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In this annual season of giving, especially as temperatures drop and more people need heat and protection from the elements, besides the usual charity-appeals and church-donations, there is something else that many of can do with a simple stroke of a pen or click on a keyboard, if done on-line.
When you get your monthly electric bill, check the bill to see if it gives an option for a bill-sharing program (my utility company, Dominion Energy Virginia, calls it EnergyShare) whereby you, as a customer, if you have no trouble paying your own electric bill, can help others who may be suffering in cold houses or with other electrical needs.
It is not a scam....usually the way it works, the extra funds collected go into an account that the company sets aside and keeps for those who cannot pay all of their present or past bills. If a family or account meets the qualifications for the Energy-Share assistance, the company will use the money collected in the program to help cover their bills...or parts of bills. Obviously, the more collected in the program, the more will be available to distribute if and when needed.
How, when, or if you do it is up to you as a customer. If you get an old-style paper-statement in the mail and write a check, you can simply add a set amount to the bill (with EnergyShare, it is $1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 25, or 35) and mail it in....or write a separate check to EnergyShare at the printed address (you might want to keep a record of it, because it is tax-deductible). Or, if you have paperless accounts or automatic-billing, there are ways to do it on-line that may vary from utility to utility.
Here's the system from my company, and how it works in detail:
https://www.dominionenergy.com/virgi...ns/ener
When you get your monthly electric bill, check the bill to see if it gives an option for a bill-sharing program (my utility company, Dominion Energy Virginia, calls it EnergyShare) whereby you, as a customer, if you have no trouble paying your own electric bill, can help others who may be suffering in cold houses or with other electrical needs.
It is not a scam....usually the way it works, the extra funds collected go into an account that the company sets aside and keeps for those who cannot pay all of their present or past bills. If a family or account meets the qualifications for the Energy-Share assistance, the company will use the money collected in the program to help cover their bills...or parts of bills. Obviously, the more collected in the program, the more will be available to distribute if and when needed.
How, when, or if you do it is up to you as a customer. If you get an old-style paper-statement in the mail and write a check, you can simply add a set amount to the bill (with EnergyShare, it is $1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 25, or 35) and mail it in....or write a separate check to EnergyShare at the printed address (you might want to keep a record of it, because it is tax-deductible). Or, if you have paperless accounts or automatic-billing, there are ways to do it on-line that may vary from utility to utility.
Here's the system from my company, and how it works in detail:
https://www.dominionenergy.com/virgi...ns/ener