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With ComEd Rates Low, CUB Says To Think Carefully Before Going With Alternative Supplier

(CBS) -- ComEd rates are about to drop again, and the Citizens Utility Board is warning you to think twice and do your homework before going with an alternative supplier.

ComEd's rates were high when choice became legal in Illinois. But CUB's Jim Chilsen said the last of those contracts expired in 2013.

"The window for those significant savings closed," Chilsen said.

Now, he said, ComEd rates are low, and going lower. Next week, ComEd's residential rate is decreasing by about 7 percent to 7.033 cents per kilowatt hour.

"The message to northern Illinois utility shoppers is buyer beware," he said.

He said the ComEd residential rate is so low that the city of Chicago is letting its citywide aggregation agreement expire in September, in effect returning residential customers throughout the city to ComEd.

Chilsen said deals can be found, but to make sure you have a complete reading of all potential fees and whether the rate you are quoted is for the duration of a contract or an introductory rate.

He said some power suppliers mask the true cost by failing to mention that a rate is introductory or that fees can mount easily, including sometimes hefty exit fees. He said you can be scammed merely by letting a sales representative see your current bill. He said that allows the representative access to your account number.

Chilsen said that can be a costly mistake, and said CUB's files are full of complaints from people who gave out an account number only to find that they were signed up for a service they did not want and could not escape easily.

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