New financial assistance options at ComEd aid record 87,000 customers in Q1 2023

Published on May 17, 2023 by Chris Galford

In the first quarter of 2023, ComEd connected more than 87,000 eligible customers with bill assistance, setting a new record with more than $26 million in bill help provided and reaching the second-largest number of people helped in a first quarter since at least 2019. 

“We are constantly striving to improve our programs and approach to ensure customers in need are aware of and are connected with available assistance,” Melissa Washington, ComEd’s chief customer officer and senior vice president of customer operations, said. “Some of our recent key learnings have been that people need us to meet them where they are, offer real help, and make access to that help as simple as possible – and we’re pleased to have successfully implemented new programs and hosted a number of community resource fairs to do just that.”

The company took a proactive approach, urging customers to contact it directly about available programs to help pay bills and reduce energy use. This followed a ComEd-commissioned study that detailed how to support customers on the road to decarbonization and highlighted the inequities and barriers facing many within its service territory. 

As a result, ComEd launched three new programs in January:

• Catch Up and Save: A two-part program offering monthly bill credits to eliminate past-due balances, coupled with a limited number of free energy savings kits designed to help lower home energy use and improve efficiency at home.
• Fresh Start Services: Provides online and person-to-person help for customers navigating bill management options and energy use. It also educates customers about financial assistance options and provides access to tools that alert customers when their energy use is trending higher than normal. 
• Your Neighbor Fund: Comprised of donations from ComEd’s 6,300 employees, this fund provides grant money to help limited-income families pay service bills.

Awareness of these new options was also raised through a series of Community Resource Fairs that also drew in local businesses, community leaders, and government agencies so that multiple means of help for customers in need could be found in one place.