Summary of Utah consumer’s rights and responsibilities
The Utah Public Service Commission has rules about utility consumer/company relationships. These rules, which cover payment of bills, late charges, security deposits, handling complaints, service disconnection and other matters, give you certain rights and outline your responsibilities.

Rights... Rocky Mountain Power will:

• Provide service if you are a qualified applicant
• Offer you at least a 12-month deferred payment plan if you have a financial emergency
• Let you pay a security deposit in three installments, if a deposit is required
• Follow specific procedures for service disconnection, including giving you notice postmarked at least 10 days before service is disconnected
• Offer winter shut-off protection of energy utility service to qualifying customers
• Advise you of sources of possible financial assistance in paying your bill
• Continue service for a reasonable time if you provide a physician’s statement that a medical emergency exists in your home
• Give out written information about Commission rules and your rights and responsibilities as a customer under those rules
  

Responsibilities...You will:

• Use services safely and pay for them promptly
• Contact Rocky Mountain Power when you have a problem with payment, service, safety, billing or customer service
• Notify Rocky Mountain Power about billing or other errors
• Contact Rocky Mountain Power when you anticipate a payment problem to try to set up a payment plan
• Notify Rocky Mountain Power when you are moving to another residence
• Notify Rocky Mountain Power about stopping service in your name or about stopping service altogether
• Allow safe, unobstructed access to your property for meter reading, tree trimming and other essential Rocky Mountain Power personnel and equipment.
• Provide notice to Rocky Mountain Power if you are making any significant change that may affect the electrical character of your load affecting you or others.

Deposits
When you apply for service you will not be required to make a security deposit unless you are unable to provide required identification and credit information, have an unpaid and overdue account or have given false information.

If you have been connected less than one year, you may be required to make a security deposit if you receive a notice of disconnection for nonpayment. A “third party” guarantee from a current customer who has not received a notice of disconnection during the last year will be accepted in place of a deposit. Security deposits will not be collected during certain times if you (1) are granted relief from disconnection during the winter months, (2) qualify for assistance under the HEAT program, unless you have obtained service by theft.

Payments received from HEAT, American Red Cross or similar programs will be applied only to the electric service bill and not a service deposit.

The amount of the service deposit will be based on the estimated average of a two peak months' use of electricity at the residence. You have the right to pay service deposits in at least three equal installments, provided the first installment is paid at the time you apply.

The deposit you pay, plus interest, may be returned to you after you have paid your bill on time for 12 consecutive months.

If you move and no longer use electricity supplied by Rocky Mountain Power, we will apply the deposit and interest to your closing bill and refund any remaining amount.

If you are a current or former customer and your service was disconnected for nonpayment of an unpaid and overdue account or deposit, or if you moved and had an unpaid account with us, you will be required to make full payment of all unpaid amounts remaining from previous service in addition to a deposit. Unpaid and overdue amounts may be included in a deferred payment agreement as long as no previous agreement has been broken.

Billing
You will receive a bill for electric service each month based on the number of kilowatt-hours of electricity registered on your electric meter during the billing period. Your bill will show the date when your payment is due, the applicable rate schedule and the amount of the bill. You may ask that another person receive your bills and notices if you are unable to receive or understand them.
Our Equal Payment Plan is available if you’d like to spread your payments evenly out over a full year. The plan divides the total cost of electricity used each year into twelve equal monthly payments. Every year, your account is reviewed to determine if your usage has changed.
Any price changes will automatically be figured in the Equal Payment amount.

Disconnection notices
Service may be disconnected for several reasons, such as: if you don’t pay for service, don’t pay a deposit when required, don’t follow the terms of a deferred payment agreement or don’t provide or make arrangements for meter access.

Service will not be disconnected for 30 days if a physician confirms in writing that someone in your household is seriously ill. If someone in your household uses an iron lung, respirator, dialysis machine or other life-sustaining equipment, please notify us in writing. Where such equipment is used, service will not be disconnected without prior approval from the Public Service Commission.
We will give written notice of disconnection to the person responsible for the account at least 10 calendar days before the proposed disconnection. The 10-day time period is figured from the date the notice is postmarked. In addition to the information shown on your bill, you will receive information outlining the specific steps that must be taken to avoid disconnection. The information outlines your rights and ways you can get help, including deferred payment agreements, referral service, medical extension and procedures to notify the Commission of an unresolved problem or complaint.

During winter months, October through March, we will call or contact the account holder in person at least 48 hours before the scheduled disconnection. If no one is reached, a notice will be left at the residence. During summer months, April through September, the company will notify the account holder by mail 48 hours before the scheduled disconnection.

We will post a notice about the disconnection of an apartment or rental unit when the landlord or customer is past due or has requested disconnection. We will make reasonable efforts to contact the concerned tenants at least five calendar days before the scheduled disconnection date.
Tenants may continue to receive service for an additional 30 days by paying the most current 30-day past due charges.

To make sure we can notify tenants, we ask landlords to give us at least 10 days notice when requesting disconnection.

If you cannot pay your total bill, you may have service reconnected by setting up a deferred payment agreement.

Deferred Payment Agreement
If you cannot pay your total bill, you may arrange installment payments with a Deferred Payment Agreement. This is an agreement between you and Rocky Mountain Power stating that you will pay all current bills when due and also pay on your past due bills in installments up to 12 months. You can set the monthly payment amount, provided the past due amount plus interest is paid within 12 months.

The first payment must be made at the time the agreement is arranged. Service will be reconnected if the account holder agrees to negotiate and execute a deferred payment agreement and pay the first installment and reconnection fee. The deferred payment agreement includes a finance charge approved by the Public Service Commission. The current month’s bill can be included in the deferred payment agreement. You also have the option of paying your following current bills under our Equal Payment Plan (explained in the “Billing” section) with the deferred payment installment. If you don’t pay after setting up a deferred payment agreement, the company has the option to decide whether or not to make further payment arrangements with you.

Third party notification
This plan allows a “third party”– another person (friend, relative, clergyman) or social agency – to receive a copy of your overdue notice. Your third party is not responsible for your bill, but would be informed if your service was about to be disconnected. This notification often helps people who are out-of-town, elderly or those who have physical problems. Call the phone number listed on your bill and we will set up the “Third Party Notification” for you.

Moving
If you are moving, stopping service in your name or stopping service altogether, please notify Rocky Mountain Power at least three working days in advance. It’s a good idea to do this yourself and not depend on someone else doing it for you. We can’t close your account or process your closing bill until you let us know your move-out date.

Complaints and disputes
We will promptly investigate every complaint or dispute we receive, and we’ll report to you on the results. Contact us through our toll-free phone number at 1-888-221-7070. This number is also printed on your bill.

If you’re not satisfied with the assistance you received from the first person you talked to at Rocky Mountain Power, you have the right to request that your problem be handled by that person’s supervisor, and we’ll give you the supervisor’s name and how he or she can be reached.
If after talking to the supervisor you still cannot resolve the problem, you can call or write the Division of Public Utilities. Their phone numbers are (801) 530-6652 or toll free at 1-800-874-0904. The address is P.O. Box 146751, Salt Lake City, UT, 84114-6751. Rocky Mountain Power will not knowingly disconnect your service while you are honestly pursuing a complaint with a supervisor or the Commission.

We’ve tried to tell you in a way that’s easy to understand what Utah’s laws say your rights and responsibilities are as a utility customer. We aim to keep this information up-to-date but please see copies of Rocky Mountain Power's actual filed tariffs , including rate schedules and general rules and regulations, in their original wording or call 1-888-221-7070.

We aim to provide a high level of customer service. Learn more about our Customer Service Guarantee program.