Your power out due to storm? No worries, power co will still make you pay for electric non-usage

Pepco customers who struggled through up to five days without power last week could soon pay for the privilege.

Under a little-noticed decision by Maryland regulators, Pepco for years has been authorized to raise rates temporarily to recover money it loses when electricity use drops. The system was meant to encourage energy conservation.

But as an unintended consequence, customers could help make the company whole for outage-related losses next month by paying Pepco more than they would have otherwise. The higher rates would apply to all Maryland customers, including those who shivered in the dark for days.

"They are paying for delivery of electricity they did not receive," said Eric Friedman, director of the Montgomery County Office of Consumer Protection.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/02/AR2011020206207.html?hpid=dynamiclead

save on your bills, they want the rates higher so they have the same profit

:thumbsup: