To log in the website is not easy access. I done reset my password 7 times and still can’t log in. Still haven’t received a confirmation email so I could receive my keys to my house on time. I paid for services already and THIS IS A INCONVIENCE. Please get customer service reps that understands how to problem solve and not ask redundant questions. Hold time is terrible
Response: Mr. Fields, We apologize for the inconvenient regarding accessing the customer portal upon enrollment. My records show that you received assistance from a supervisor. Please let us know if we can provide any additional support. Published on July 17, 2024
Information isn’t up to date. They’re 2 days behind on billing, and they’ll turn your lights off even if you make a payment! If you can get regular lights you should cause pay as you go ends up costing more monthly, and you can’t reach customer service as easily.
Response: Hello- Your review states that Payless Power billing isn’t up to date and is 2 days behind. You also state that you have been disconnected even though you made payment. These issues can be very concerning but there are pretty straightforward explanations. Yes, Payless Power bills 2 days in arrears. Any pre-paid company does this because of the timing that your local utility provides daily meter data. For example, we will receive a meter read from your usage from Monday on Tuesday evening. Then the billing is calculated overnight and an email or text is sent to you Wednesday morning. All prepaid companies have the same schedule because the local utility send the reads out to everyone at the same time. There is no way to expedite this . There are only 2 scenarios in which you would be disconnected after making your payment: 1.) you made a cash payment and the amount was less than the minimum required payment. 2.) you paid the correct amount but the payment posted after the disconnection request already went out. Both instances can be avoided by reviewing the daily invoice you receive in the morning and making the minimum required payment before 12:00 noon that day. Published on July 17, 2024
I just paid my light bill today and I came home to my lights being off after I just paid my money to this company Now I’m home which is after five and they’re closed and there’s no way for me to get in contact with them so basically I’m gonna be without lights the whole night until tomorrow morning I’m highly upset
Response: Hello- Your review states that you made a payment however you came home to find your lights were off and our call center was closed. That’s no doubt incredibly upsetting and rightfully so. I do not see a disconnection on the day of your review. I do see one a couple of days prior though, so I assume that is what you are referring to . I see that a disconnection order went out that afternoon and a payment was made with a representative a couple of hours later which resulted in a reconnection order being generated. However, the order was not completed until the following afternoon. You were able reach a representative for assistance that evening via email and another reconnection order was submitted. Our records show that services were restored the following afternoon. A supervisor will reach out to you to discuss. Published on July 17, 2024
They billed me since Hurricane Beryl hit Galveston Monday. I have been without power since Monday and power has just came back on a couple of hours ago. They have been taking from my account since Monday. Different amounts each day. Will be calling tomorrow. Why are they still in business and overlooked? I will be looking further into this. This isn’t right on so many levels. -We The People.
Response: Hello- Please note that as a pre-paid provider, our systems our systems are designed to take meter data as provided by Centerpoint, and calculate your daily charges based off that. Centerpoint’s metering systems are designed to assume that if a meter stops providing usage data, that it is actually working… just unable to submit the data. When a natural disaster such as Beryl hits, Centerpoint’s system will unfortunately assume that meters at homes affected by the event are actually still energized, and an estimate is generated. Centerpoint sends this estimated meter read to Payless Power, and we calculate charges based on this just like we do every day. This can be highly alarming to a customers …especially of they are without power for an extended period of time. The good news is that Centerpoint also has a mechanism to correct this. They will generate a monthly meter read at the end of a customer’s 30-day billing cycle and send it to Payless Power. If there is a difference between that monthly read and what you were billed daily, the system will make an automatic adjustment in the form of a credit. This same methodology applies to monthly billed post-paid service as well but its hardly ever noticed because everything is usually adjusted by the time the bill is mailed. However, with daily billed plans, it can be alarming and impactful. Rest assured, that any energy related charges billed to you during the storm outage should be automatically adjusted at the beginning of your next billing cycle. If you cannot wait for this to occur, call us ta 888 963 9363 and we can apply temporary solution until the new billing cycle begins. Published on July 17, 2024
Tengo una queja se puede saber por qué me siguen cobrando la luz de el lunes martes normal cuando tengo tres días sin luz. Que les pasa eso es estar robando necesito saber por qué me entran cobrando que estoy gastando luz cuando estoy en una situación sin respuesta por el uracan que paso y me siguen descontando días que nooooo e tenido luz explicación
