PALMco Energy review: I suffer as the consumer. 43

Palmco Energy is one of the biggest scams to hit NJ! They promise you "lower" rates than PSE&G which is NOT true. DO NOT switch over. They solicited me through the phone, at first they make it appear that they are from PSE&G and when it's time to enroll with them thats when they will inform the customer that they are not. They will say everything will remain the same, you will still receive the same bill from PSEG the only change that will occur is that I'll have a "lower" energy bill. NOT AT ALL! Here is what they do not disclose to you. Number 1- they do not disclose to you that their rates are "variable" they do not tell you that the rates can go up whenever they "feel" like it. Number 2- they do not disclose the fact that though they are the "supplier" you STILL have to pay PSE&G for "delivery" charges which is almost as much as your bill. So you are left paying DOUBLE the amount of what you would have paid. Number 3- they do not disclose to you that the process to sign up with them takes about 2-3 months, and here's the catch. Once you realize that you are being charged extra money the process to CANCEL takes about 2-3 months as well. So you are STUCK with Palmco wether you like it or not because it's a "process" which they NEVER tell you. Once I called to cancel my services with them the following month I received a bill of $400 AND they INCREASED my rates and when I spoke to them about it they said well thats the "variable" rate that I signed up for, even though PSE&G were at a MUCH MUCH lower rate. Mind you NO contract was signed it was all over the phone. Buyers beware! Do not sign with this company! They have THE WORST customer service, they are a SCAM they do not fully disclose all the information that is needed. They might show you a lower rate but they can RAISE it whenever they feel like it, and because they are not regulated there is nothing the consumer can do about it. Stick to PSE&G!

Absolutely agreed.
They jack your electricity rates 3+ months after you sign up.
I have started with 9c/KW in 2012. In April 2013 my rate was 15c (and a change), in May it is 0.[protected].

JCP&L clearly states in the bill:
The Basic Generation Service price per KWH listed below is equal to the JCP&L price to compare. To save money, you must be buying your electricity from your supplier at a price THAT IS LESS than your JCP&L price to compare. Your price to compare is:
Basic Generation Service: $0.[protected] / KWH

Someone has to stop Palmco Energy from doing business in NJ.

They charged me 0.[protected] per kwh compared to 0.114593 offered by PSE&G.
It amounted to $392.93 versus $235.26-Over $150.00 more. My previous month's bill was even higher.

They solicited me to change over from PSE&G and said that after their promotion period their rates would be variable and gave me a historical picture that rates are most of the time better and never said that variable rates could be double! They are dishonest and dubious and if they want to have a real business model and keep their customers, when the variable rates reach over 25% higher than other utility charge, let alone double, they should reach out to their customers and advise them on how to better manage their energy rates. They instead go on the defensive.

below is a link to my actual bills from July and August of 2013 showing the difference in rates, cut and paste if you cannot click on it:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ti4We--Wptx4wyITdUzLEYL-L45vvWhOtrKmw3OMy7M/edit?usp=sharing

NJ resident - Palmco solicited me to change over from PSE&G and said that after their promotion period their rates would be variable and gave me a historical picture that rates are most of the time better and never said that variable rates could be double! They are dishonest and dubious and if they want to have a real business model and keep their customers, when the variable rates reach over 25% higher than other utility charge, let alone double, they should reach out to their customers and advise them on how to better manage their energy rates. They instead go on the defensive.

below is a link to my actual bills from July and August of 2013 showing the difference in rates, cut and paste if you cannot click on it:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ti4We--Wptx4wyITdUzLEYL-L45vvWhOtrKmw3OMy7M/edit?usp=sharing

My name is Greg Blankinship, and I am a lawyer investigating potential false advertising claims in connection with Palmco Energy. If you purchased electricity from Palmco and would like to discuss your legal options, please contact me:

gblankinship@mpnsb.com
Meiselman, Packman, Nealon, Scialabba & Baker P.C.
1311 Mamaroneck Avenue
White Plains, NY 10605
[protected]
Attorney Advertising

I complete agree... PalmCo NJ was a big scam, after 3 months the rates almost double. If you are reading this stay alway from them...

