Electric Customer Choice Handbook
Unbundling of Electric Rates
Today, the pricing for electricity is unbundled (separated) and identified on your Duke Energy Ohio bill. Customers who select a generation supplier no longer pay the following charges to Duke Energy Ohio:
- Rider RC (Retail Capacity Rider recovers the cost of generation capacity purchased in the Competitive Auctions).
- Rider RE (Retail Energy Rider) recovers the cost of energy purchased by Duke Energy Ohio in the Competitive Auctions.
- Rider AER-R (Alternative Energy Recovery Rider) recovers Duke Energy Ohio's costs of complying with the State of Ohio's Alternative Energy requirements.
- Rider RECON (Fuel and Reserve Capacity Reconciliation Rider) allows Duke Energy Ohio to recover costs incurred, but not recovered, under its 2009-2011 Electric Security Plan. This charge expired June 30, 2012.
- Rider RTO (Regional Transmission Organization Rider) recovers certain costs incurred by Duke Energy Ohio relating to its participation in FERC-approved regional transmission organizations.
- Rider SCR (Supplier Cost Reconciliation Rider) ensures that Duke Energy Ohio recovers 100% of the cost it incurs in procuring energy and generation capacity for its generation customers through the Competitive Auctions.
The charges associated with the riders above make up the Price to Compare.
Bill Options
If you participate in the Customer Choice Program, either the supplier and Duke Energy Ohio will bill you separately or Duke Energy Ohio will send one bill that will include the supplier’s charges. Either way, you can expect to see a breakdown of charges for each of the basic components of electric service. If the supplier bills you separately, the Duke Energy Ohio bill will note this.
Typical Bill Charges
The following are electric charges that all customers pay and that you may not avoid when you choose a certified supplier:
- Delivery Charges – Charges to deliver electricity to your home or business including electric distribution wires, transformers, substations and other equipment.
- Customer Charge – A fixed monthly basic distribution charge to partially cover costs for billing, meter reading, service line maintenance and equipment. This cost is incurred even if a meter registers no usage for that billing period. The amount of the set charge depends on the kind of electric service received by the customer.
- Delivery Riders – Charges to recover various costs associated with Duke Energy Ohio's electric operations and funding for Ohio energy-related programs.
- Supplier Charges – Charges from your certified supplier.
Price to Compare: Key to Choice Shopping
The question that's on everyone's mind is, "How much will I save?" To determine this, you'll need to know the price that a supplier must beat in order for you to save money. This is known as the Price to Compare. You can determine this amount and compare offers from certified suppliers with the information and tools in our Price to Compare section.
You can also contact our Call Center at 800.544.6900 for this information.
Figuring Out Savings
To estimate potential monthly savings:
- Subtract the supplier's price per kilowatt hour from Duke Energy Ohio's Price to Compare.
- Multiply the difference by the annual kilowatt hours you use.
The result is your annual savings. Billing and Usage History Customers may also want to provide their billing and usage history information to potential suppliers to determine possible savings.
Residential customers can obtain up to 24 months of billing and usage history by registering for our Online Services.
Residential customers may also contact Customer Service for billing and usage history at 800.544.6900.
Individualized Price to Compare
You can calculate your specific price to compare with the calculator in our Price to Compare section. Enter your most recent 12 months of electric usage data that appears at the bottom of your bill and then select ‘Calculate.’ The calculation result is the price that a supplier must beat (in cents per kWh) for you to realize savings.
Competitive providers of generation are known as certified suppliers. Suppliers must meet certain financial, managerial, and operational criteria before they are certified. A supplier must be certified before marketing its services to our customers. To find a certified supplier participating in our Electric Customer Choice Program, search the list on our site:
The process of contracting with a supplier is solely between you and the supplier. Duke Energy Ohio will not be involved in this process until we are notified by the supplier of your decision to switch. At that time, we will send a confirmation letter to you indicating the name and number of the supplier, and the effective date of the switch.
