First Choice Powers, Credit/Collections Department Did not owe company Dep. or Past bill when signed up. get first bill and owe $400! Fort Worth Texas

I contacted First Choice Power in July of 2007 regarding new service. I am a previous customer with first choice power, so I asked the sales rep. questions on signing up for new service at new location. Told the rep. my full name and information to look into system to see if I owed any previous amounts that I was unaware of.

The rep. then told me " No you do not owe any previous bills " ... I told him " Great, now would I have to pay a deposit to activate a new account?" The rep. then told me to hold on and to let him run the check... back on phone from putting me on hold, he told me " No, you are not required to pay a deposit and will not have to pay anything to activate new service with first choice" Great, so now I can get my electricity turned on in my new home, without having to pay a high deposit.

I was thankful, and very pleased. The last week of August I get a bill in the mail from first choice, stating that I owe $436.00! Also , this is NOT including my first months bill. I thought to myself that there had to have been a mistake. I called First Choice, and a customer service rep. told me to go ahead and call collections to check on my account.

I called the collection department and spoke to two different people, one was a lady named Ava, and the other lady sounded as if she was a older white women, not exactly sure, but did not get her name, due to her hanging up on me. I explained to her that I was told by FIRST CHOICE that I did NOT owe anything to the comp. She argued with me, and told me that I am required to pay that amount, and that I had a bad dept with the company from 3 years ago.

I was NEVER informed of this amount, and also had just pulled my credit report ( which I have a copy of ) in June, and this amount or company was not on my report. She did not listen to me, and of course I got very unhappy with the way I was treated, and raised my voice, thinking maybe she can hear me now, after that she hung up.

I called back and spoke to Ava again, which was the first girl I had spoke to before she had transfered me to this other lady in her office. The first time I had asked Ava to speak with someone else, I had asked to speak to a supervisor, or manager in this department. Ava told me that there were no managers in this department. Now I know that every department has its managers. I called the First Choice Customer Care line, and spoke to a rep. there which gave me the number to the Fort Worth Corporate office.

I called there, and the lady that answered that phone gave me the number to the corporate office in Louisville,TX, where there is a man by the name of Terry Pruitt that is the manager over that particular department. I left a messege on his machine, but still havent heard back from him. First Choice is stating that I now owe $280.00 Deposit, and a bad debt of $156.00, which I do not owe.

I do not see any customer satisfaction with this company and would not refer service of this company. A honest and caring company would understand that they had told this CUSTOMER that they did not owe anything, to honor their word! I am not satisfied at all with this behavior from this company. It is uncalled for, and I should not have to go through the headache that I am having to go through now. I am stating that I SHOULD NOT have to pay the amount of $436.00, because I was not told this when signing up with this company, instead I was told I did not owe anything to First Choice.

Now this is all stated in my notes on my account that I was told I did not owe anything to first choice. This is not customer satisfaction, and its very dirty how a company such as First Choice Power, a Texas owned and operated company is treating their customers. I am expecting the amount of $436.00 to be waived from my account, because like I said I do not owe this, and I had asked what I owed in July of 2007, a month later was told " Oh wait you owe $436.00!! " I am a student, and have plenty of bills to pay as it is, I do not need, nor can afford a company taking advantage of me.

Kristin Flowers
Webster, Texas
U.S.A.