I used to work for this company... I've seen the way they manipulate customers and do the most to not pay for what they do! First things first they offer you an "intro rate" which is AWESOME and way below competitors but DONT BE FOOLED! By the 3rd or 4th bill the rate doubles and sometimes even triples. When you call to complain they'll give you some BS about the prices being competitive market blah blah it's total bull. Then they offer you a low ball refund DONT SETTLE! Immediately ask for the supervisor and I'd you get anyone OTHER than Connie they're bsing you. Furthermore the OWNER of the company is fully aware that these sales reps who come to your door are lying to you! He knows they try to say they are from the utility or that it's a government program and that they try to tell you that you're not switching providers but you ARE! And they will try to guarantee you savings with explicitly stating "guarantee savings". They tell you the price changes monthly similar to your utility... What they mean is the rate will go up and down but will ALWAYS be at least double what you were paying before. And these sale reps use FAKE IDENTITIES so when you try to get them in trouble rest assured they'll be back on the streets under someone else's name. And again the owner is more than aware. The company outsources telemarketers and door to door sales reps by companies run by scam artists, perverts, and criminals. The company is known as PALMco in every other state but, New York where they were known as Columbia Utilities but changed their name because the Attorney General caught on to their deceptive ways. DO Not make the mistake of signing up with them, you will surely regret it

Is there anyone on here taking legal action with some avail? If so I would like to be part of it because I too was scammed out of -00s of dollars .

i cant agree more. I used them for both gas and electric and I have paid more than double what I would have paid from my normal utility provider. I can not believe how much of scam this was and I am afraid to look back at my older utility bills. Is there really a way to get a refund? I feel violated and cheated!

They switched themselves as my 3rd party power supplier by stopping at my house and had my wife sign the form without start date. They said that he is from PSEG and my rate will go down. No mention about variable rate or start date. They then overcharged me for the last 6 months on my utilities--totaling $800.00 for the last 6 months over the prices that I would have been charged by PSE&G if they never switched me. It partially my fault for not checking my bills--too trusting, and I just kept paying the bills until it became overwhelmingly overcharged--that's when I really researched the bills. I called them directly and they say you have variable rate which was explained to your wife. Leads me to believe they have employees who mislead people. The customer service reps refuse to provide information on a supervisor over themselves. Now they are not ready o cancel the service before 2 months so will sit on my back for another 2 months and over charging me. If anyone is able to solve the problem please help..

In late July'2013 a telephone representative after repeated calling talked me into signing up to save on my
energy bills if I get my electricity and heat supplied via Palmco. From the
past 4 months my electric and heat bills have been hugely inflated as compared
to what I would have paid PSEG my energy distributor. During the month of
November I was charged .$.53/therm for gas and $.13/kwh for electricity. January
$.83 /therm for gas and $.23/Kwh for electricity which is double of what I
would have paid PSEG, so my total bill was $500.00, . When I called Palmco the
customer service team has only one answer that you signed up for it and if you
like we can cancel but it will take 1-2 months for the cancellation. After I
disconnected in January my February bill was $1022.00, of which for gas supply
I was charged $1.95 /therm ($600.00) and $.317/kwh for electricity ($157.00.)We
cannot offered to pay this bill as we
are standard income people who eeds to pay other bills, please help us out to solve this problem. I’m
willing to pay only what PSEG company may legitimately charge for supply
.Palmco charged w 300% more than what
PSEG would have charged me.AS I have to stick on to Palmco for one more month
I’m terrified what would be my next month bill would be.

In late
July'2013 a telephone representative after repeated calling talked me into signing up to save on my
energy bills if I get my electricity and heat supplied via Palmco. From the
past 4 months my electric and heat bills have been hugely inflated as compared
to what I would have paid PSEG my energy distributor. During the month of
November I was charged .$.53/therm for gas and $.13/kwh for electricity. January
$.83 /therm for gas and $.23/Kwh for electricity which is double of what I
would have paid PSEG, so my total bill was $500.00, . When I called Palmco the
customer service team has only one answer that you signed up for it and if you
like we can cancel but it will take 1-2 months for the cancellation. After I
disconnected in January my February bill was $1022.00, of which for gas supply
I was charged $1.95 /therm ($600.00) and $.317/kwh for electricity ($157.00.)We
cannot offered to pay this bill as we
are standard income people who eeds to pay other bills, please help us out to solve this problem. I’m
willing to pay only what PSEG company may legitimately charge for supply
.Palmco charged w 300% more than what
PSEG would have charged me.AS I have to stick on to Palmco for one more month
I’m terrified what would be my next month bill would be.

I have the sentiments of everyone who has posted. I am a MD resident and have been hoodwinked by this third party vendor. Complete scam. Why would anyone sign up for a utility that is 300% higher than BGE, PEPCO or whomever unless under false pretenses. This is misleading and sounds like false advertising any time I can one month use 1050 kW with a bill of $286. I tried to reduce the cost and reduce energy consumption the following month and received a bill for over $300 with only 960 Kw. That's when the red alert came up. Has anyone filed a complaint with the Public Service Commission? I have recently cancelled and informed from my supplier switch over will take 2 months. Wow! Another 2 months of being scammed. I will check this post for other comments regarding this matter.

Has anyone else gotten a bill for $1850 like I got this month? I had just called PSE&G to switch back to them after last month's bill hit $1150 which stunned me! Then I got this one! BEWARE! Someone said if you call and change the name on your utility bill, they can't get you for the 2 months extra? I am going to find out tomorrow!