Customer Information Needed by Supplier
When you decide to switch suppliers, the supplier will need your 22-digit Choice Service ID number, located in the meter box section of your bill, to provide to Duke Energy Ohio to process the switch. In addition to your Choice Service ID from your bill, the supplier may also ask for other information such as:
- Basic personal information (like your address, telephone number, etc.)
- Meter number
- Social security number
Customer List
Upon request, Duke Energy Ohio will provide any certified supplier with the most recent customer information list. The list is updated quarterly. Your information is automatically included on this list. You will be notified via a bill insert of your options should you prefer to be added to or removed from the list.
Note: Duke Energy Ohio will not be providing phone numbers to suppliers. However, opting off the customer list does not guarantee that you will not be contacted by suppliers as they may call you directly, gathering your phone/address information from other sources. If you have previously notified Duke Energy Ohio to be removed from the list, you do not need to contact us again unless you wish to be placed back on the list.
Learn How to Opt Off or On Customer Lists
When shopping for a supplier, you will want to gather information from the supplier in order to make the best choice. Following are some questions you may want to ask the supplier.
- Is the supplier certified by the PUCO and registered with Duke Energy Ohio?
- What is the price per kilowatt-hour?
- Is the price fixed or does it change?
- If it is a variable price, how does it change?
- Are there any built-in price increases or decreases?
- Will there be any additional fees?
- Is there a customer incentive for signing?
- Are there any special add-on services?
- How long is the contract?
- What happens when my contract expires?
- Will I receive a separate bill from the certified supplier?
- What fuel sources are used to produce the electricity?
A customer may sign with a certified supplier at any time. To switch to a supplier, contact the supplier directly.
When Duke Energy Ohio receives a customer enrollment from a supplier, the relationship between the supplier and a customer becomes effective on the next scheduled meter reading date, provided the enrollment is received by Duke Energy Ohio at least 12 calendar days before the reading date. If submitted less than 12 calendar days prior to the next scheduled meter reading date, the enrollment will be effective on the second scheduled meter reading date after the enrollment is submitted.
Example: A customer’s meter is read on May 16, 2009. The customer signs with a supplier and Duke Energy Ohio receives the customer enrollment from the supplier on May 20, 2009. Generation charges will begin accruing with the supplier beginning with the next scheduled meter reading date of June 14, 2009.
Inquiries related to bill charges or credit issues should be directed to the appropriate entity to which the question pertains. In the instance that one bill is produced through Duke Energy Ohio but the question relates to the supplier charges, the supplier’s phone number will be printed on the bill. For Duke Energy Ohio-related inquires, contact the Call Center at 800.544.6900.
Note: Partial payments are allocated to regulated charges first.
You will continue to notify Duke Energy Ohio in the event of an outage situation or safety problem, just as in the past. Duke Energy Ohio will continue to maintain all existing power lines regardless of the electric supplier you select. As always, we are committed to providing safe and reliable service.
A customer may switch back or return to Duke Energy Ohio's market-based standard service offer for any reasons, such as:
- Customer's decision
- Termination of a supplier contract
- Opt out or termination of a governmental aggregation program
- Supplier withdrawal
- Supplier termination of a customer's contract
You may contact your supplier or Duke Energy Ohio at 800.544.6900 to return to Duke Energy Ohio's Standard Service Offer Electric Security Plan (SSO-ESP). Duke Energy Ohio will then send you a notice of your return date. You will have seven days from the email or postmark date of Duke Energy Ohio's notice to cancel the order if you decide to stay with your current supplier. After the seven-day period, you will be returned to the SSO-ESP, as of the date shown on the notice you received from Duke Energy Ohio.
Supplier Default
When a supplier does not fulfill its obligation to supply power, customers served by the supplier will return to Duke Energy Ohio's SSO-ESP rate on their next regularly scheduled meter reading date.
You should contact Duke Energy Ohio customer service at 800.544.6900, or your supplier to address questions/concerns. If a satisfactory response is not received, you may contact the PUCO by phone, mail or e-mail to seek assistance. Find contact information in our Online Resources & Contact Information section.
Find information on billing cycles and meter reading dates in our Meter Reading Schedule.
View the Meter Reading Schedule