Arizona Public Service (APS) – You Suck!
July 22nd, 2008 Posted in PersonalI am always afraid to open my electric bill in the summer. It is typical to have electric bills in the $500 range but this month’s bill of shocked me a bit. I’m not going to disclose the exact amount but let’s just say that in my seven years at my current residence, I have never seen a bill this high.
I called them of course to see if there was some error. It is not that I will have any difficulty in paying it. I was just concerned that there had to be some error and I hate wasting money. They informed me that I had indeed used the electricity. Even when I suggested the meter may be faulty, they implied that it would send them a signal, of which it did not. Bottom line is that I have nothing to complain about.
This is not my reason for this post and especially what I decided to title it. There are three “other” things that tick me off a bit which is my reason for writing an “APS Sucks” type of post.
1. The Extensive List of Charges
The APS bill provides a “line-item” list of charges that reads like the options you see when buying a car. I have never really paid much attention to this untill now of which I was quite shocked. Here is what it looks like.
- Basic Service Charge – The minimum charge for having service available, whether you used electricity or not.
- Delivery Service Charge – A charge, based on your kWh usage and/or kW demand, to build and operate the equipment for delivering electricity to your home/business, including lines, poles, transformers and substations.
- Environmental Benefits Surcharge – A charge to cover the costs of programs approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission, including: energy efficiency and renewable energy projects.
- Federal Environmental Improvement Surcharge – A charge to recover a portion of the cost of investments and expenses for environmental improvements at APS’ generation facilities designed to comply with environmental standards mandated by federal laws or regulations.
- Competition Rules Compliance Charge - A charge, based on your kWh usage, to cover costs associated with compliance and implementation of the Electric Competition Rules.
- System Benefits Charge – A charge to cover the costs of programs approved by the Arizona Corporation Commission, including low-income assistance, demand side management, customer education, environmental, renewables, long-term public benefit research and development, nuclear fuel disposal and nuclear power plant decommissioning programs as well as other programs approved by the Commission.
- Power Supply Adjustment * - An adjustment mechanism to recover fluctuations in fuel and purchased power costs. (i.e., fuel, natural gas)
- Metering * – A fixed fee for providing and servicing the meter.
- Meter Reading * – A fixed fee to determine your energy usage.
- Billing * – The cost of calculating and providing your monthly statement.
- Generation of Electricity * – The cost of producing the electricity you used this month.
- Transmission and Ancillary Services * – The cost for moving high voltage electricity from generating facilities and other sources to the APS distribution lines
- Transmission Cost Adjustment * – A cost, based on your kWh usage, to adjust for annual changes in transmission-related costs procured to serve retail customers.
- Franchise Fee - A charge by a municipality for APS’ use of the public rights-of-way for its facilities.
- Regulatory Assessment – A cost imposed on customers of state regulated utilities to help fund the Arizona Corporation Commission and Residential Utility Consumer’s Office.
Oh, and let’s not forget about good ol’ Uncle Sam. He has to have his cut as well.
- State Sales Tax
- County Sales Tax
- City Sales Tax
Now I can understand the Basic Service Charge, Generation of Electricity, and the taxes but what about all the rest of these charges?
Take the Delivery Service Charge for example which allows them to collect additional fees from me so they can build and operate the equipment for delivering electricity, including lines, poles, transformers and substations. This is so bogus. How many companies do you know of charge their customers additional fees so they can build and maintain the methods they use the goods and services customers seek? It would be like Wal-Mart charging me an extra fee on top of the cost of goods sold so they can not only maintain their stores but build new ones as well. Isn’t that what profits are for?
There is the Competition Rules Compliance Charge which charges me an extra fee so they can compete? WTH? At least that is the way I read it.
Why do I have to pay extra for the System Benefits Charge? What do programs for low-income assistance, customer education, long-term public benefit research and development and others have to do with me, especially if I am not using them?
The Transmission and Ancillary Services really gets me – an extra fee for moving high voltage electricity from generating facilities and other sources to the APS distribution lines. What do they have to ship the electricity or move it in trucks? Another bogus charge
On top of all these “extras” I have to pay APS extra so they can measure how much electricity I use and so they can bill me. Isn’t this simply a cost of doing business.
How the Arizona Corporation Commission ever approved all these “extra” charges is beyond me. I mean, does this commission have any real concept of business in the real world?
2. You Can Choose Another Electrical Provider, So Long As It Is APS
You might wonder what the asterisks are for in the line-item list above. They indicate that “the services are currently provided by APS but may be provided by a competitive supplier.” This is more of a taunting however as there is no other provider where I live. APS is the sole provider – a monopoly.
So why even taunt me like that? Reminds me of when Henry Ford starting making the Model T and offered consumers the choice of any color “so long as it is black.”
