[villagetinker]

I just received an email, referencing signing up for Arcadia Power, called SECO Energy, and sent it to them for their review. I did check on Google, and it appears that if you sign up for this "service", Arcadia Power pays your power bill, and then bills you for the power used with 1.5 cents per kwh for the renewal energy.

Bottom line, while this is promoted as renewal energy, this is going to cost you MORE.
Hope this helps.

[kcrazorbackfan]

Thank you; going to look at ours regarding this. Did SECO remove the amount from your bill?

[villagetinker]

I did NOT apply, I called SECO as soon as I saw the email, my post was a caution to others that may get this that they may be subjected to ADDITIONAL costs on their bill. The way this appears to be setup, if you sign up for it, you are NO LONGER paying SECO, you are paying Arcadia Power and they are paying SECO. It appears that there would be no changes in the SECO charges, but the bill from Arcadia would be 1.5 cents ADDITIONAL per kwh on their bill to you, so for a 1000 kwh, you will be paying an additional $15.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I just received an email, referencing signing up for Arcadia Power, called SECO Energy, and sent it to them for their review. I did check on Google, and it appears that if you sign up for this "service", Arcadia Power pays your power bill, and then bills you for the power used with 1.5 cents per kwh for the renewal energy.

Bottom line, while this is promoted as renewal energy, this is going to cost you MORE.
Hope this helps.

Sounds counter productive to me. So many ways to rip people off. Sigh.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I just received an email, referencing signing up for Arcadia Power, called SECO Energy, and sent it to them for their review. I did check on Google, and it appears that if you sign up for this "service", Arcadia Power pays your power bill, and then bills you for the power used with 1.5 cents per kwh for the renewal energy.

Bottom line, while this is promoted as renewal energy, this is going to cost you MORE.
Hope this helps.

Apparently, this "service" is not a scam. The concept is promoted and recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency. So, for people who support renewable energy, this is a way to "put your money where your mouth is" by diverting money to companies that produce renewable energy. I would not sign up for the program because I believe that renewable energy companies should compete on an equal basis with non-renewable energy companies. But, if you think that signing up for this service is a ripoff, then electing politicians who spend your tax dollars on renewable energy is also a ripoff.

[rubicon]

Renewable's from solar to wind continued to be subsidize by the government fed/state. Hong Kong refused to subsidize Telsa any longer and Telsa sales went flat

In Florida this issue came up as to the unused energy sold back to utilities and who would pay for this and also the subsidy in purchasing solar, etc. The bill was voted down by taxpayers. I suspect this Arcadia Power is a work around to that defeated bill?

[fred53]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I did NOT apply, I called SECO as soon as I saw the email, my post was a caution to others that may get this that they may be subjected to ADDITIONAL costs on their bill. The way this appears to be setup, if you sign up for it, you are NO LONGER paying SECO, you are paying Arcadia Power and they are paying SECO. It appears that there would be no changes in the SECO charges, but the bill from Arcadia would be 1.5 cents ADDITIONAL per kwh on their bill to you, so for a 1000 kwh, you will be paying an additional $15.

not as a scam...huuuuge difference.

[villagetinker]

OK, scam might be a the wrong designation, but by inserting a 3rd party into your electric bill just does not sound like a good idea. I came from PA which is a deregulated state, and you can actually shop for your electric supplier. When I called SECO, they did not know anything about this "offer", which is why I initially thought scam. Now I did not go to the site, but the initial info, did not mention the additional costs. I am all for renewal energy, and in the deregulated states, this seems to work well.
Also, if the 3rd party (arcadia power) were to miss or be late on a payment, what happens, my guess your credit rating gets hit, and you may be required to make a deposit to the electric company. I believe a better solution would be to have the electric company offer a renewal rate for renewal energy.
Sorry if I caused any confusion in this matter. Bottom line if you are looking at this option, be sure you completely understand what you are getting into.

[Harry Gilbert]

If this change in provider was made without your consent then yes it is a scam. Floridians may not have much experience with this particular scam but in the deregulated states we are bombarded with mailings and phone calls looking to switch your account to 3rd party electric providers promising lower rates. the rates are not lower for long and its a nightmare to get away from them.

