By Samantha Vercellino Two months had passed and Chicago-area resident Michael could not understand why AT&T was sending him bills for home phone service that he did not have. But when he called to resolve the issue, he said AT&T representatives told him he was responsible for paying half the…...
Keeping up with $1.6 billion in Illinois rate-hike battles
Consumer wallets took a big hit in January, with four utility rate increases–and a new $53 million natural gas rate-hike request. On Jan. 1, ComEd and Ameren were awarded a combined electric rate increase of $436 million (about $232 million for ComEd and $204 for Ameren). CUB filed a “petition for…...
Our Valentine to AT&T: Have a heart, don’t kill our landlines
Thank you to the 1,600+ people who signed CUB’s Valentine to AT&T. Our hearts ache alright–not for AT&T, but for the millions of Illinoisans who depend on traditional home phone service as their most reliable and affordable telecom option. AT&T has stated clearly that it wants to end their phone…...
“Now is the time for Time-of-Use pricing”
Today, CUB and the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) urged ComEd and Ameren to offer optional “Time-of-Use” pricing plans in Illinois. Such plans would reward energy-efficient customers for shifting electricity use away from “peak” hours–when demand is high, prices skyrocket, and power plants produce the most pollution. These plans would not only save individual…...
Comcast at it again?
Just when you think it can’t get any worse, news emerged this week of yet another Comcast customer service fiasco. Mary Bauer opened her bill last month to discover her bill had been addressed to “Super B***h Bauer.” The Addison resident had previously spent nearly a year going back and forth with…...
Update: Net Neutrality
Earlier this week, we talked about Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Tom Wheeler’s announcement of plans to introduce strong protections in his upcoming proposal for rules on net neutrality. Now, we have some more details on the plan, which promises to save the free and open Internet. The FCC released a statement this week…...
