that my "new" cancellation is effective). Thank you in advance.

Business

Response:

We sent the customer the following email today

Ms. Stiteler,