Response: Hola: tenga en cuenta que, como proveedor de prepago, nuestros sistemas están diseñados para tomar los datos del medidor proporcionados por Centerpoint y calcular sus cargos diarios en base a ellos. Los sistemas de medición de Centerpoint están diseñados para asumir que si un medidor deja de proporcionar datos de uso, en realidad está funcionando... simplemente sin poder enviar los datos. Cuando ocurre un desastre natural como Beryl, el sistema de Centerpoint desafortunadamente asumirá que los medidores de las casas afectadas por el evento todavía están energizados y se genera una estimación. Centerpoint envía esta lectura estimada del medidor a Payless Power y calculamos los cargos en función de esto, como lo hacemos todos los días. Esto puede ser muy alarmante para los clientes... especialmente si están sin electricidad durante un período prolongado. La buena noticia es que Centerpoint también tiene un mecanismo para corregir esto. Generarán una lectura de medidor mensual al final del ciclo de facturación de 30 días de un cliente y la enviarán a Payless Power. Si hay una diferencia entre esa lectura mensual y lo que te facturaron diariamente, el sistema hará un ajuste automático en forma de crédito. Esta misma metodología también se aplica al servicio pospago facturado mensualmente, pero casi nunca se nota porque generalmente todo se ajusta en el momento en que se envía la factura por correo. Sin embargo, con los planes de facturación diaria, puede resultar alarmante e impactante. Tenga la seguridad de que cualquier cargo relacionado con la energía que se le facture durante el corte por tormenta se ajustará automáticamente al comienzo de su próximo ciclo de facturación. Si no puedes esperar a que esto ocurra, llámanos al 888 963 9363 y podremos aplicar una solución temporal hasta que comience el nuevo ciclo de facturación. Published on July 17, 2024
This company sucks 15-16 dollars a day on prepaid electricity is insane it’s just me and my wife we are never home we both work we keep our lights off all day and night everything unplugged and yet we have spent at least 400 in a month in electricity we will be switching !!!
Response: Mr. Clay- To recap you are stating that being charged $15 to $16 per day even though you are never home and you unplug everything. I can see where something like that would be alarming, so I have done a quick review of your billing. While your daily charges occasionally are greater that $15 per day (this has happened twice in the last 30 days) they have not reached the $16 mark. They are high however, but this is not due to Payless Power’s rate being much higher than other options in your area. Your rate is very competitive with any Company out there, but you do have some things that add a couple of dollars per day to your charges. One is a daily payment plan deduction, and the other is due to making payments under the minimum $75 payment amount . If you can manage to make a payment of $75 you can avoid the minimum payment fee listed on your terms of service. Also please note that regardless of which provider you use, the meter read will be the same because AEP Texas owns the meter and performs the reads . For example, if Payless Power billing your tomorrow for 70 KWH, you would be billed for that same amount even if you had a competitor providing your service. If you log into your customer portal you can see a “usage insights’ graph at the bottom of the page that shows daily, hourly and monthly usage as well as high and low daily temperatures. Day by day what it is showing is lower usage at night and in the early morning with higher usage in the afternoon and early evening. This is pretty common at a Texas home in the summer and indicates HVAC use but of course only you would be able to tell what’s on in the home. If you want a more detailed breakdown, you can register at www.smartmetertexas.com and it can show you your usage in 15-minute increments. Published on July 17, 2024
I am completely unimpressed with this company and also feel as though I have been scammed. I have called in multiple times and they said they will do an internal review on the account. The quote I received when choosing which power company to use was $90. I have had service for 10 days and have already paid $70. This is for a very small vacant condo. I went and checked the condo when I saw the amount I was being charged. The only thing that even had the breaker turned on was the air conditioning which was set in the mid 70’s. I was told my two highest usage dates were the day I stopped there and turned the air up to 80 and also the 4th of July when it was vacant and not one person set foot on the premises. They did say I could break my contract but also just kept repeating that the meter readings are exact, and they do not believe anything is wrong. Based on these rates we can expect the monthly bill to be $333 or more once occupied.
Response: Ms. Spry- To recap your review states that you have concerns with the cost of your daily billing at your empty condo. I have done a quick review of your billing as I understand that this may be alarming. Your charges are high for an uninhabited property however, but this is not due to Payless Power’s rate being much higher than other options in your area. Your rate is very competitive with any Company out there. Please note though, that regardless of which provider you use, the meter read will be the same because Oncor owns the meter and performs the reads . For example, if Payless Power bills you for 70 KWH tomorrow, you would be billed for that same amount even if a competitor provided your service. If you log into your customer portal you can see a “usage insights’ graph at the bottom of the page that shows daily, hourly and monthly usage as well as high and low daily temperatures. If you select the hourly option this may provide some valuable visibility into when your property is using power. That in turn may reveal what is using the power. If you want a more detailed breakdown, you can register at www.smartmetertexas.com and it can show you your usage in 15-minute increments. If you are still not satisfied what’s happening at your property you do have the option of requesting a meter test. I suggest contacting Oncor directly to schedule this. If you have not had one at the property within the past 4 years its free. If you have had a test within the past 4 years and Oncor finds an issue , the test is also free. If you have had a test within the past four years and no problems are found each test would cost $50.00. We can also schedule this for you . Call us at 888 963 9363 for assistance. Published on July 17, 2024
I have been using them for two years now, I have been pretty happy with them up until Hurricane Berly hit. I am on a daily billing prepaid service and our whole city was down with power and I was still being charged as if I was using full power. Been calling to get this fixed and very hard to reach a person.