I strongly agree because my bill was three times higher than what it should have been if Palmco was not my supplier. The service sucks and the rates

Looks like this is huge scam. How can PSEG have patnership with such providers and how government is allowing them to provide services without any regulations?

Even after cancelling I had to wait for 2 months to get rid of this service.

Yes, it's true. GOD SAVE AMERICA

Everybody STAY AWAY from these SCAMSTERS. They are a fly by night Operator.

I signed up with them and made a huge MISTAKE. I signed up because they promised a lower rate than PSEG. My Bill in Dec 2013, Jan and Feb 2014 was double of what i used to Pay. My highest ever bill paid was $240 in last 6 years with PSEG. They charged me $500 for each of these months. The sad part is that they increased the bill value after i called them to cancel.

I have now switched back to PSEG

I made the same unfortunate choice and my bills have nearly tripled! I don't think I ever paid more than $150 (generally an average of $90-100) and now I'm getting bills around $350. And during some of these months I was away on business thus not even using gas/electric. I asked to switch back and they said it would take 60-90 days thus I'm stuck continuing to get these inflated bills during the switch period. I called PSE&G and they said they could not help me until PALMCO gave the service back.

I am a victim too... they came after Sandy hit us saying they were from a program created by PSE&G to help people affected by Sandy and that they reviewed all the complaint logs (I had actually called to complain about getting a very high estimated bill and wanted to be revised) ... so with this said I totally believed it so I signed up for the "program" which he said was named "Palmco" and that this was the reason why the paperwork says "Palmco" at the top... anyways... I've had the most horrible time w/this since they went from $150 bills to $900 bills... I got a shutoff note from PSE&G who said I HAVE TO PAY THEM because THEY ALREADY PAID PALMCO FOR THE SERVICES and than then they bill us... that is the most insane thing ever! PSE&G definitely gets a kick out of all this (A HUGE ONE!) And that's why they let these companies take over their customer w/o even warning anyone or at least making an effort to not lose their customers... that's just pathetic! I even started thinking these might be PSE&G related company just to scam people and still get them customers back... I wouldn't be surprised if all the investigations going on, concluded w/finding PSE&G being the parent company of all these "little companies" scamming people...

I also got completely scammed by this company for their "variable" rates that they told me would be cheaper than my current provider. Since Jan, I have paid over 2000 dollars than what I would have paid PSE&G for the same service. When I complained through the public utilities dept, I only got 329 dollars back. Now I am reporting them to the better business bureau because I am not happy with the resolution. They said it was a "courtesy" that they are reviewing my bill. I should never have signed up with them and would not if they explained that variable is charging you 10x more for the same service. This company should not be allowed to be in business if they cannot offer competitive prices. I could not believe the $1100 bill in March. Plus I still pay pseg on my bill which was never explained to me.

Huge scam company, they love to stick it to customers with huge bills all the time. Never ever paid so much money in service as I'm paying now. I was on vacation for a month and bill came triple of charges. I made unfortunate choice, DON'T TRUST THEM.

Palmco scammed me close to 5, 000 in 4 months time: Yes that is the right amount of zeros. When I called to cancel the account (that I never agreed to) they would not let me cancel without giving them my ssn and my birth date. Now they are trying to say I signed with them and they have proof because they now have the info they need. This is absolutely insane. Companies will follow suit if this company is not shut down. I am interested in filing a class action if I can get enough individuals who were wronged by this unethical company.

This company slammed me. They billed me close to 5000.00 dollars for 4 months service. I did not know they even existed. When I cancelled my service, I never agreed to, they made me give them my ssn and my birthday in order to cancel. They are now attempting to say that I had an account because they know these. They are crooks. They cannot be allowed to treat people in this manner. They went so far as to say this is a fair price. My house is 1800 square feet. They charged me . 25 cent per kw. I did not notice them on my bill because I was on auto bill pay though online checking. I watched the bar graft and compared it to last year not knowing PALMco was on board. I think we need to file a class action suit against this company. If they get away with this what is going to keep other companys from doing the same thing

Connecticut, watch out for them. They are scamming in CT. too

I noticed Palmco listed as my energy supplier on my Ameren bill this month, which is about $250 higher than normal. I called the company and they are saying that I signed up by phone with them back in June. This is untrue, I never answer unknown numbers and I never sign up for anything by phone. Three women demanded that I give them my birth date so they could access my account. I finally gave them a fake birth date and she was magically able to access my account. Then the woman at Palmco tells me that it's Ameren's fault, because they charged me for about a thousand more kwh than the month before. In order to receive a "goodwill credit" I have to call Ameren and find out if they estimated or used actual readings. I swear there is going to be no end to this.

I just signed up for them too(Friday) if all this is true should I cancel on Monday?

