Green Mountain Power unintentionally sent out a batch of outdated letters informing its customers that they would be charged an additional fee for opting out of a smart meter installation. Officials say the letter was mistakenly sent to customers this month.
The letter was originally drafted and distributed before the Vermont Legislature passed a bill prohibiting utility companies from charging an opt-out fee for smart meters. After the enactment of the bill in mid-May, Green Mountain Power (GMP) shelved the old letter and began sending customers an amended version, stating, “There will be no cost to customers who elect not to be part of the advanced meter.” In June, GMP sent another letter reiterating the elimination of an opt-out fee.
But then in early August, in a mass mailing mishap, the original letter was sent out again to some GMP customers. This letter states, “There will be additional costs to those opting out of the advanced meter program due to the expense of maintaining older technology and manual meter readings.”
This caused consternation among some GMP customers who object to the installation of smart meters on political grounds or due to privacy or health concerns. (5,087 of GMP’s 250,000 customer have opted out thus far.)
GMP has since addressed the mix-up, sending a new letter out to customers who received the old letter in August. “Anybody that we are sending the letter to now, has a new letter,” assures Dotty Schnure, GMP’s corporate communications manager.
Can’t keep your letters straight? The bottom line is that Green Mountain Power, in accordance with Vermont law, will not charge an additional fee to customers who wish to opt out of the smart meter program.