3. They Waste Money They Could Be Giving Back To Their Customers
I very often see commercials for APS on my television. Everyone knows how expensive television commercials are. They do other advertising besides all of which is ironic due to the fact that most of the areas they supply electricity to, they are the sole provider.
I completely understand why companies have marketing budgets and advertise – because there is competition. However, in APS’s situation, the only competition they have, at least where I live is NOBODY. There is of course another major electrical provider in the Valley – SRP, but as far as I understand, APS has their power grids and SRP has theirs . So where is the choice? And what is the purpose of wasting tens of thousands if not millions of dollars on ad spend when people HAVE TO use their service? It’s pure stupidity and waste , all of which are passed on to the consumer.
So what can I do about this? Nothing really.
I am starting to think very seriously about solar power and may be exploring how I can outfit this home so that it is completely powered by the sun. If not this one, certainly the next. I do live in the desert so why not take advantage of natural energy as opposed to making a company like APS richer and richer.
In the meantime, APS – you suck, not only for wasting money on advertising, money that could be put back in our pockets in the form of savings, and not only for lying to us that we can choose another provider when the exact opposite is true but most of all for sticking us with just about every bogus add-on fee you can get away with.
Related: Looking For a Realtor With a Low Commission? Hungry Agents Can Help.
February 24th, 2010 at 5:32 pm
What do you expect from a Company that has continually manipulated the Arizona Corporation Commission in order to obtain approval for, and continue, their abusive practices!?!
The latest example:
The APS Solar Rebate Program (approved by the AZ Corp. Commission); which allows for those (the wealthy) who can afford to purchase solar systems to do so at a rebate, while making those (the non-wealthy) who can’t afford to purchase solar systems pay for those rebates.
Taking form the poor, giving to the rich…
[Only in Arizona]
That’s Jacked Up!!!
Someone needs to expose the common-connection between APS, the Corporation Commission, local television production giants(all those commercials that run every night during Prime Time)and the solar companies that are benifitting from this unfair Solar Rebate Program.
Do APS Customers really need to pay for high profile celebrities (such as Steve Nash) to make a commercial? Trust me…, APS is doing nothing to save you, or their customers, money; they even go as far as refusing to own up to their abusive nature by using the guise of, “Approved by the Arizona Corp. Commission”.
You’re right, APS does SUCK!!!
February 5th, 2010 at 6:22 pm
David,
Hahahahaha You made my night.
A friend of mine Mike, on facebook, sent this to me and I could not stop laughing. I would love to send a copy of your blog along with MY next APS bill. I won’t because I’m afraid they might add a new charge just for you and me.
This was priceless…your writing that is….not the bill. You have such a humorous way of expressing yourself..that I just had to write to you and tell you keep it up. We share our faith and we share our sense of humor.
Tracey
Voice Artist
TNT Xpressions
Glendale, AZ
December 3rd, 2009 at 10:02 pm
My wife and I are a poor young student family. We have done our very best to keep our power bills very low. In our 3 bedroom apt we have a bill of 75.00 per month, this takes a lot of work and sacrifice of comfort… I promise it is not easy. But today I just looked at my bill and found that I am being charged 25.00 for power and 50.00 for its delivery and their infrastructure. I agree with the title, I HATE YOU APS.
October 20th, 2009 at 4:54 pm
APS is a fraudulent backwards corporation, there is no question about that. I believe that APS is trying to gain control over the solar power market here in Arizona and possibly California. Again APS will monopolize the market by having full control over solar power here in Arizona. APS in deed is a very greedy company. I am curious as to how much lower our bills would actually be if the bulk of electricity came from APS solar power. More then likely your bills would still continue to increase even thought the cost of APS delivering the electricity would be cut in half.
I believe that most of Arizona hates APS and it’s just a matter of time before enough citizens wake up and start demanding an investigation into this fraudulent corporation.
October 20th, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I COMPLETELY AGREE WITH YOU! The Delivery Service Charge is such a ridiculous excuse to rip us off of our honest, hard-earned, tax-paying money.
September 21st, 2009 at 3:32 pm
APS totally sucks. Not only are they ridiculously expensive, but their people are rude and unhelpful.
I live in a small house but have to keep my temperature close to 90 degrees to be able to afford it. Then THEY screwed up my billing but won’t take any responsibility for their mistakes so it’s impossible for me to change my plan. They are the WORST utility in the US!!!
September 20th, 2009 at 3:05 am
I moved from one apartment to another recently within Phoenix. The older apartment was serviced by SRP while this one is hoarded by APS.
Although the total energy (in Kwhr) I used is very close to the energy I used with SRP, the bill is about 65% more.
When I read through the bill, I realized that just about 35% of the bill reflects the actual amount of electricity (generation charges), while the majority of it is just bogus.
I’m so surprised that the this kind of public fraud is possible in the USA. Why are the politicians doing anything about it??????????