Response: Hello- Please note that as a pre-paid provider, our systems our systems are designed to take meter data as provided by Centerpoint, and calculate your daily charges based off that. Centerpoint’s metering systems are designed to assume that if a meter stops providing usage data, that it is actually working… just unable to submit the data. When a natural disaster such as Beryl hits, Centerpoint’s system will unfortunately assume that meters at homes affected by the event are actually still energized, and an estimate is generated. Centerpoint sends this estimated meter read to Payless Power, and we calculate charges based on this just like we do every day. This can be highly alarming to a customers …especially of they are without power for an extended period of time. The good news is that Centerpoint also has a mechanism to correct this. They will generate a monthly meter read at the end of a customer’s 30-day billing cycle and send it to Payless Power. If there is a difference between that monthly read and what you were billed daily, the system will make an automatic adjustment in the form of a credit. This same methodology applies to monthly billed post-paid service as well but its hardly ever noticed because everything is usually adjusted by the time the bill is mailed. However, with daily billed plans, it can be alarming and impactful. Rest assured, that any energy related charges billed to you during the storm outage should be automatically adjusted at the beginning of your next billing cycle. If you cannot wait for this to occur, call us ta 888 963 9363 and we can apply temporary solution until the new billing cycle begins. Published on July 17, 2024
You sent me a message at 8:11 am today (Sunday) telling me I have $4.27 Positive Balance, lasting approximately 1 day. Moments later you text me I have until 8pm tonight to make a payment or avoid disconnection. I have tried unsuccessfully to login online. And your phones and chat are not available until 9am Monday (I tried both). I WANT to make a payment but am unable to by your deadline. Since you are closed Sunday, customers should not be disconnected until they have a chance to make a payment when you reopen on Monday. Current policy is bad customer service.
Response: Hi Pamela- Your comments state that you received confusing and contradictory messaging which threated disconnection on a Sunday . We understand how alarming this would be and we can offer some clarification. First please note that we do not disconnect on Saturday or Sunday. Also, if you do need to reach us on Sunday you can do so by email between 11:00 AM and 8:00 Pm however our phone lines are closed on Sunday. Also, the alarming message you received is known as a low balance warning and we are required by the Public Utilities Commission to send these out if a customer is within a few days of depleting their balance. It reads as follows: “URGENT: Your balance is critically low and will only last 1 day or less. Please make sure your balance is positive to prevent service interruption. Request an extension online or by phone for additional time. If the extension is approved, you will have until 8PM to make a payment and avoid disconnection.” Even though you received this on a Sunday, what it is stating is that an extension can be requested through your portal or our automated phone system and if granted will be applied until 8:00 PM. Another tip… during the week, disconnection orders are not sent to AEP Central after 3:00 so a protection until 8:00 PM will protect you for the whole day. I hope this helps. Published on June 28, 2024
Watch out for this company! Payless Power will not honor a contract when rates go up between the time you sign up and when the contract begins. I received an email on 4/4/2024 stating that I needed to pay by June 27th at 6 pm for the contract to begin. I paid on 5/29/2024 and was sent a text on 6/03/2024 stating a refund is being processed . Called customer service, they are worthless, trying to talk over you, not listening, etc. I asked to speak to someone else. The next lady I spoke to was nice, though she gave me a new rate that was above the rate I had contracted. Then that rate was not an actual rate according to the sales person I spoke to. Below is a copy of the email I received stating when the payment needed to be made. Watch out, watch out, watch out! This place stinks. On Apr 4, 2024, at 8:32 AM, [email protected] wrote: Hello, Thank you for your inquiry. We understand this is an important matter. We show that the selected start date is 6/27. Please be advised that to ensure same day services, an initial payment must be made before 6:00 pm that day. Regards, Customer Care
Response: Mr Hummel- Your review states that Payless Power refused to honor the rates you signed up for . We can understand why this situation would be concerning to you and we’ve reviewed your account to see what occurred. Our records show that you enrolled for service at the beginning of April but did not make your payment to start service until the end of May. Please note that once the enrollment process has started for pre-paid service, the customer has 30 days to activate the account. This requires the initial payment. If the initial payment is not posted within 30 days of the enrollment process being started, the account will be cancelled. In this case your account was cancelled at the beginning of May. You posted a payment nearly a full month after the account had been cancelled so our system automatically generated a full refund to you. You are warmly invited to start a new account, but the rates would be at the current market price and not the rates offered the first week of April. Please visit www.paylesspower.com for current rates in your area. Published on June 28, 2024
