Is Gexa Energy Price Gouging?

Posted on April 1, 2009
Filed Under Economy | 1 Comment

Decide for yourself after reading this. It started when I opened the monthly electric bill and found it to be over $600. This was about twice the largest bill ever, so it got my attention. Upon investigation I noticed usage was up – no surprise as it had been cold in December, but the real culprit was the rate which had risen to over 20 cents per kWh.

Electric Utilities Looking back over the years bills, I saw the rate had been slowly climbing higher from a starting point of under 10 cents per kWh. One or two cents a month without me really noticing. I had noticed bills that seemed a bit higher, but never enough to make me dig out the old statements and figure out what was happening.

So okay, my fault for not paying attention. Then I call Gexa Energy customer service to find out what’s going on, and the agent says I’m on a variable rate plan. I say I don’t really care, and that all I’ve ever been interested in is finding the cheapest possible rate – I mean come on, it’s a commodity – not like electricity has flavors or something.

Agent replies sure, he can give me an 11 cent rate if I agree to 6 months of service. Hmmmm, hard choice, 20 cents or 11 cents, since the 6 months contract is basically irrelevant to get that savings – besides which it’s breakable if I move anyway. (I’m actually wondering why I should have to call to request this – guess they aren’t really looking out for me huh?)

So I say sure, sign me up. Agent says okay but it won’t show right away on statement, may be the next months. Fine, I figure it’ll be retro whenever it catches up, so no big deal.

Now 30 days later, January bill, and the rate is still unchanged. I call up and agent says they said it won’t be there until following months bill. Now I’m suspicious, and ask the $64 question – will that bill be adjusted to reflect the change to my rate plan from a month ago? Answer was not just no, but that I would have to pay the current month at that higher rate also.

It seems Gexa Energy is incapable of making a rate change in less than 60 days. Gee, I wonder how they set up a new customer……..

So yes, I’m steamed, and start the escalation process with the agent to see if I can get far enough up the food chain in the Gexa call center to actually find someone who can make a thoughtful decision rather than just working from a script. I got about 4 levels up – well maybe – they probably just passed me off as a lateral handoff on a couple of those.

Anyway, got to some guy who said they had to review the transcript and see if I was properly informed how long it would take to change rate. I said I didn’t care, that wasn’t the point. Regardless of what doubletalk the agent used, I’d still assumed that my actual billing rate would be changed pretty quick, even if it took a while to be reflected in the billing.

So I get no further with this guy and have to wait a couple days for the call back. He did call back and proceeded to tell me I was in fact properly informed and have no recourse. I tried to explain that he was missing the point, but he was pretty much clueless, so I told him he’d done everything according to the book to cover the collective Gexa corporate backside. He didn’t really seem to grasp that point either, at which point I said goodbye.

So here’s the bottom line. I’m not irritated with anyone but myself for not noticing my electric rate going up. I am very irritated with Gexa for waiting 2 months to reduce it to the new rate they agreed to. What they effectively did, was force me to pay twice as much for electricity as I should have.

One would think a corporation like Gexa Energy, that according to their advertising, is interested in the welfare of their customers, would not do something so underhanded – especially in the current economic environment where folks are struggling to make ends meet. Yet it would appear they aren’t really all that caring after all.

If you have service with Gexa – watch out for yourself. There is no reason for a 2x rate variance – just makes no sense. I could see a penny or two for no service contract, but beyond that seems absurd. And then for that extra two months of waiting, Gexa forced me to pay over $500 extra for electricity – just because they wouldn’t change their records? Just not right!

Signs Of The Times

Posted on March 14, 2009
Filed Under Economy | Leave a Comment

No one can possibly be unaware we’re in a tough economic time, either through job loss, financial loss, or just from the news. What I find interesting are the more subtle indicators and things that don’t make the news.

Like my dentist office – where normally, appointments are stacked up through the day and missing one means waiting forever to get back in. But the other day I had a different experience going in for a regular visit – cleaning and a checkup.

Normally a technician does the cleaning, while the man himself pops in afterward to do the five minute check-up, then rushes on to the next person – fitting it all in while doing crowns, fillings, root canals, and so on. However much to my surprise my dentist did all the work himself. When I asked why, he said it made no sense to have a temp come in.

What he didn’t say, but I observed, was he just wasn’t all that busy. Obviously he’s had to cut back on permanent help. Also noted that the area wasn’t as sparkly as usual which told me there was also a cut-back on cleaning help – nothing serious, but noticeable.

Another subtle change is traffic. In speaking with an associate recently, she observed how much her commute home had shortened. More than 10 minutes shorter, plus where there used to be a consistent bottleneck of bumper to bumper traffic, she doesn’t even have to hit the brakes these days.