[villagetinker]

As I stated above, I called SECO, then forwarded the original email to SECO, below is their reply (I asked before I posted this), Please note they used the term SCAM also.

SECO REPLY:
Thank you for your email, Mr. Xxxxxxx. You are correct – the message below is not exactly forthcoming, especially since we have no relationship with Arcadia Power. In fact, our Corporate Communications department published an alert regarding Arcadia at the link below:

https://www.secoenergy.com/clean-ene...-seco-members/

As we have been advising members who call to inquire about Arcadia, instead of purchasing certificates from Arcadia, we urge our members interested in promoting renewable energy to join our new Solar Life program.

Thank you for bringing this to our attention. If you have any questions, please let me know.

Thank you,

Jody
Member Support Associate
SECO Energy
352-793-3801

[rubicon]

Originally Posted by villagetinker

OK, scam might be a the wrong designation, but by inserting a 3rd party into your electric bill just does not sound like a good idea. I came from PA which is a deregulated state, and you can actually shop for your electric supplier. When I called SECO, they did not know anything about this "offer", which is why I initially thought scam. Now I did not go to the site, but the initial info, did not mention the additional costs. I am all for renewal energy, and in the deregulated states, this seems to work well.
Also, if the 3rd party (arcadia power) were to miss or be late on a payment, what happens, my guess your credit rating gets hit, and you may be required to make a deposit to the electric company. I believe a better solution would be to have the electric company offer a renewal rate for renewal energy.
Sorry if I caused any confusion in this matter. Bottom line if you are looking at this option, be sure you completely understand what you are getting into.

villagetinker you are the village thinker and you called this move by Arcadia . its a scam

Personal Best Regards;

[ColdNoMore]

By no definition...is this actually a 'scam.'

It's simply a third party/middleman, offering to make your payments for you...for a fee of course.

There is no deception, nor false claims being made.

It's just a dumb move to pay someone to do what you can (and most have)...already been doing themselves.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by ColdNoMore

By no definition...is this actually a 'scam.'

It's simply a third party/middleman, offering to make your payments for you...for a fee of course.

There is no deception, nor false claims being made.

It's just a dumb move to pay someone to do what you can (and most have)...already been doing themselves.

It sounds "iffy" to me. When someone offers you a service you don't need and wants you to pay them for it, that is a scam to me.

When in doubt call Crimes Against Seniors and ask them.

Here is an "opinion" piece on this but it is BY a Solar Energy company so I don't know if it is trustworthy.


Should I Buy Power From Arcadia Power? - Florida Solar Design Group

Unless and until solar energy gets to be less costly than the energy we now have in place I will be skeptical. Global warming IS happening but we, ONE small section of the Earth in the U.S., cannot reverse it all by ourselves and getting everyone on this planet to do something altruistic seems like an exercise in futility. Maybe someday when people are dying in huge groups from the heat............

[biker1]

Arcadia is selling Renewable Energy Credits (RECs). Think of it as a way to financially support wind power directly even though your power doesn't come from a wind farm. For many people, I believe this is a "feel good" sort of thing and an opportunity to financially support alternative energy (they are a financial vehicle). In our previous home (not in The Villages), our power company did offer the same service: you could pay extra per kWh and essentially contribute to alternative energy sources through RECs. I suspect the participation rate was very low.

Originally Posted by villagetinker

I just received an email, referencing signing up for Arcadia Power, called SECO Energy, and sent it to them for their review. I did check on Google, and it appears that if you sign up for this "service", Arcadia Power pays your power bill, and then bills you for the power used with 1.5 cents per kwh for the renewal energy.

Bottom line, while this is promoted as renewal energy, this is going to cost you MORE.
Hope this helps.

[biker1]

That is not what they are doing. They are selling RECs.

Originally Posted by ColdNoMore

By no definition...is this actually a 'scam.'

It's simply a third party/middleman, offering to make your payments for you...for a fee of course.

There is no deception, nor false claims being made.

It's just a dumb move to pay someone to do what you can (and most have)...already been doing themselves.