Update by user Nov 08, 2018
Had to request a second reopening of the same complaint (with Cirro) with the Texas Public Utilities Commission as the first complaint filed had been closed after Cirro had adjusted the rate on my Electricity Facts Label but not the length of the contract terms. Finally after second request to reopen case with the Texas PUC after months of waiting and filing complaints with both the Better Business Bureau of North Central Texas & the Texas PUC, Cirro FINALLY sent the corrected Electricity Facts Label that correctly (for the first time since they took over my services) stated the contract terms that I had with my previous electricity provider (that Cirro bought out) and which was part of the buyout terms that all previous contracts would be honored.
Original review posted by user Oct 09, 2018
How would you define the problem? Why should you care? The circumstances were an Electric Utility company, Cirro Energy, (parent company is NRG [U.S. Retailers L.L.C.] which is the largest retail electric provider in Texas with subsidiaries Reliant Energy, Green Mountain, and Pennywise), bought out another electric company that I had a contract with, Pioneer Energy. In the Houston Chronicle in the Energy section on August 1, 2018, they quoted spokeswoman Pat Hammond, “Cirro will honor the contract terms including the price of energy for the duration of the contracts.” On August 21st, 2018, Cirro took over my electric services and on that same date, I received an email telling me I was now enrolled in a Cirro plan called “Smart Simple 36” that after talking to Cirro customer service representatives, was told consisted of 12.9 cents per kWh for three years rather than my Pioneer contract that is one year at 8.34 cents per kWh. I was told repeatedly for over a month by Cirro representatives that Pioneer Energy had submitted my contract information that showed that my contract was 12.9 cents kWh for 3 years. This was in spite of my submitting by email to: service@***.cirroenergy.com, my copies of Pioneer’s Electricity Facts Label, Terms of Service and Rights as a Customer. Also I was told by Pioneer that they had submitted the correct paperwork and to wait and see if they bill me correctly. I was billed according to the Pioneer contract but on the bill, it still showed my plan as “Smart Secure 36”. During this time, the Texas Public Utility Commission (PUC) was involved. Then on September 20, 2018, Cirro emailed me a copy of my contract that was supposed to have been revised but it STILL showed 12.9 cents per kWh for 3 years. The following day, I received a phone call from Cirro’s headquarters in Plano, TX, who again told me that my former company, Pioneer Energy, had sent my contract information to Cirro, that showed it to be 12.9 cents per kWh for 3 years. Then after I showed the PUC the most recent contract sent by Cirro, Cirro’s management told the PUC that they had “accidentally” sent the wrong contract! Cirro sent another contract but it STILL shows the length of the contract for 3 years. The Texas PUC closed out the complaint anyway, just citing them only for “inconsistencies with the Electricity Facts Label (EFL) Terms disclosure” and recommended Cirro provide me with a corrected EFL that shows the correct terms. This Texas PUC report was written on 9/24/2018 and I also requested a corrected EFL, but I am still waiting for the Electricity Facts Label that reflects my actual Pioneer Energy terms! I do not understand how a legal contract that is to be honored and specifically written into the terms of the buyout, is not cause for regulatory agencies like the Texas PUC to take more definitive action to protect consumer rights. I was in this complaint process for over a month with the Texas PUC and Cirro, but instead of Cirro immediately sending the corrected contract that very first day of the complaint, I waited over a full month to finally get a slightly modified contract that STILL was not corrected to the terms of my previous contract with Pioneer! And still the Texas PUC closed it out! Also a fair warning to everyone: whenever you sign up for any electricity service, it is imperative that you save a copy of your Electricity Facts Label as this is your legal contract with that company and without it, unethical companies like NRG and their subsidiaries can, at will, tell customers that the contract information received by the former electricity company is more costly and for longer lengths than what your actual contract terms actually were, and trap you into contracts that are not legal if you don’t protect yourself. So, in closing, how would you define the problem? Would you define it like the Texas PUC, as only an inconsistency by Cirro Energy to disclose what my contract terms were after the buyout? Why should you care? Because it appears that consumers don’t really have much in the way of actual consumer protections, even from State and Federal agencies, as legislation gets passed that takes away regulatory clout, financed with political contributions by businesses and corporations to allow them to pursue profit over people, even when it involves breaking legitimate contracts.
The more that people do document how unethical Cirro Energy is (and of course it’s parent company NRG Energy AKA US Retailers LLC and all their subsidiaries i.e. Reliant, Green Mountain and Pennywise Energy) the more a pattern of their misconduct can be verified.
Also would recommend that you always file complaints with multiple agencies at the same time like Public Utilities Commission and Better Business Bureau and let each if them know that other agencies are involved. I have found that shows another third party is involved in the process and keeps everyone more objective and more fair. Always keep your copy of the Electricity Facts Label whenever you first sign up for any electricity service so you have written proof what the contract should actually be and not have to be told by Cirro that the previous company you had (that Cirro bought out) sent a copy of your contract to Cirro (and that Cirro has then taken the illegal step of breaking your legal contract that you were told Cirro would honor) and actually changed the terms of your contract (via the new Cirro Electricity Facts Label) to one at a much higher rate and maybe for a longer term, since they can, without any written proof available from you. Cirro can and does simply say the higher rate plan was what the bought out company sent to them as your current contract.
I believe they adopt this strategy whenever a new client’s contract isn’t profitable enough for them. People also need to remember not to sign up with any of their other business names (see above) if they don’t want the same thing to repeat all over again as they are all from the same organization (racket).