Ameren Illinois Utilities Reach Out to Customers With Special Payment Plans, Assistance Programs
March 16 2009 - 10:54AM
PR Newswire (US)
March 31 Deadline for 10% Down Payment Offer PEORIA, Ill., March 16
/PRNewswire/ -- The Ameren Illinois Utilities are reaching out to
residential customers with past due account balances to help them
take advantage of Ameren Illinois Utility payment plans as well as
the Illinois utility rate relief programs. "The economic downturn
has placed an additional burden on many of our customers," said
Stan Ogden, vice president for Customer Service and Public
Relations for the Ameren Illinois Utilities. "We want to make
certain our customers know about the options that can provide them
with the financial help they need in paying their electric and
natural gas bills. "To make certain our customers with past due
balances know about these assistance programs, we are reaching out
to them by phone and by mail. We are offering to assist local
community action agencies by sending customer service
representatives to their offices to support this customer outreach
initiative," Ogden said. Ameren Illinois Utilities customers may
establish a payment plan now through March 31 by paying just 10
percent of the past due balance, with the remainder to be paid
along with current bills in monthly installments. Beginning April
1, customers will be required to pay 25 percent of the past due
balance before establishing a payment plan. To establish a payment
plan, customers may call their Ameren Illinois Utility -
AmerenCIPS: 1-888-789-2477; AmerenCILCO: 1- 888-672-5252, and
AmerenIP: 1-800-755-5000 Ameren Illinois Utility customers can
still benefit from two Illinois rate relief programs that are part
of the $1-billion state rate relief package enacted into law in
August 2007. The Bill Payment Assistance Program now provides
energy assistance grants of up to $300 to low-income electric
customers with household incomes of 150 percent to 200 percent of
the energy assistance federal poverty level. These grants are
provided through the local community action agencies that
administer the Low income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP).
The second program is the Hardship Assistance for Residential
Customers. The local community action agencies distribute these
program funds based on the hardship experienced by customers with
household incomes of up to 400 percent of the federal poverty
level. The agencies may award grants of up to $600 per household.
Customers may call 1-800-252-8643 to obtain the name and address of
their local community action agency. Some customers also may be
eligible for assistance through LIHEAP, which is administered by
the local community action agencies. LIHEAP provides energy
services payment assistance to eligible low-income households,
elderly persons and people with disabilities. Grants are based on
the number of people in a household, total income and the type of
energy used. Also, the Ameren Illinois Utilities are partnering
with the Illinois Department of Health & Family Services in the
development of a Percentage-of-Income Payment Program (PIPP) pilot.
The pilot targets Ameren Illinois Utilities low-income electric
space heat customers to determine if paying a percentage of income
will make energy more affordable and develop regular bill-paying
habits. The Dollar More and Warm Neighbors programs may help
eligible Ameren Illinois Utilities residential customers with
utility bills. Customers should call their Ameren Illinois Utility
for information. Ameren Illinois Utilities customers may make
contributions to these programs to help their neighbors. Customers
with past-due balances are encouraged to contact their Ameren
Illinois Utility to establish a bill payment plan. Eligible
customers will be required to make a down payment in order to begin
a payment plan that allows customers to pay past-due amounts over
an extended period of time while paying current bill amounts.
AmerenCILCO and AmerenCIPS customers should call 1-877-263-7363 and
AmerenIP customers should call 1-800-750-7026. Residential
customers who have past due balances and have failed to establish a
payment plan or are not honoring a payment plan agreement will be
subject to service disconnection beginning in April. A service
disconnection will only occur after the Ameren Illinois Utilities
have attempted to contact the customer and a final service
disconnection notice has been issued. "Our goal is to avoid service
disconnections," Ogden said. "We will only disconnect service when
every reasonable effort to establish a payment plan or otherwise
receive payment of past-due balance has failed." A customer with a
certified medical condition or special need who receives a
disconnection notice should immediately contact their Ameren
Illinois Utility. Many customers find they can better manage their
energy bills by enrolling in the Budget Billing plan. This plan
allows eligible residential customers to pay the same amount each
month. By enrolling now, eligible customers can begin leveling out
their monthly payments. The plan allows customers to pay an average
monthly bill amount based on the last 12 months of usage. The
payment level is periodically reviewed and adjusted as necessary.
On the 12th month, the account is reviewed to calculate the
difference between the amount of energy used during the year and
the amount paid under Budget Billing. If the amount paid exceeds
the actual cost of providing the energy, the customer receives a
credit. If the amount billed is less than the actual cost of
providing the energy, the customer is billed for the difference.
Customers may enroll in Budget Billing by visiting Ameren's Web
site (http://www.ameren.com/) or by calling their Ameren Illinois
Utility company (AmerenCIPS: 1-888-789-2477; AmerenCILCO:1-
888-672-5252, and AmerenIP: 1-800-755-5000). Customers may enroll
in the program or drop out at any time. There is no cost to enroll
in Budget Billing. Customers also can learn how to spend less by
using less energy when they visit ActOnEnergy.com. The Ameren
Illinois Utilities have been providing safe, reliable energy
delivery service for more than a century. The Ameren Illinois
Utilities deliver energy to 1.2 million electric and more than
840,000 natural gas customers in about 1,000 communities, while
helping customers spend less by using less energy and communities
grow through economic development initiatives. DATASOURCE: Ameren
Illinois Utilities CONTACT: Victoria Busch, +1-618-346-1286, or
Neal Johnson, +1-309-677-5284, both of Ameren Illinois Utilities
Web Site: http://www.ameren.com/
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