BPL switches billing dates to help customers

Bahamas Power and Light headquarters.

As of Wednesday, August 12, 2020

By KHRISNA RUSSELL

Tribune Chief Reporter

krussell@tribunemedia.net

BPL has modified its billing dates to allow customers to receive bills by the 20th of each month.

The company hopes the switch will make it easier for consumers to budget on when to pay their power bill.

“This is significant because past practice saw the last round of customer bills sent out on the 29th of each month,” the power provider said in a statement.

“This meant that many customers got their BPL bill after payday, which meant that those customers always found themselves outside of the 21-day payment period.

“Our new billing cycle ensures this is a thing of the past, and prepares the way for BPL to reintroduce budget billing.”

BPL said budget billing is their method of averaging the bills a customer pays over a fixed period of time.

“Bahamians are used to spikes in their bills in the summer and dips in the winter: budget billing will take the total amount to be paid to BPL over a 12-month period and average that cost so the customer is paying the same amount each month.

“Budget billing with BPL will provide predictable bills to our customers. We’re taking the guesswork out of the monthly bill payment,” the company said.

On July 30 The Tribune reported that more than 1,300 customers had their supply shut off during the utility company’s latest round of disconnections.

O 12,466 New Providence and Family Island customers in arrears, 1,361 were disconnected, while 646 were reconnected.

There were also some account holders that agreed to payment plans.

As of July 31, 1,048 plans were signed by customers in New Providence and 263 in the Family Islands.

Prior to announcing that it would commence disconnections, there were 11,399 customers in arrears by more than $500 for more than 90 days as of April 1.

Additionally 1,488 customers were in arrears by more than $500 for more than 90 days since April 1.

Customers on the COVID-19 BPL deferral plan were 559.

trueBahamian 4 years, 4 months ago

Ummm... question, will we have power throughout the summer? And why did they cut power off a few days after the storm.

It seems that the more we (the people) spend, the less we receive. We need transparency on what is going on ar BPL. I don't understand how we have a management company but we receive the same terrible result as before or even worse.

B_I_D___ 4 years, 4 months ago

So here is the trick!! They know with the new fuel deal that the average electrical bill will drop drastically...so what they put in place is taking your average 'annual bill', while the fuel prices were high and will start charging you that annual/monthly average for the next while, even though next months bill with the new fuel pricing will likely be below your 'annual average'. So let's say my bill fluctuates from $300 to $600 annually...and I spend over the span of a year, $6,000...my monthly average is $500...so when the new fuel prices come into effect, and my bill drops to say $400 with the new fuel charges, they are going to still be charging me my average of $500.

B_I_D___ 4 years, 4 months ago

It will take MONTHS for the 'new low prices' to average your monthly rate down...willing to bet when the fuel prices spike again they will rapidly drop this plan and hit you full whack for the true rate.

DDK 4 years, 4 months ago

BPL/BEC has to be the most inneficient and corrupt government owned electricity facility in The World. On top of the lack of service, constant power spikes and brown-outs, the destruction of countless appliances and equipment by BEC, I was just treated to some "wonderful customer service" by a self-important employee over the unfair allocation of the amount of a deposit on a rental unit, based on some UNFAIR and STUPID policy on the electrical consumption of the last tenant, not on the history of my bills; also less cubic footage and less outlets than the last unit less than a block away. Apparently there are a myriad of different deposits paid by the tenants based on a former tenant's consumption, grossly unfair, but then, so are our wonderful Governments.This poor excuse for an electric company MUST be taken away from The Bahamas Government, like tomorrow.