And where there once was lots of waiting in line to be seated at restaurants, that’s mostly gone –even on Friday and Saturday nights. Plus the drive-through at Starbucks no longer goes around the block – I can actually get a coffee reasonably fast.

So look around – there are some bright spots. However, one that is not so bright, is that while there are a lot more unemployed folks these days, there are also more working from home, either remotely or on their own business. That has translated into stores being more crowded during the traditionally quieter times of day like mid-morning and afternoon when those of us trying to avoid busy times like to go. Oh well, can’t have everything.

Government Shocks Financial Institutions & Offers Hope To Defaulters With Large Mortgages

Posted on December 9, 2008
Filed Under Economy | Leave a Comment

At the State Opening of parliament this week, the Prime Minister offered a very condensed Queen’s Speech. Indeed it contained only 14 bills. That’s the smallest number of proposed bills for many years. He said that it was his aim and desire to concentrate almost the entirity of the coming session of parliament on the current crisis, and the measures to lessen and in time undo it.

The source of the surprise for the banks was the Prime minister’s announcement that the government will bring in a new emergency state guarantee which is primarily planned to aid those who until recently enjoyed upper-middle & upper income levels. These are the people to whom the Prime Minister must return the trust so they once again begin to buy houses.

Until now this group has not been provided for even in the lately extended state benefits scheme. Under this scheme, anyone receiving state benefits such as redundancy benefit and so on, can also have their mortgage interest paid for up to 2 years. This help is subject to a maximum of a £200,000 loan. The idea behind this is to remove the fear factor.

The new plan declared in the Queen’s speech will permit anbody with a mortgage of up to £400,000, who now discovers themselves without a job or on critically reduced income, to take a “mortgage holiday” of up to 2 years, or simply to reschedule their mortgage with temporary lower payments, whilst they sort out their finances. It’s supposed that it’s very important to give belief back to this group so they begin to buy homes again, and so put money back into the struggling economy.

The interest on the loan will still be increasing at the standard rate, and will be added to the already outstanding loan when the borrower’s financial state of affairs gets better to the point where he can commence repayments. This additional responsibility will be assured by the government, in what is actually a state sponsored mortgage guarantee scheme which is underwritten by the treasury.

According to the treasury’s own statistics, it’s understood that if everyone covered by the proposal took advantage of it, and then entirely defaulted on the rolled over debt; the cost to the treasury, and so in due course, the tax payers, will be in the region of £1 billion. Nonetheless, officials at the treasury reckon that the probable real cost will be in the area of £100 million.

It’s understood that the government was encouraged into taking this action partially by the estimate from the council of mortgage lenders which predicts Property repossessions will soar to 75,000 Houses next year. That’s considerably up on the 45,000 anticipated by the conclusion of the present year. It’s also not quite as many as Home Owners suffered in 1991 which was the end of the last depression. The Prime Minister is aware that he must not only tackle this crisis, but be seen to overcome it, and the confirmation of that will be when We buy houses with confidence once again.

Looking For A Job In London

Posted on November 30, 2008
Filed Under Economy | Leave a Comment

The global economy has sunk in a very alarming state over the past year or so. Many businesses of different scales, banks and other financial institutions have already shut down and filed bankruptcy as a consequence of our present economic situation.

New graduates and the college or university student population in general are anxious about what the future will be for them. With the economic turmoil, it would be easy to conclude that landing a job in a company that will pay decently would be far fetched. That is true in a lot of cities all over the world. However, London is a city where the pressure is not felt as much as it is in other major cities. There are plenty of graduate jobs in London in all sectors that are waiting for fresh graduates to apply for and they also offer a competitive salary.

Bankruptcy Lawyers

Posted on October 17, 2008
Filed Under Economy | Leave a Comment

The economy is very unstable at the moment. People are feeling the effects of the markets, big businesses and the banks faltering. Job loss is high. In Michigan, unemployment continues to rank above the national average. In August 2007, unemployment stood at 7% in Michigan. Most recently, 9% of the Michigan working class was unemployed. Without jobs, people are losing their insurance at an alarming rate. Are we in or headed into a recession? How long will it take to bounce back? In the meantime, millions of us are struggling to pay our bills. Many of us will see no other means to get through this national financial emergency without filing bankruptcy.

In the past, the word bankruptcy was taboo. People were embarrassed to admit filing bankruptcy. They felt like a failure or disappointment.

Times have changed and filing for bankruptcy has become much more accepted. Millions of Americans are choosing to file Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 Personal Bankruptcy. People now realize it is a way out from under debt and a way to start fresh and get a new chance at financial stability.

Filing bankruptcy is a complicated process. There are numerous state and federal laws, codes and procedures that must be adhered to. While it is certainly possible to go it alone, most people will choose to hire personal bankruptcy attorneys. It may sound counterintuitive to spend money at this critical time in your financial life, but with everything involved in bankruptcy filing, you will be happy to have someone walk you through the ins and outs of this process and help set you on your way to financial repair.

