State Requires Notice to Customers of Assigned Contracts to Include Specific New Variable Rate, Notice of 25% Limit on Rate Increases

The Connecticut PURA has approved a customer notice to be sent to customers of HOP Energy who will be transferred to Viridian Energy after Viridian agreed to purchase the HOP Energy book, and the notice is notable for requiring the disclosure of the customer's new rate after assignment for variable rate customers.

Specifically, for variable rate customers, PURA directed that the customer notice include the linage: "You currently have a Variable Rate plan with HOP, which provides for a variable electricity rate for the month of July 2014 of [rate]. After [switch date], Viridian will be your electricity provider and your plan will continue with Viridian's variable electricity rate until [date of contract expiration date; if no expiration date, state that 'plan will continue indefinitely until canceled by you']. Your first Variable rate with Viridian will be [rate] for the month of [month] [or if not month: from [date] to [date]."

Matters believes this is the first time that such rate disclosure has been required in a Connecticut customer notice of contract assignment.

PURA further required the variable rate customer notice to include the statement, "Thereafter, your rate may change, and under Connecticut law, Viridian can increase your generation rate up to 25% without notifying you of the increase."

The 25% limit on increases without notice is a new provision of the recent SB 2 (click here for details)