Delmarva Power customers sounding the alarm on recent bill spikes, pushing for changes

DELMARVA. – Muhammad Adeel Khan is just one of many Salisbury residents who say increased costs on Delmarva power bills have choked their wallets.

He said he watched his energy bills spike over the last year and a half and is now taking matters into his own hands.

“I suggested, instead of protesting in front of the building, we should start a petition, just to see how many people are impacted,” said Khan. “When we have the data, we can go back to the state legislators, go back to Delmarva [Power] with some concrete numbers.”

That petition has garnered over 11,000 signatures from Delmarva Power customers, like Tawna King.

“This past month in January, I just got my bill, and it was $938, from $700,” said King.

King also took action, creating a Facebook group more than 4,000 members strong, called Delmarva Power Victims.

WMDT’s Leila Weah created a post in the group asking members to share their concerns about recent bills and over 150 people chimed in

Delmarva Power spokesperson, Zach Chizar said the company is providing relief by eliminating late payments for January and February, suspending disconnections for nonpayment and waiving deposits for disconnected customers.

He pointed to the recent dip in temperatures as being a big contributor to higher bills.

“In December alone, customers in Delaware used 40% more energy than they did in November; in Maryland, 60% more energy in December, as compared to November,” said Chizar.

But Khan said that explanation is not enough, and he plans to continue to advocate for lower bills.

“For Delmarva to Charge people blatantly based on a cold winter, and increasing the bills three folds, four folds, stating just the delivery charges of those bills are $400, $500 dollars. It doesn’t justify that, regardless of how much income you’re earning,” said Khan.