Every state has a multitude of bankruptcy attorneys to choose from. Getting back to the example of Michigan, you can search the web or phone book to find a MI Bankruptcy Attorney. Realize that your lawyer is on your side and will work with you every step of the way. He will explain the pre-bankruptcy counseling that is required to be completed before the whole process begins. You will learn what papers and financial records need to be collected. He will describe the “341 Meeting” that you will attend with him and your creditors. He will explain the court procedures, estimated length of time this all should take and then finally, how to get back on your feet once your bankruptcy has been discharged by the court.

We all hope that the national and global economies will recover as rapidly as possible. More importantly, we want everyday people to get back on their feet quickly. Knowing that there is an escape and chance to start anew after filing bankruptcy should help many Americans get a new lease on life when it comes to their financial future.

Using Cash Back Credit Cards For Your Business

Posted on September 24, 2008
Filed Under Economy | Leave a Comment

There are many different types of credit cards available out there and choosing which can benefit you and your business the most may be quite confusing.

Using Cash Back Credit Cards For Your Business
However, if you are one of those people who do not have problems in paying monthly credit dues and want to save your company a lot of money, then a cash back credit card just might be perfect for you. Through cash back cards, you are able to enjoy the usual functions of a regular credit card with an added bonus, and that is of course, by receive cash back rewards on the purchases you have made with your account.

How Do Cash Back Cards Work?

A cash back credit card basically gives you bonus points every time you use it to purchase goods. They would start off by offering you a flat percentage rate refund in the form of statement credits, a check, gift cards or deposits into your bank account on the agreed timely basis of receiving your bonus. Percentage rates may vary with the provisions of your lender.

The methods for how cash is given back to you as reward often differ with your credit card’s terms and conditions, and so it is important to choose which type of rewarding method would more probably be of help to your business. For example, if you want cash to come back sooner, then a statement credit method of rewarding will be best for you as this is done monthly.

Using Cash Back Credit Cards For Your Business
However, statement credits may seem as if they are just a mere reduction of your outstanding balance instead of an actual cash bonus. Checks on the other hand are usually only rewarded per year, but these can mount up as a huge cash incentive for your business.

Another method of cash back can also be through discount cards that can be of big help if you run a type of company that does a lot of purchasing for your undertakings. No matter what type of cash back method you choose, such a credit card can really help your business a lot.

How Do Cash Back Rewards Really Help?

But how does a cash back system really help a company by merely giving rewards? Let us analyze how much a company may spend in a year purchasing supplies like printing materials, boxes and even calling cards to boost operations. The company basically purchases all of these things for a whole lot of money during the year. And when you think about it, the rate of buying these supplies won’t stop anytime soon as long as the company stays afloat.

Build Up Your Business Credit
After all, these are basic goods that a business needs in order to continue production and generate income. So we would see through this scenario then that if a company makes use of a cash back credit card for its purchases and gets rebated for that, it is as if the company is being rewarded for merely going about its normal transactions.

An additional profit is generated to the company for no real cost at all since purchased goods with or without cash back would have been purchased anyway. And obviously, additional amount of money to a company’s account can always be very useful for any type of business.

Are We Nearing the End of the Subprime Follies?

Posted on March 26, 2008
Filed Under Economy, Mortgage Smarts | Leave a Comment

About a year ago, I started writing about what I saw to be looming problems in the mortgage industry. Check out my related posts on The Real Problem With Subprime Loans and this mortgage come-on in Mortgage Madness – Homebuyers Beware.

Within a few short months, things really started downhill and had tanked pretty well by the end of 2007. You can read more at imploded mortgage lenders where they track all the lenders that have folded since late 2006. So far, were at 246 – and counting.

Are we at the bottom? Probably not, but getting close. There’s certainly more trouble on the horizon. We just won’t know for sure until after it happens because all one can do is guess how many folks will actually default.

Okay, that’s not entirely true. We can probably assume most all of the subprime adjustable rate mortgages waiting to reset to higher rates, will end up in default because as the feeding frenzy was reaching it’s peak, the business being written made less and less fiscal sense.

According to this recent article, we should see ARM resets peak during the next couple months.

Nationwide, 1.5 million subprime adjustable-rate mortgages will reset to higher interest rates this year – with May and June being peak months, said Rick Sharga, a spokesman for Realty Trac, an online marketer of foreclosure properties.

Many of those borrowers are vulnerable to foreclosure either because their monthly payments will become unaffordable when the rate changes, or they already are having trouble making their payments.

