Non-Payment and Cutoff Policy
ELECTRIC PLANT BOARD RUSSELLVILLE, KY
NONPAYMENT and CUTOFF POLICY
Our Nonpayment and Cutoff Policy
The Electric Plant Board’s nonpayment and cutoff policy is designed to insure that all monies due the Electric Plant Board for all services (electricity and any other service that may be delivered to customers now and in the future) shall be collected promptly and without regard to race, color, creed, sex, national origin or marital status. The policy is also designed to recover the additional cost associated with collecting unpaid accounts from those customers who do not pay their bill when due.
It is important that every employee of the EPB understands and supports our policy of treating every customer with respect and dignity in their time of difficulty of paying their bill for service. However, we must also be aware of the financial burden that is placed upon good-paying customers when everyone does not pay for the service they have received. Thus, it is essential to our goal of providing services at the lowest possible cost to all of our customers that we adopt a policy that when adhered to will avoid passing the unnecessary cost of collecting delinquent accounts along to the good-paying customers and will limit the potential for the write off of uncollected accounts.
Nonpayment Notice
Every customer with an unpaid balance greater than $ 20.00 will be mailed a notice, as soon as possible after the due date, showing that the account is unpaid. The notice will be mailed to the same address as the monthly bill or other address provided by the customer. The nonpayment notice will show the amount owed and a date that payment in full must be made, and a phone number for Russellville EPB Customer Service where a customer can call to discuss the bill. Any account that remains unpaid two (2) business days after the due date will be printed a late notice and will be charged a Late Notice Fee to cover the cost of supplies, printing, postage and handling.
Failure to Receive Notice
It is the customer’s responsibility to provide the Electric Plant Board with a valid mailing address at which they want to receive their bill and/or notice. It is the customer’s responsibility to notify the United States Postal Service that they wish to receive mail at a given location and to notify them if they fail to receive mail that has been sent. It is also the customer’s responsibility to insure there is a legal mail receptacle at the address given for the United States Postal Service to deliver mail. Failure to receive a billing statement or nonpayment notice does not relieve the customer of the obligation to pay their account by the due date of the bill or the late payment date included on the notice.
Disputed Bill
A customer who believes their bill is in error shall notify one of the Electric Plant Board’s Customer Service Representatives/Cashiers prior to the late payment date on the nonpayment notice at 270-726-2466. When a notice is received the disputed bill resolution will be followed. The inability of a customer to pay their bill will not be considered as a basis for a disputed bill.
Request for Extension
The Electric Plant Board recognizes that all customers may experience unforeseen problems that prevent them from being able to pay timely their bill for service. A customer may request an extension of time to pay their bill (due to a nonrecurring hardship) after the nonpayment notice due date not to exceed seven (7) days. The customer may receive only one (1) extension in a twelve-month period. Failure of customer to pay the bill within the extended period will result in disconnected services and procedures to collect the amount due the Electric Plant Board at that time, including additional deposit if applicable.
Vouchers In Lieu of Payment
The Electric Plant Board will accept a voucher for future payment from Community Action of Southern Kentucky and/or Logan County Good Samaritan, Inc. in lieu of payment of a current amount due and/or future amounts due for service. The Electric Plant Board may accept vouchers from religious, civic or other organizations on a case-by-case basis.
Postponement of Termination for Medical Hardship
Upon EPB’s approval of customer’s Life Support Program enrollment, disconnection of service will be postponed for 10 days from the original schedule disconnection date to allow customers time to make payment or alternative shelter arrangements. However, during the 10 day period or until the past due balance is paid, the customer’s current from meter will be limited to what is needed for the medical hardship by means of installing a current limiting meter.
Collection Procedures
Any customer who fails to pay their bill for service by the extended payment date of the nonpayment notice, or any payment extension date, and whose bill is not in dispute is subject to having their service disconnected. Once service is disconnected due to nonpayment, the delinquent amount plus any fees incurred (reconnect fee, etc.) plus any additional deposit that may be required under the Electric Plant Board’s Deposit Policy must be paid prior to service being reconnected.
If a customer leaves the service area of the EPB owing a balance the EPB will take the steps it deems necessary and appropriate to collect the unpaid balance plus any expenses incurred to collect the balance. Customers returning to the EPB service area must pay any unpaid balance from previous services prior to receiving service again.
Extreme Weather
The Electric Plant Board does not terminate service for nonpayment during extreme weather (32 degrees or lower during the winter, and 90 degrees or higher in the summer). The degree thresholds are based on projected daily forecasts for Russellville, Kentucky, provided by www.weather.com (fax, 262-542-5924)
Fees
A fee, or fees, may be charged to a customer when the EPB has had to take steps, in addition to those outlined above, to collect amounts owed for services.
Approved by the Board 04/13/ 2017