ENMAX Energy [EEC] review: Unethical account closings 19

I really sympathize with most who have complained about our Energy providers and Distributors in Calgary. I had my first issue with Direct Energy once. I paid my bill in May and missed paying in June due to an error I made through my online banking. I am with Enmax for my Hydro Electricity Service and Direct Energy for my Gas. I accidentally paid what I intended to pay Direct Energy for my Gas bill to my Electricity provider Enmax. I did not realize it until they cut off my Gas on July 14th. I called Direct Energy the same day and paid them the amount and reconnection fee and they said my gas would be reconnected today. I let them know that it would have been nice if someone had called. They said they sent a final notice, but I must have missed it somehow. Anyway, they told me to call Atco Gas company. When I called the Atco customer service, they said all is fine, but they could not reconnect my service until 3 days later...too busy I guess. They told me the reconnection fee would be $119 but in the meantime, I would not have any hot water to shower. Even though it was not an emergency as it was summer, I was shocked by the reconnection fee since Direct Energy had already charged me a reconnection fee as well. In do understand it cost them to send a service tech, but if you going to be lete come, it least give me a break. The guys at Atco did not care. I would have appreciated some empathy. To put salt to my would, the Supervisor actually told me that even if they were coming to my area (Townhouse Complex) or if they had a service call right next door to me, they would not reconnect my service. I thought it was so heartless. he did not have to say that. He was just being spitefully because I asked to speak to him. Lucky for me it is summer time, but I feel sorry for those caught by this kind of thing in the winter time. I feel that Direct Energy should have called me to let me know that they were disconnecting my service as I had never had a problem with them before. For that reason, I called Enmax the same day and am taking my business there. The lady I spoke to at Enmax was very nice and professional and gave me all the pros and cons. I am not saying Enmax is perfect, but I have been with them on the Electricity side and they have always been very courteous and professional with to me. I have no problem paying...energy service is a monopoly in Calgary, but I do value good customer service. I am very disappointed with Direct Energy as well as Atco Gas. Atco owns the gas lines, so there is really nothing one can do. They can afford to be rude. Their customer service is terrible. Their Service Tech guys are great though. Never had problems with them. I'm sure they are overworked and underpaid. Hope Atco Gas and Direct Energy will listen to customers concerns and change their customer service policy. Please forgive them, they do not know what they are doing. Peace!

I think it is all very disheartening. We all received huge bills this winter and many are having problems paying them, however, we need to take this to a provincial level. I must say I have never had an issue with ENMAX, they have always been very willing to take the time to go through the bills and usage, in addition, work with me to monitor the usage to track it and how to determine where most was being used. Don't get me wrong I don't have the money either to pay the ridiculously high bills, but ENMAX doesn't determine the rates, only what they charge and there you have options. You can take your business elsewhere, do your research, this type of bickering won't help anything. I have never heard of any utility company cutting off services for lack of paying one bill - would have to see it to believe it, and you can make payment arrangements. Take some responsibility for your living expenses/budgeting, or lack of. If you can't afford the bills perhaps you need to re-access your living arrangements and move to somewhere you can. When you approach people you'd like to sympathize with your situation you may want to consider some respect and you may get some back, just my opinion take it or leave it your choice as is who your utility providers are.

I live in a trailer and just received a bill over $400, now tell me that this seems fair when the last two months wete 300

My water and sewer is hooked up through Enmax and I was wondering what happens during the winter months if your power and gas are on limiter because of disconnection? Would someone please let me know.

All I have to say is if anyone is with Enmax and giving them their hard earned cash, they should think twice. These parasites need a reality check, they treat their customers as if they are un-abiding citizens and hold their services over your head if you miss even one payment. ONE payment? I wonder how many people who tell you they can't reconnect you have missed a payment in their life.

The state humanity is in where tax payed companies still squeeze you for being late is beyond me. For shame, I will spend my money on a privatized company that calls me by first name.

Enmax took my deposit of 424.00 and when I moved they did not deduced the deposit amount instead they kept my deposit and now i am in the creditors. These guys are crooks. They are rude from when I first hooked up to the end. Direct Energy took my deposit and subtracted the amount owing so in the end was 5.00. That is the way you should run a company - take notes Enmax to how Direct Energy runs their business instead of being greedy and taking all the money and more. Please pick another company before you hook up with these guys. Trust me . . .

