Holly Sharp
19 E Patterson St
Lansford PA 18232
(570)750-3310
PPL Electric Utilities
827 Hausman Rd
Allentown PA 18104-9392
Account #97930-42082
PUC BCS Case #3994368
Dear Sir or Madam,
Thank you for the follow up letter concerning my June 11, 2024 phone call which was stated as regarding my account balance. The actual reason of my call was my power was shut off.
I had originally called on Thursday June 6, 2024 concerning the shut off notice I received for June 10th. The automated voice while on hold encourages customers to try the website to resolve problems online so initially i tried to find a solution there.
The only option was to pay my bill in full to avoid shut off. I scrolled down the page and noticed a program called CARES and a brief description I remember reading was it was designed for people experiencing a temporary hardship to avoid shut off. I thought it could help me because I have been out of work since October 2021. My health has declined which makes me unable to do anything due to severe weakness and fatigue.
At first I was collecting unemployment until I figured out what was wrong and planned on returning to work. My account was hijacked by internet hackers and my claim was taken while i had to wait a year to receive anything back. I applied for disability and was denied initially due to lack of medical documentation. I had insurance while I was working but now on the state insurance any specialty doctor left me with a 6 month wait. And I saw many doctors.
I have an autoimmune disorder that is affecting my liver and I had my disability hearing on April 30. I still haven’t received a decision and I read even after a decision it can take a month or two before the first payment. I have used every dime in my savings, my credit is maxed and the stress everyday is unbelievable.
So when i called on the 6th, the reason for the call was to ask for time. I mentioned the Cares program I read about but I was told since I was enrolled in OnTrak I wasn’t eligible for any other program. The man i spoke to seemed like he was having a bad day. I don’t believe I was being difficult, I worked customer service for years for Amazon and I’m aware how stressful it can be. People don’t usually call customer service to tell you what a great job the company is doing. But at one point I asked him if he was mad at me because his tone seemed undeserving of what I was calling about.
He said i was provided with the terms of the program and proceeded to explain since I used the credit provided now my monthly payment has changed. I don’t have a copy of the terms and I checked my email and I don’t see them. But I explained my payments went from 20 dollars to 388 and i can’t pay any payment close to that. While he was explaining it again at one point he said since I don’t agree to the terms I automatically get a 10 day extension on the shut off. So while wrapping up the phone call I said “wait, you said I have an extra 10 days, right?” He confirmed and I knew I had a doctor appointment coming up and if I hadn’t heard anything from disability then I would ask for a medical certificate. (I was issued one the previous month)
I believe a big reason I used the credit early is because my furnace was broken this past winter. I tried to fix it myself but had no luck so the only heat I had was from electric space heaters. The Carbon County Action Committee did eventually replace my furnace which was really nice and I couldn’t believe what great people they were. But I’m sure my electric usage was above normal considering it was my only source of heat all winter.
On Tuesday June 11, 2024, I was washing my hair in the shower when the power went off. I immediately had a sick feeling but thought this has to be a mistake. I grabbed a towel and confirmed it wasn’t the whole block that shut down and called. (this is the reason for my June 11th call)
Again I didn’t call with an attitude and after explaining the situation, the customer service agent I spoke with put me on hold to review my June 6th call. It was a fairly long wait but I was optimistic considering I knew i was told I had extra time and figured my power would be restored immediately when they realized there was a mistake.
When she returned she told me a supervisor joined her for the review and it was determined that the order for the shut off was probably already sent out at the time when I called on the 6th. This is when i began to get frustrated because i explained I called last Thursday and today was Tuesday it seemed unlikely to me that is what happened. She was very polite and mentioned the weekend could have been part of that time frame but i still didn’t find that plausible.
It was 3:30 pm when my power was shut off and now it was almost 4:30 and this is when i realized i had no time to come up with 1500 dollars. Which that amount wasn’t possible at any time so the lady told me about operation help. The person at that program told me i needed to gather 3 months of paystubs and show up at the Hazleton office. (4:45) I explained I have 0 income and no car, Hazleton is at least 20 miles away. I basically got “oh well.” I quickly called my doctor and he did fax the form needed and I called back to PPL and the office was closed.
Now this whole time I’ve been sick I have come to the sad realization that nobody cares. Its such a crushing dehumanizing feeling when you don’t deserve to have the basic needs. And I have always had good experiences with PPL. My local water authority shuts my water off every quarter. Won’t take payments or wait one day past the due date. Every time I call and ask to not shut it off I can hear the smile on their face when they reply no. But PPL usually always has a payment plan or some kind of option. So I was shocked that day and I couldn’t believe I had to sit there in the dark, I didn’t have my phone charged or batteries for a flashlight. I’m tearing up right now just reliving that feeling so excuse my long letter but I feel it’s necessary.
As of right now if I don’t get disability I plan on selling my house, paying all my bills and finding a spot with the homeless. It’s so weird to think when I saw homeless people in the past i instantly assumed they were on drugs or made really bad decisions in life so they probably deserved to be there. I raised two kids as a single mother, i didn’t get child support or government assistance. I worked at least two jobs and tried my best. Now at 57, approaching retirement my thoughts go to where the best spot will be to live outside, not the places i want to travel to in my golden years. I look at the homeless a lot differently now. How many of them just lost a job or got sick? Nobody cares.
I did review the on track billing and payments you provided and I guess it seems correct but I don't really see how it was helpful or how it could've got my bill eventually current. But like I said earlier I don’t believe I have a copy of the terms I agreed to. It seems like February 2023 has 34 billing days and February 2024 has 35 billing days. February is the coldest month but i’m not sure if that plays a factor.
There’s 2 arrearage credits in June 2023 but none in November or December 2023. It was down to 500 at the beginning of this year and now the balance is almost 3000? I’m hoping to come to some sort of plan but I think a jump in payment was extremely drastic. I’m not sure if I applied as a one or two person household because my son is sometimes here but he’s in active addiction and it’s hard to trust him.
So I hope this letter explains the situation, I believe i asked to speak to a supervisor that day so maybe thats why this letter was generated but maybe you can see why I was frustrated. I felt like I was misled and I believed my power was going to remain on. Either way thank you.
Holly Sharp
Cc: PUC
This is a result of a search for the terms of my on track agreement
This resulted from my June 11th call but there was nothing sent for the June 6th call