|
|
|
|
|
Consumer Counsel Seeks Change To 20-Year Old Partial Payment Hierarchy Which Pays Past Due Retail Supplier Charges First (Non-POR Market)
The following story is brought free of charge to readers by VertexOne, the exclusive EDI provider of EnergyChoiceMatters.com
The Ohio Consumers' Counsel has sought changes to the partial payment processing hierarchy for utility consolidated bills at Dayton Power & Light (AES Ohio).
Dayton Power & Light does not offer a purchase of receivables program for competitive retail electric service (CRES) providers
Instead, and specifically adopted by PUCO as, "[i]n lieu of [DP&L] purchasing CRES provider accounts receivable," (insofar as PUCO adopted settlement language reading as follows), the partial payment posting priority at DP&L was modified in 2004 to be: first, CRES past due power and energy, including transmission and ancillary charges, then EDU
past due, then EDU current, then CRES current
The partial payment posting priority approved by PUCO for DP&L does differ from the generally applicable posting order under PUCO's rules, which is: first, EDU past due, then CRES past due, then CRES current, then EDU current
OCC said that AES Ohio’s current partial payment order, "has
the potential to increase the uncollectible amount that is paid for by consumers," since the CRES past due charges could deplete the customer's entire partial payment
OCC noted that a recent PUCO-selected consultant's report in an audit of DP&L's uncollectible expense recovery had cited the potential for DP&L's current partial payment posting order (for customers on a payment plan with past due amounts) to result in a higher uncollectible balance relating to distribution service
The consultant's audit report had stated, "After considering the change in the
payment priority based on whether the bill is current or past due, we find that the partial
payment priority used for past due payments has the potential effect of increasing the
deferred uncollectible expense account. This occurs because partial payments for past due
accounts are applied first to reduce past due supplier charges. As a result, if the payment
plan is not completed on a given account, the remaining balance on that account is likely to
have a higher uncollectible balance relating to distribution service which would be recorded
in the deferred uncollectible expense account."
OCC said, "Distribution
charges should also be collected first because they are for a regulated essential service that is
provided by a public utility. The utility’s distribution service is a regulated monopoly service that
ensures a customer’s lights stay on. If a utility applies a customer’s partial payment to a
marketer’s charge first, it may declare the distribution portion unpaid and proceed to disconnect
service."
"For consumer protection, AES Ohio’s partial
payment priority order should be changed at the earliest opportunity to comply with the order
established at O.A.C. 4901:1-10-22(H)," OCC said
OCC also said that PUCO, "should consider and review the
practical impact of partial payment priority during the next electric utility rules review."
Case 24-132-EL-UNC
Copyright 2025 EnergyChoiceMatters.com. Unauthorized copying, retransmission, or republication
prohibited. You are not permitted to copy any work or text of EnergyChoiceMatters.com without the separate and express written consent of EnergyChoiceMatters.com
September 11, 2025
Email This Story
Copyright 2025 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com
|
|
|
|
|