Just got slammed with 2k in 2 months after my [censored]ted former tenant was duped into signing the contract. Talked to 3 supervisors, last one was Connie. She was really 'pleasant'; Said best and final "goodwill credit" was $223 off a $1200 bill. I said you will be hearing from the better business bureau, nj consumers affairs, and my lawyer. I would completely join a class action Lowlife ###!

its a scam. person visiting ur home will not tell u that its variable

I am currently screwed by palmco also and why is our useless government allowing them to continue . they should all be behind bars . someone in government is being paid off to allow this to happen.

I NEVER signed up for this company and I was changed over to this company as soon as I saw this charge on my Bill I called and had it cancelled but they refuse to reverse the charges that where billed to me.. Even though it was done fraudulently.. This company is a scam! And only want money and don't care how they get it I spoke to 2 different reps and both we're rude and the last one who is suppose to be a senior rep aka manger hung up on me because I said it was a scam..and I was calling the better business bureau

I have never had a company tell me, "you have to take it up with PE because they pay us whether or not you pay them" until my experience with PALMCO. In just 9 months, I have received charges that have been higher than all but 2 of the last 10 years of charges that I received from Potomac Edison. I have requested a refund in the amount of $747.27. I have received $159.80. Clearly, they acknowledge that they are overcharging consumers, but don't care. Similar to another post mentioned, the bill I received after I cancelled my service with PALMCO was at $.2336/KWH. The initial rate was $.0548/KWH. This is a difference of $.1788 which equates roughly to a 326% increase in just nine months. OUTRAGEOUS!

Thanks to all for posting the information. Palmco called me a couple of days ago with an offer that seemed to good to be true, and this website confirmed that. I just called my electric company and told them to note on my file that I do not want to change suplliers, in the event that any supplier would sing me up without my approval.
Also, for those of you currently 'stuck' with Palmco, I believe that you can simply call your electric company ant tell tham to turn off the electricity, thus cancelling the contract. Then simply call the company right back and tell them you'd like the power turned on, with a new contract that does not include Palmco. My electric company here in Massachusetts confrims that this will work.
Thanks again,
Ken C.

This happened to me as well. What should I do to get my money back. Please suggest.

PALMCO also scammed me. My bill was $300 higher than bge then $400.i cancelled.but have 2 more months to be robbed.

I am usually so wary of door to door solicitors, but when Tiffany from PALMCO came to my door, she was personable and pushy and quickly did the math on how her deal was better than the one I had just switched to, in spite of having to pay a fee for switching early. She was compelling, so I decided to make the switch. All I had to do was call to "lock in" the lower rate of 9.8c for the year. Couldn't be easier! She even provided her "personal" phone number so that I could call her if I had any questions. The only problem was that when I called to "Lock in" the rate, they told me that there was no such a practice and their rates were "competitive but not locked in." Given that I had just changed, I decided to give them a try. Well, in the past months, the rates have been almost twice what they were a year ago and never anywhere near the 9.8c rate that I was sold in with. This was true even in a month when I was hardly around to use any electricity--in the summer when one uses even less anyway. Needless to say, I have switched again. I am writing about my experience so that others will be aware and not end up spending money on top of money to move again.

Palmco just called me this evening Jan. 12th 2016. I live with my 88 yr old mother & thought it sounded pretty reasonable. They said my bill would be $15 to $20 cheaper each month but couldn't say exactly how much each month. well I went ahead, instead of looking them up on a website like this one. Now I'm calling them in the morning to hear what kind of BS I'm going to hear. I almost never do something like this without checking it out first. Against my better judgement I now feel now I'll be getting just what everyone else is going through. not only is my mother going to be furious with me but I am at myself as well. I feel like a total fool! I suppose I'll be getting a hold of my lawyer who is also my boss. I live in Illinois just 15 mins from St. Louis. I sure hope I don't have problems since I was just called this evening. If they won't let me cancel or don't take me out of this scam, we will be suing as well. I pray I don't have any problems since it was just this evening. I may have to tell them a lie to get out of it like they did to everyone else.

I am 80 years of age, live alone, have a woodstove and oil heat. My electric bills never exceeded $160 a month. This months bill is $476, half my social security check. My choice, it seems, is to go without electric by not paying the bill...or?. This gets a bit serious. My calls to PALMCO resulted in much the same rhetoric that has been expressed in other complaints. It's hard for me to digest the State of Maryland allowing the SCAM to operate. I am wondering "Who gets paid off in such decisions." Any suggestions from anyone would be more than helpful at this point in time.

I filed a complaint on Jan 19th...On Jan 20th I received a call from Palmco Energy saying they planned to credit the current bill and following bill 10%. Some of this could be related to my being a senior citizen, as seniors received a discount. This I didn't know about. I welcome the credit on the current and forthcoming bill. I appreciated Pamco's quick respnse