All I have to say is " best ethical award in Canada for 2013" omg i have to seriously disagree. The City of Calgary needs to aware that this business is the most unprofessional I have dealt with in years! You have foreign executives running it with the highest educations and some of the highest pays in the city, with the worst business sense I have come across. Remember while you folks mentioned above are sitting with no heat on, these executives are sitting in the Enmax box at the stampede grounds having the best of everything handed to them on a silver platter!
I'm personally very disappointed with this company and how the new American CEO Gianna Mains is running it. Folks the only way to change things it to not post things here but to the Ethics Enmax Hotline! Everyone deserves to be heard. Vote for change or don't complain!

Enmax needs to be investigated by the better business bureau of Canada...I am unemployed, I have applied for over 55 jobs in 4 weeks and I cannot even get calls back I am doing everything I can to keep my bills paid, I have 2 young children in the house and Enmax tells me there is nothing they can do for me I have to pay or they will cut me off, I have made arrangments with them in the past and typically I do what I say but there have been cases where the money runs out they don't care. There incrediable and it makes me very said that the tax money I do pay goes to this company and I have no other choice I lie awake at night looking at my alarm clock to see if the power is still on wondering what happens when the little food I do have in the fridge will go bad cause my poswer will be off...really sad what this world has come too my bank is doing what they can to help me get through this hard time by working with me thank god cause I keep needing my pennies to pay Enmax it's heart breaking that a company can be this gutless and this careless...

Enmax and their so-called "customer service" is a joke. The people you talk to to try to resolve desputes refuse to listen to logic or use common sense when evaluating each situation, instead relying on corporate doublespeak and scripted responses. It's like beating you head against the wall trying to get them to see reason. Also, they are a city (read: taxpayer) owned utility company that acts like a publicly traded corporation, meaning they have absolutely seem to have NO ACCOUNTABILITY to anyone. With absolute power comes corruption, and that is what Enmax is: CORRUPT. Just last year the local media broke a story about how millions of dollars of taxpayer dollars were spent by Enmax on parties, travel and entertainment for the CEO... what else can one say except wow, just wow.

@jody Baxmeyer

You forgot to mention that your dog ran away.

The answer to all your problems are spelled out in your letter to Mr. Fedun.

1. "my parents should have taken steps to ensure that the information they were given was checked"
2. "It turned out he purchased accident insurance"
3. "dad never received his pension because he screwed up and sent photocopies without them being certified"
4. "I had to fix dad's van just so I could sell it"

"I don't know what to do."

Perhaps you should do EVERYTHING that your parents didnt. And you can start by blaming them...and not everyone else!
Since you assume that everyone else in this world has been put here to either work for free, or provide you with free services...PLEASE CALL ME...I have some work for you to do around my house. I can only assume that since you expect free services...that you also provide them.

I am disgusted by Enmax for turning the power off at my sisters house she is disabled and on disability and left in the dark . I just wan't to know what kind of heartless people are running this tax payer owned company to do this to a helpless person I think turning someones power off should be illegal and not happening in this day and age this is not the dark ages here and I don't think tax payers should finance any on going projects for Enmax for the life of me I will make sure that does not happen leaving someone in the dark and disabled not being able to go find the washroom make a meal or find the tap for water should be imprisoned for cruelty to a human if we can do it for animals why not humans my point here is if you disabled and on disability that means you cannot work and the province issues a disability check that in it self is not a generous amount and Enmax is also owned by the province that know she is disabled. people in the government need to do their homework this is 2012 stop treating people who are sick like animals grow up you people who ever you are need to find your hearts but remember what go's around comes around.

I should also mention to Kevin Fedun that there is nothing 'alleged' about Enmax and unethical practices.

You see Mr. Fedun, your idiotic company actually left an automated message on the answering machine that your company is going to disconnect electrical service.

So this interesting message will be forwarded off to the right people.

I would like to post exactly what is occurring to us here in Ponoka, Alberta.

First of all I understand that the responsibility of looking after oneself is the primary problem here in my case. That is to say, my parents should have taken steps to ensure that the information they were given was checked.

With that said, the vultures in this province deserve a moment in the spotlight.

Both of my parents have passed away, with my mother passing away in summer of 2010 she left my father behind who was in very very poor shape. Both had been living on assistance for many years.
Dad had purchased life insurance through the Royal Bank of Ponoka, or at least he thought he did.

