If you live in Pennsylvania, then you have the privilege of being one of only 15 states that allows its residents to shop for their own energy provider. This is a benefit that has been enjoyed by more than 1.2 million Pennsylvania residents and 285,000 businesses to date who have saved on their electric bills by shopping for the best rates available to them.
The power to choose who generates their electricity in Pennsylvania became possible when deregulation rolled out across the state in 1997 with the passage of the Electric Choice and Competition Act. Since that time, residents can compare energy rates offered by dozens of licensed electric suppliers that are available in their area and save money by switching their supplier.
While the majority of consumers have already chosen to switch their electric providers, some still may not understand what they’re missing out on. To help, PA Power Switch is a one-stop-shop that gives Pennsylvania residents the opportunity to shop for plans from more than 100 different electricity suppliers. These include both traditional and renewable plans, prepaid options, variable-rate offers and more. The site also provides information about how to read an electric bill and details the rights and protections available for all Pennsylvania electricity customers under deregulation.
pennsylvania electric choice residents can use the website by entering their zip code and then clicking on the “shop for rates” link to reveal a list of varying offers from competing suppliers. They can then click on each of the resulting plans to see their pricing, term and more details. Once they have found the offer that is right for them, they can sign up to start saving instantly on their electric rates.
While comparing electricity rates on the site is easy, residents should keep in mind that they will continue to receive their delivery/distribution services from their utility company, which is responsible for maintaining and repairing power lines in case of an outage. They should also continue to contact their electric utility if they have questions about a specific outage or any other customer service related issues. The regulated utilities in Pennsylvania are also the ones to call if they want to learn more about energy efficiency, home energy audits or other energy-saving initiatives that they can take advantage of.