August 8th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
I recently contacted the Corporation Commission regarding APS and their high energy costs. I asked questions about the reason why APS has television commercials. To my surprise a clerk with the commission emailed me back and gave me the phone number to a Representative at APS. The representative was very friendly, but acted as if she was paying excessive prices her self with APS even though she works for them.
Later on she explained that the advertising only has to do with ways customers can lower their bills. Can they not advertise this in a cheaper way? Possibly print and add energy saving tips to the bill rather then spend millions on a television commercial. In a nut shell, I received a sugar coated response to every question I asked with this APS rep.
Here’s the scoop. APS laid off over 546 employees, and is having to foot the bill for all of the foreclosures in the valley. Maybe if our electrical bills were not so High many would have been able to stay in their homes long enough to refinance them? That’s just a thought. Well I often wonder if the media outcry about July being the hottest on record and my APS bill costing 500 dollars this month have any direct correlation? Was July really any hotter then it normaly is? Isn’t it generally hot in July and the temps normally 110?
Any how, to make a long story short, I figured out from my email to the corporation commissioner, where they had me call APS means one thing only, and that is, APS is in bed with the Corporation Commission. In fact I did not even get a response from the commissioner, but a lousy email from a clerk who works in the commissioners office.
I will be paying attention to ballet when the election cycle returns in a year or so.
In the mean time there is a meeting on AUG 12th with the public to discuss and have your say to the commissioner. Every comment will be documented and reviewed. This meeting is in regard to another APS rate hike.
The meeting is on AUG, 12th at 5:30pm
The address: 1200 W Washington st.
Lets stand up to this monopoly and get APS on a level playing field for once!
August 8th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
I hate APS. How is it that they can have a monopoly and get away with it. No matter what they do or say we have to do it no matter the cost. It is communism. They will shut you down for owing just $30 dollars. They are the first people on my list that I don’t like. Somebody needs to stick it to these assholes.
August 5th, 2009 at 3:20 pm
Yes ASP SUCKS !!! I hate them I have never had so many probelms with my bill until I moved to a APS location. Every month my bill is off. This month July my bill is 504.00. Last months bill was 321.00. How dose it change that high ? I’m not doing anything diffrent esch month I keep my Air and everything the same. I have also tried to change my payments dates so my payments would be on time. BUT NO APS DOSE not offer that. APS SUCK !!! They need to have a cap on what they are charging in the times we are in they want to up there fees AGAIN, What are they thinking they are taking away from the community. APS IS A JOKE !!!!
July 29th, 2009 at 1:00 pm
I agree Johnny, I never really looked into different elections besides our presidential ones but now I see the damage it causes when I don’t -
July 29th, 2009 at 12:54 pm
The only people you can complain to is the corporation commission and you will get nowhere because they are in bed with APS.
APS has over 700 dollars of deposits from me and claims they have credited my account with some of the earlier deposits. That is a lie. I have contacted the Better Business Bureau which was a waste of time because the BBC gets paid from business to be a member and I am sure APS pays them off to keep complaints at bay or make APS appear as an accredited member.
Well this month, (July 2009) My bill is 456 dollars!!!! I am so sick of these people that I am about to explode. APS is also trying to do a rate hike right now as we speak, right dab in the middle of a failing economy when every one is suffering. It makes not sense at all, especially after I saw a television commercial from APS the other day!
We all need to work together and vote the bums out of the corporate commission and get some real people in there that will not tolerate this monopoly called APS!
July 18th, 2009 at 10:02 am
I came across this site after searching for “APS Delivery Service Charge”. I share the same complaints here. My bill isn’t quite $500 but it is $350 and that is far and above what I am used to paying. I’ve added up all these bogus fees and it comes to over $126. That means my bill could have been around $225 which is much more reasonible. I never noticed all this extra “CRAP” until this high bill. There has to be something that can be done by the customers – signatures protesting these “cost of running a business” expenses for the AZCC or something. Extra charges coming to 36% of your total bill is absurd – it really is and something should really be done about it – the same is for me about competition – APS is the only provider out here – I already checked SRPs service area (that was my first thought – “I AM GETTING RID OF THESE THIEFS”) and it is no where near where I live (by the White Tank Mountains). Their service area isn’t that big. APS is a giant and they are getting away with charging all of us extra fees so they sit on an even larger profit. Bastards.
July 8th, 2009 at 1:40 pm
re: the plethera of (negative-to-APS remarks above).
REMEMBER to SHARE your combined hate of APS with the AZ Corporation Commission- remember, members are ELECTED PUBLIC OFFICIALS that NEVER fail to get-on-their-knees for APS, whenever, wherever.
The Corp Commission CERTAINLY deserves some of the population’s combined HATE
July 8th, 2009 at 1:14 am
Please visit the Rate Crimes blog to understand how and why the electric utilities and their partners in the most sun-soaked state manipulate the economics of energy and suppress the value of solar energy and energy conservation in order to maintain the dangerous status quo of coal and nuclear energy.
