Yeah, I had a "plan" for oil one time. ..so the company got bought out from another company.. etc etc.. we don't pay a lot for oil, because we burn, but we still heat our hot water with it, and use it for back-up. So we had a small budget 10 month plan. Finally one day I start looking at the bill and the usage. Well, the bill is always the same, BUT! since I was burning more and more, but using less and less, the upped my rate to the highest they possibly could charge, plus the had over $1K of my money!! in their friggin' checkbook! Man.. I stole a couple words from your vocabularly when I called them. Needless to say, I now have a new and very reasonable local supplier.
I think they see that, I too, only heat with wood. My water is heated by electric and thats bad enough, Although it has been better on my $$ since my Daughter went to college and the 45min showers stopped. I guess they figure they will stick it to me since I don't use very much. And I'm not letting them touch the tanks till they are empty. That may be a while
You're welcome Dave.. I'm in the process of hooking up my own propane tank that I can take to BJ's to get refilled. When we bought the house, the Suburban Propane tank was hooked up to the house. We only use it for the stove top, so will start with 2 x 20 lbs tanks (swapping out when they empty). By going to this website, I learned what the former owner's propane provider would have done to us BEFORE it happened. Good luck
Just got this is in the mail... Never tried this BS before. Just had the friggin tank filled in november.
File a complaint. Tell them you are contacting the state attorney general's office with a consumer's complaint of abuse. Then call one of the local tv stations that alway investigate and airs shady practices. unless you signed an acknowledgement of those terms, I think you can dispute it.
I will be calling them Monday. I've lived in this house 6-7 years and they never charged a minimum use fee. We only have the propane hooked up to our cooktop, it takes about three years to need a refill. It would be one thing for them to call and say they will start charging a rental fee, but to just bill me out of the blue really annoys me. Especially since I just had the tank filled. And you know if I tell them to come take the tanks they will keep the $85 charge. If they had told me about the charge I never would have had the tanks filled... Me thinks they did it this way on purpose.
They know that most people will just pay the bill and not say anything about it.. So they lose a few customers in the process. Tell them to show you the contract that you signed that says you'll pay an $85 fee if you don't use enough propane. I can't wait for my company to come looking to see what's going on with the tank at the house that we recently purchased..
I was talking with my brother. He told me his son was using propane to heat a small building that he uses for gatherings. Well, the gas company came and took his tank and gas away. They left him a note that he was a low volume user. He went to them asking about his gas that they took. They gave him a small amount for what he had in it. I have no idea how he is heating that building now. All the more reason to stay away from propane companies. They change the rules like the weather changes.
We have a propane fireplace unit that came with our farmhouse.... 250 gallon tank.. We never used more then 50 gallons... Last year they came twice to top it off , both times taking less then 15 gallons.. the delivery charge was more then the propane.. Called and said don't ever come again unless I call... I never heard from them again... They are big rip offs! Next time the call about anything, they can pay me for the full tank and remove the tank... They'll be glad they called! I'll love it!