CUB is sad to report that L. Kristofer Thomsen, a longtime member of the CUB Board of Directors and its current treasurer, has passed away. Kris, a retired English teacher at Thornridge High School in Dolton, had been dealing with health issues in recent years. He died on Friday at the…...
Rip-off Alert: Paying more than triple for power?
This summer CUB found consumers in different parts of Illinois paying an electricity supply rate with Clearview Energy that was more than triple what they would have paid with their utilities. At a utility-bill clinic in Lansing in June, CUB found that Dan was paying Clearview 22.99 cents per kilowatt-hour…...
CUB: ComEd, Ameren customers have lost $1.8B to alternative power suppliers since 2015; consumer group issues statewide warning against bad deals
Commonwealth Edison and Ameren Illinois customers who have chosen alternative electricity suppliers have lost a combined total of about $297 million over the last year and $1.8 billion since 2015, CUB says, citing annual state reports on electricity competition. While ComEd and Ameren deliver electricity to their customers over the…...
CUB Q&A on the Realgy Settlement
Former customers of alternative electric and gas supplier Realgy, LLC, have called CUB with questions about a check they were mailed. An accompanying message explains that the check is related to a settlement the staff of the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) and CUB reached with the supplier. The check is…...
CUB analysis: Read alternative supplier offers carefully (and watch for red flags)
Have you received an envelope in the mail that at first glance looks like it could be an urgent message from your utility company? Be careful: It could be another alternative supplier offer. Such a mailing can be common in Illinois and other states with competitive electricity choice. But here’s…...
CUB speaks out: Beware of bad deals from energy suppliers
Many consumers wonder if they should switch to an alternative supplier to cut down on their electric or gas bills. But beware, these enticing offers are many times not as good as they seem. In fact, Illinois consumers have lost $1.6 billion to alternative electric suppliers since 2015. CUB Executive…...
As ComEd and Ameren charge new winter rates, CUB issues statewide warning on alternative supplier rip-offs
As of October, ComEd and Ameren Illinois are charging new electricity supply rates, and customers should know what they are to avoid bad deals peddled by alternative electricity suppliers, the Citizens Utility Board (CUB) said Thursday in a statewide consumer warning. The non-summer prices, through May 2024, are listed on…...
ICC stats: IL consumers have lost $1.6B with alternative suppliers since 2015, but Ameren customers saved last year
Illinois consumers have lost about $1.6 billion total to alternative suppliers since 2015–but Ameren customers, for a change, saw some savings last year, according to a review of annual reports from the Illinois Commerce Commission’s Office of Retail Market Development (ORMD). Under Illinois law, ComEd, Ameren and MidAmerican customers are…...
What’s the difference between ARES plans and Community Solar?
By Marina Minic, CUB Solar Programs Administrator As we hold hundreds of events across the state, consumers sometimes ask us: What’s the difference between an alternative supplier offer and a relatively new option called Community Solar? The offers can sound deceptively similar, but there are big differences–and you should know…...