Foreclosure filings typically are issued after a borrower has been in default for 90 days. Those borrowers then usually lose their home within three to four months if they can’t work out a deal with the lender or find a way to pay what they owe. Translation: Those whose loans reset in May and June could be in the foreclosure process by September and lose their home by the end of the year or early in 2009, Sharga said.

Not sure I entirely agree with this being the peak. It may be, but based on the most common reset periods of 2 and 3 years, I would give it until Spring of 2009 before saying we’re past the worst. It certainly won’t be over, but having seen the worst, the remainder could be more accurately estimated.

Why is this important? Because this isn’t just about people losing their homes…. continue reading….

MDI’s Air Powered Car – The Future is Here!

Posted on February 29, 2008
Filed Under Economy, Technology | Leave a Comment

This car runs on nothing but air, reaches speeds of nearly 70 mph, and runs for 125 miles before needing a recharge that takes a whole 3 minutes. Yes the car is for real, and expected to be available in showrooms as soon as August 2008.

The man behind the Air Car is Guy Negre, who was a Formula One racing engineer in a previous life, but for the last 15 years he’s been at MDI in Nice, France perfecting cars that use compressed air instead of internal combustion to move the engines pistons.

The air is compressed to 4350 psi and stored in tanks under the car. The high pressure (roughly 150 times the pressure in your tires), was a concern, but by making the tanks of carbon-fiber instead of steel, they’re lightweight, stronger, and will just split versus exploding in a crash.

At gas stations equipped with custom high-pressure air filling units, it would take only a few minutes to recharge the tank – about the same or less time than a gas fill-up. The cost for the 340 liters of compressed air would be about $2.00.

Drivers could also just plug in the cars on-board compressor at night and recharge the tanks in 4 hours.

By adding an engine that powers the compressor for recharging on the go, a hybrid model has been created that could take you from Los Angeles to New York on a single tank of gas.

Is anyone else thinking “where can I get one now?”

It’s not always so, but in this case, the immensely practical comes with a reasonable price tag. The Air Car models will range in price from $7,500 to $25,000.

MDI Air Car An agreement has been made with Tata Motors, India’s largest automaker, to begin producing the world’s first commercial versions of an air-powered vehicle. The CityCAT, at $12,700, will be one of the first of approximately 6000 of these zero-emissions Air Cars scheduled to hit Indian streets in the summer of 2008.

In addition, MDI has made deals to bring its design to 12 more countries, including Germany, Israel and South Africa.

Will we ever see these in the United States? I’d like to think so – in fact yesterday would be good continue reading….

Tata Motors Nano – World’s Cheapest Car!

Posted on January 10, 2008
Filed Under Economy, Technology | Leave a Comment

Would you drive one?

Just unveiled at the Delhi Auto Expo by the Indian car manufacturer Tata Motors Ltd is the “Nano” – the world’s cheapest car.

Touted as the means of bringing car ownership to millions, it is aimed at the country’s 65 million scooter riders who are currently unable to afford a car.

According to reports, the four-seater Nano will have a dealer price of 100,000 rupees ($2,500), and will go on sale later this year. This is less than half the cost of India’s cheapest car, the Maruti 800.

Tata Nano Car The car has rear-wheel drive, an all-aluminum body, and a rear-mounted 660cc engine with fuel injection, that delivers 33 bhp. It will get 60 miles per gallon, has a top speed of 75mph, and takes 21 seconds to get from 0 to 60mph.

It has a roomy passenger compartment with generous legroom, and has room for one suitcase in the front luggage compartment.

During the unveiling, Chairman Ratan Tata said “let me assure you and our critics the car we have designed will meet all safety norms and all foreign environmental criteria”.

But here are some more specifics before you decide… continue reading….

How Airport TSA Rules Affect Brand Loyalty

Posted on November 18, 2007
Filed Under Economy, Travel | Leave a Comment

For those who may not have attempted airline travel recently, this has to do with the ever-changing rules foisted on travelers by the Transportation Safety Administration (TSA). Specifically the requirements regarding personal care items that may not be included in carry-on luggage.

As of this writing you can’t bring aboard any liquids, gels or aerosols in containers larger than 3 oz. Furthermore, all these type items must be inside a single 1 qt. Ziploc bag. They cleverly call this the 3-1-1 rule.

airpost security Now as a frequent traveler, I learned years ago to never check luggage, so along with millions of others, I’m affected by these security rules. That means having to find replacements for most toiletries. Some items you can pour into smaller containers, but that doesn’t really work so good for things like toothpaste, deodorant, or shaving foam.

So after perusing the travel-sized products section in the local stores, I found some that were acceptable substitutes, even though not my brand in all cases.

One of the really annoying things, (besides having to jack with doing this in the first place), is that the small sizes have to be replaced often, and the relative cost is ridiculous compared to larger economy sizes. continue reading….

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