Energy Contracts do Strange Things Sometimes

Locating a low cost residential electric provider in one of the most highly congested electric grid areas of Texas is not easy. Some residential providers will cram in additional charges onto the electric rate after you have signed a contract and blame it on the high prices of TDSP charges in the congested Houston Texas area. Since TDSP charges must be past through and their is only one monopoly who passes these through it makes it a perfect scape goat for an electric company to say, “Hey it was the TDSP charges!” The problem is that electric companies can fix the TDSP charges into their total rate. Some do not do this practice and do not readily disclose this practice either which makes comparison shopping for residential electricity a little tricky sometimes. Little do those consumers know that those hidden charges were located in fine legal jargon on a single page of a lengthy terms of service electric contract. Some electric companies in Texas will pass through the utility TDSP charges and then add a markup on top of those charges to make their retail electric rate look better. An energy company that will remain nameless calls these additional charges in their rate, “a commodity rate”. This terminology allows them to legally raise and lower a perceived fixed electric rate at their discretion. This type of rate protects the electric company but not the consumer if the energy market were to go up substantially. The standard mode of operation for electric companies in Texas is to offer a standard fixed electric rate and then bundle the TDSP charges into the rate. This shows an all in energy price that can be compared with multiple other electric companies. If an electric company is offering a fixed rate with a changing commodity charge they should be advertising that rate as a “variable rate”.

Help Make Sense of the Confusion Among the Dishonest Electric Companies

Residential electric rates normally are shown as an all in energy rate when viewing these on state run websites like powertochoose or the Public Utility Commission of Texas website. Ethical play by the rules electric companies will bundle their residential rate so you know exactly what you are locking into when purchasing your residential electricity. A few providers have been known to not disclose the TDSP charges up front but instead quote an “energy only” rate. A few calls to some of these electric providers will prove that they are not in a hurry to disclose these TDSP charges when signing up for their electric rate on the phone either. Many times I have called some of these providers to see if they would quote me an all in rate or atleast eventually tell me during the course of the sales conversation that there will also be TDSP charges that will be passed through but I never hear this needed bit of information to fuly understand the total rate I am agreeing to.

Competitive, Straightforward Electric Company

An electric company right now that is offering a competitive Houston electric rate with the TDSP charges and Energy only charges bundled together is with a company by the name of Affordable Energy. They have a competitve 12, 24, and 36 month fixed rate in the Houston area. You can lock in to a fixed rate and know that the electric rate will remain the same the entire term of the energy contract. Affordable Energy does not cram additional charges into the electric rate after you were made to believe different. This energy provider is a solid reputable electric company in Houston that maintains straightforward pricing and accurate billing.

You can sign up for the Affordable Energy fixed rate prices in Houston at the following site:

Affordable Energy - Sign up Now