The Delaware Division of the Public Advocate and the Delaware Public Service Commission are advising customers who do not want to receive third-party supplier sales pitches to opt-out by the Sept. 30.
After the deadline, Delmarva Power will provide customer name, address, service information, and other data to Alternative Electricity Suppliers (third-party suppliers) for marketing purposes. Once an opt-out selection has been made, customers will be removed from the marketing list for a period of three years.
A Delmarva Power bill insert in July highlighted the ways to opt-out of the marketing list. Those include:
• “Visit delmarva.com/YourChoice or;
• Call 800-375-7117, select Delaware and press 4 for “everything else”. Once you have confirmed your account, say “more options” and then say “Energy Choice”. Please have your account number handy. Once within the Energy Choice options, press 1 to change privacy option.”
For consumers, third-party energy supplies offer alternatives that include all green energy (at extra cost) or rates that can be cheaper in the short term.
Under deregulation, Delmarva’s electric supplies are purchased from various suppliers over a longer term to ensure more stability in rates. Delmarva gets no profits from supplying electricity and instead earns returns from maintaining the grid to households and businesses.
Third-party sales have been in the news lately, thanks to phone pitches that have been linked to a call center in Pakistan and come in under a Delmarva Power caller ID. The calls are under investigation.
Third-party suppliers typically use mail to solicit customers.