June 5th, 2009 at 2:29 pm
APS are PIRATES, plain and simple, and it is a disgusting sham that they are allowed to charge what they charge. I recently asked them, “how is it that you have a nuclear power plant and surplus power sold to California, yet you also have an effective 14 cent per KWH rate on my bill”. No answer yet… By the way +1 on the wasted advertising budget. There is NO competition, yet they pay for expensive ads including celebrities like Steve Nash that run constantly, at a huge price without doubt. I also see that almost all their people run around in 1 ton 4wd pickup trucks, most of them spotless, never having seen any off-road action. How much of that driving could be done in a corolla? Most of it I’m sure. They are greedy, wasteful, and despicable.
February 20th, 2009 at 2:40 am
Try to close parts of the house down. If every customer did that, APS would get the message. If you have a heat pump you will save plenty with a room heater, I only heat my Masterbathroom. Put a solar panel in for your water heater it will save about 25% of your electric bill. Ceiling fans also work great. Don’t let them push you out of your home. It’s best to sleep with less heat on. You won’t wake up with dry nose and most likely head pain. You know every one wants our money, LOOK AT GAS PRICES! To all have a good life.
February 4th, 2009 at 5:55 pm
APS SUCKS! I am already on the help me plan due to not making a lot of money. So, me paying my bill late more than 2 times in a year is a normal thing. I have an empty refrigerator most of the time.
I paid my bill in full for 2 months so that I have a zero balance (used my Christmas bonus to do so) and they still are making me pay a deposit of $130!!!! This is more than my monthly bill since I am NEVER HOME as I have to work all day and night to pay the bills!
I ALSO WOULD FIRE APS IF I HAD A CHOICE! Imagine being a renter-solar isn’t even an option for us!
I hate you APS. I REALLY DO!
November 1st, 2008 at 3:20 pm
I am also so very fed up of the continuous rate increases, my consumption this summer was lower than 2007 but my rates to pay were much higher. I cannot keep up and unfortunately I have to divvy up when I can pay and sometimes I am a bit late. I now got a notice from them basically saying “thanks for being a customer, we already have a deposit from you (which is from years ago that they’ve surely earned interest on)but it’s not enough for us…we’re going to ask you for even more deposit money…” Greedy greedy. Instead of trying to help customers through this tough economy they are completely jacking us.
September 25th, 2008 at 12:45 pm
@Kathi E – You might try contacting the Arizona Corporation Commission. I believe they would handle complaints regarding public utilities. Good luck in your dealings with them and thanks for sharing your story.
September 25th, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Hi David
I came across your site while Googling to complain about APS. Do you know if there is a consumer complaints dept in AZ to complain to? I live in California but my 93 year old mother owns a cabin in Arizona which APS supplies the electricity for. Last year they (APS) declared her dead – never mind that the bills were being paid!! When I called, they said someone (who? since no one lives there) at the cabin told her Mom had died. Why do they care – the bills were being paid. To prove that she wasn’t dead – we would have to travel to an APS store/site so they could see her. They required us to put the bill in my name or they wouldn’t provide service to keep the pipes from freezing etc. Not only that but they did turn off the electricity while I was arguing with them that Mom was alive – she even talked to them on the phone!! and all the food in the fridge and freezer was ruined.
Is there any recourse for consumers in Arizona? There is in California but I can’t find a similar group in Arizona.
Thanks for your help.
Kathi
PS – they also made us change the service package – said it would be same cost – but it is now double what it was!
August 14th, 2008 at 8:54 am
I was just saying last month that if I could get together the initial investment, I would go the solar route and get off the grid or seriously reduce my usage at the very least. I have my own issues with APS, and I am not a happy camper. But, seeing as what you say is true and competition is only an illusion, they don’t have to care about their customers’ happiness as it is too much of a hassle to move and the other choice of provider if you do move is really no better.
August 9th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Len Gutman “went solar” with Solar City… You lease the panels as buying isn’t the smartest because the of inflation.
I did some photos of his open house. Solor city will throw very conservative numbers @ the home owner yet in AZ we’ll get more sun than CA so you might create more energy than they say…
In the end you’re not saving a ton, but you are saving a little. More links on this photo from my flickr stream.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/acmeextra/2731282120/
~Adam N.
August 4th, 2008 at 2:46 pm
@Tim – Have looked into it but don’t know if is is cost-effective for now. If/when we build a custom home however, it will definitively be a serious consideration.
August 4th, 2008 at 2:31 pm
David,
You might seriously consider Solar . . . I’m not sure if it’s feasible where you’re located, but is certainly worth looking into if you’re paying $500/mo plus. In most areas they can be installed and pay for themselves in 5 – 10 years. After that you can actually make money.