The Proposed Interim Guidelines: Much of the time frame for switching suppliers is dedicated to the 10-day period during which the EDC holds the enrollment request in order to give the customer an opportunity to respond to the confirmation letter. We proposed to eliminate the 10-day waiting period. A consequence of eliminating the 10-day waiting period is the elimination of the confirmation letter that the EDC sends to the customer that initiates the waiting period. Because the customer needs to be notified when his or her account will be transferred to the selected EGS, we proposed that the EDC send a customer account transfer letter to the customer. The letter would alert the customer to the change in EGS, would provide pertinent information about the EGS and direct the customer to contact the EGS with questions and concerns. With the proposed elimination of the confirmation letter, the Commission believed it was important to include other provisions in the Interim Guidelines that are consistent with Commission regulations that provide consumer protection. These included proposed Interim Guidelines G (relating to customer receipt of a written disclosure statement); Interim Guideline I (relating to a customer’s authorization to transfer his or her account); Interim Guideline L (relating to the Notice of Account Transfer); and, Interim Guideline O (relating to customer disputes; slamming). at 17-19, 20, 22. See Tentative Order We also included provisions in the proposed guidelines to encourage EGSs to implement measures to ensure that completed enrollment transactions are sent to an EDC or Default Service Provider (DSP) before the window closes before the customer’s next read date. Specifically, we proposed that the EDCs or DSPs establish a switching deadline, which is the date by which an EGS must submit a customer account transfer notice so that the customer’s account can be transferred to the EGS at the next meter read date. Interim Guideline F (relating to EGS notification for customer account transfer See notice), at 16. We also proposed placing the responsibility on the EGS Tentative Order to obtain information about the customer’s meter read date and the switching deadline.
The Proposed Interim Guidelines: Much of the time frame for switching suppliers is dedicated to the 10-day period during which the EDC holds the enrollment request in order to give the customer an opportunity to respond to the confirmation letter. We proposed to eliminate the 10-day waiting period. A consequence of eliminating the 10-day waiting period is the elimination of the confirmation letter that the EDC sends to the customer that initiates the waiting period. Because the customer needs to be notified when his or her account will be transferred to the selected EGS, we proposed that the EDC send a customer account transfer letter to the customer. The letter would alert the customer to the change in EGS, would provide pertinent information about the EGS and direct the customer to contact the EGS with questions and concerns. With the proposed elimination of the confirmation letter, the Commission believed it was important to include other provisions in the Interim Guidelines that are consistent with Commission regulations that provide consumer protection. These included proposed Interim Guidelines G (relating to customer receipt of a written disclosure statement); Interim Guideline I (relating to a customer’s authorization to transfer his or her account); Interim Guideline L (relating to the Notice of Account Transfer); and, Interim Guideline O (relating to customer disputes; slamming). See Tentative Order at 17-19, 20, 22. We also included provisions in the proposed guidelines to encourage EGSs to implement measures to ensure that completed enrollment transactions are sent to an EDC or Default Service Provider (DSP) before the window closes before the customer’s next read date. Specifically, we proposed that the EDCs or DSPs establish a switching deadline, which is the date by which an EGS must submit a customer account transfer notice so that the customer’s account can be transferred to the EGS at the next meter read date. See Interim Guideline F (relating to EGS notification for customer account transfer notice), Tentative Order at 16. We also proposed placing the responsibility on the EGS to obtain information about the customer’s meter read date and the switching deadline.
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