Dominion Budget Billing Program Could Help Ease Higher Seasonal Bills
RICHMOND, Va. – Dominion Virginia Power
customers concerned about paying for the electricity they used during the hottest
July in 12 years may want to consider enrolling in the company’s budget
billing program.
Customers have used an extraordinary amount of
electricity in recent weeks because of high summer temperatures. On July 27,
electricity customers set an all-time record one-hour peak demand of 18,897
megawatts. It was the third peak in three consecutive days and the fourth in
nine days.
Extreme temperatures, either hot or cold, affect
monthly electricity bills more than any other factor. But with budget billing,
customers pay the same amount each month.
Budget-billing customers always know what their
payments will be. Electricity usage for a year is divided by 12 to determine
a monthly budget bill amount. Dominion periodically reviews customer usage and
may adjust the budget amount if customers are using a much more or much less
electricity. If not, the budget amount remains the same.
Meters will continue to be read monthly. Customer
bills will show usage, what it costs, and the actual account balance along with
the budget amount due.
To enroll in budget billing, customers cannot
owe more than their most recent monthly bill. If they are current in their payments,
they can sign up for budget billing immediately. No extensions or special payment
arrangements are granted for customers on budget billing.
Customers also can request budget billing when
applying for service at a new address. The first bills may be less than or more
than the monthly budget amount, depending on the number of days during the first
billing period.
Customers can receive budget bills online and
can use Dominion’s automated payment plan to pay bills automatically.
To get projected budget amounts and sign up, customers can go online to www.dom.com,
or call toll-free 1-888-667-3000 and ask about the budget
billing plan.
Dominion is one of the nation's largest producers
of energy, with an energy portfolio of about 28,100 megawatts of generation.
Dominion also serves retail energy customers in nine states. For more information
about Dominion, visit the company's Web site at www.dom.com.