It turned out he purchased accident insurance.

There was no money to bury mom and with dad not having any income this was bad situation. We buried mom with what we could borrow.

Dad died with the Town of Ponoka refusing to clear a block in the sewage lines at a location where they had replaced a sewer line years ago...that work essentially caused a problem where the old lines from the house didn't match the new lines. Dad died without any dignity at all having to store his ...

Then of course the Royal Bank insisted they did no wrong in providing dad an accident insurance policy that did no good for anyone except for the Royal Bank to take money.

With dad passing the debts are building. We had to borrow money to bury dad. Then I find out that Canada Mortgage and Housing had lent them money to have this house fixed, only to find that the work that was done was not to code and in some cases not done at all...at the time of writing this CMHC has told me that this debt is now on my shoulders. I've demanded to know who the subcontractors were that did this terrible work and as a result I'm not hearing anything from them.

I'm here in the house. I've borrowed thousands of dollars to keep going. I'm trying to fix this house just so it can go on the market and in the process of trying to do that both Enmax and Direct Energy have been threatening to cut off utilities. They've both been informed that my parents have passed away, neither my brother or I live here and we're doing a lot of hard work to try and make this situation work for everyone.

The lawyers here in Ponoka started proceedings for the probate portion of this horrible situation only to tell my brother and myself two months into this work that they wouldn't continue unless we came up with nearly 4000 dollars, leaving both of us to twist in the wind.

I just received a call from Enmax informing me that this account has just been approved for disconnection.

Mr. Fedun either you are a bold faced liar or you don't have a handle on what your employee's are doing, which in that case makes you incompetent...I'd like to ask which one of the above is correct?

I've given up my life in Manitoba to be here to try and fix this situation that has occurred and is mainly due to both my parents not looking after details. The income taxes are behind by years, dad never received his pension because he screwed up and sent photocopies without them being certified...

...and of course the Town of Ponoka Royal Bank who took his money and provided him with a useless insurance policy have all conspired together to make this an impossible situation in which my brother and I are being left with nothing but debt and the very distinct possibility that we are going to lose th family home because we can't afford to stay here and try to fix it up.

I don't know what to do.

But I had thought that I had the winter to make the fixes and do the work I needed to do so that I could fix this whole situation.

Direct Energy representatives have been calling threatening to cut off utilities and now Enmax. The Town of Ponoka has deferred their bills but neither of the above multi-million dollar operations seem to care enough in this situation to do anything but occurred and threaten.

Merry Christmas Kevin. I'll be here alone with no money (thanks to the local car shop who sucked every last dollar I had to fix dad's van just so I could sell it...believe it or not they had to replace two reflector lens covers and a transmission linkage cable to the tune of over 700 dollars just so the van could pass the insurance evaluation for the van to be sold).

I'm surrounded by vultures and con artists and you all better know that I'll remember this.

@ Kevin Fedun Give your head a shake you fricken goof ball... people need hot food too! ENMAX needs to go... you are all parasites.

I would like to take this opportunity to respond to your concern regarding the alleged unethical business practices of ENMAX.
Firstly, ENMAX is not a hydro company. ENMAX is an integrated utility with interests that span the electricity and natural gas supply / value chain. In Calgary, ENMAX owns and operates the electricity distribution system and is the default supplier of electricity through the Regulated Rate Option.
Secondly, ENMAX provides the Regulated Rate Option as directed by the Regulated Rate Option Regulation. The Energy and Admin charges that appear on a customer's invoice are subject to scrutiny by the Alberta Utilities Commission through a public hearing process. The Commission approves the rates customers pay. Likewise for Delivery and Transmission charges. The process is consistent for all Regulated Rate Providers across the province.
The Terms and Conditions for Regulated Rate service outline specifically the expectations and obligations for both parties, which include payment of invoices. These Terms and Conditions are also approved by the Alberta Utilities Commission. If invoices are not paid on time, late payment charges may apply. That said, ENMAX can and will work with customers to structure appropriate payment arrangements.
Lastly, it should be noted that due to the extreme cold temperatures encountered in Alberta, the industry adopted a "winter moratorium" on cut-offs for electricity and natural gas. A load limiting device is used in replacement of a full electricity cut betweeen October and April. This limits the amount of consumption that can be used but allows for the basic light and heat needs of homeowners.

Kevin Fedun, VP of Customer Care, ENMAX Encompass Inc.