Guelph Hydro Electric Systems Inc. Review

I called and the lady was very helpful and friendly. Took care of my change quickly.

Stuck on hold for over 10 minutes with the same damn message repeating over and over and over and over and over again with no hope for any real human taking my call.

Left a message roasting them, will call back later when my patience recovers.

RiP OFF!!!!!! Still being billed 250 to 300 a month when I am not home and havent had a stove plugged in for 6 months. You can't actually reduce your hydro costs with them, it is literally impossible and they just make up what you've actually used. How they get away with overcharging, i don't know, but this utility needs to be investigated for bull$$%^ usage rates.
I got three guelph hydro bills this week and its only Monday. And I checked my mail on Friday. All three for different amounts. Even they can't keep their bogus charging straight. Still ripping people off during COVID too, still paying more for hydro than Toronto. My mums hydro bill out in Calgary this month for a house twice the size of mine that hasnt been upgraded since the 70s was 88 bucks. Mine was 297. Ive been throwing what money I had during quarantine at hydro, to the point of not eating and I still owe nearly a thousand dollars. Thats how much they overcharge me for a house of two people. They know I cant do anything about it and it doesn't matter how much I try to dispute charges or report that I want my metre checked for defects, they tell me I have no choice but to pay it and they absolutely refuse to inspect my meter. They said if I want it checked, I can pay an electrician to do it, which I think is ridiculous, and they can report to alectra. Obviously with paying out a mortgage payment t of a hydro bill every month, an electrician bill is a little out of my budget. I find it pretty sketchy that Alectra refuses to take any sort of ownership over their own meters, especially when there is definitely something wrong with mine. Either the meter is wrong or their system is overcharging or both.

FYI this has got to be the most expensive hydro in the province. A comparable sized house in toronto pays roughly 70 dollars less per month and they use their appliances whereas I dont. I have had to cut back so far to reduce the bill, stove breaker is off, dishwasher breaker is off, laundry breaker off except for once per week, lights not being used, only appliance plugged in is the fridge. All energy star appliances, new windows, new everything and the bill goes up. Friends of mine with bigger houses in kitchener pay way less than I do. When you try to find out why, you get the useless scripted response that rates are determines by blah blah blah which explains nothing. If I lived in my yard in a tent with zero electricity, Alectra would probably bill me

've never had a good experience. Bill's are overinflated, price is highway robbery. 50 dollars in hydro usage with an 80 dollar delivery fee. You will still get charged for hydro you are not using apparently as half of my breakers are always off yet the bill keeps going up. And if you so much as dispute it, you cant even prove it wasnt used and they laugh all the way to the bank. They have a monopoly so they can do whatever they want. They also harass you with the bills, to the point where one week I got 7 gueloh hydro Bill's, in 5 business days. Funny enough, the one I got first was the payment reminder notice for the bill I got two days later. I have a running joke at my empty house, I make a wager about how many guelph hydro Bill's I will get this week, usually it's at least 2 minimum and maxed out at 7. Maybe they should save all that postage and stick with one, maybe 2 per month. I estimate it costs about 15 to 20 bucks for them to harass me each month, since all but one go directly into the shredder without even opening them. 20 bucks multiplied by 100K households.....what a waste.

I find billing VERY expensive. It's only myself and my 94 elderly mother. We don't have all the lights on in the house at one time...we don't bake...we don't over shower/bathe and never used my dryer, I use the "outside". So not counting the rebate, how do I use up $115.31 worth of hydro. The month before it was $54.15...NOTHING changed except the dates.

Worst company to deal with ever. Worst customer service. Ever bill I get even when the previous was fully paid says "FINAL NOTICE". Every time I try to get it preauthorized out of my account or really do anything the company says I have to do it on their website and fill out a form, which doesn't work. If we lived in a truly free market society this company would be out of business. I give less than one star rating.

They answered the phone quickly, sent out someone out within a half hour, fixed the electrical issue quickly, all without extra charges. Thanks :)

Our business is located in Guelph Junction. All rail, hydro, road and municipal services in this area have recently been upgraded. Thank you to Guelph Hydro for their excellent service in the upgrade of electrical delivery to the street and our building. Mike Swan/Swan Moving & Storage

Could this company be more of a jerk than they already are? Doubt it! $156 hydro bill and they threaten to cut off my hydro. And the award for "electricity nazis" goes to...

I have no experience with their customer service as I all my services exclusively online. I am impressed with their prompt service and response to power outages. We should all feel grateful for the modern conveniences we have. We had a power outage due to a wind storm. I was able to report the outage online as were numerous other customers. Guelph Hydro updated their outage map and within 30 minutes of reporting the information, we had our power back!

May I ask Guelph hydro read metre accurately?
In winter, heat furance usually consume electricity, but in the summer, no air conditioner used due to out of order, other devices are the same with the winter, but electricity bill is to go up, water consumption is as well. Last year, my house was three persons, but this year, only 2 persons, but electricity bill is no any reduction, Maintain the same. I am wondering where I use electricity for. A lot of questions is about my monthly hydro bills. Almost the same graph levels in last June and this June, but the bill is almost same, it seems Ontario government is reducing a rate monthly until December.
I don t understand why??????????

Yes Guelph hydro has a very bad customers services. They tried their best to take your money and they are very rude, unprofessional, threaten you with all kind of stuffs like disconnecting your power.Somehow racist the moment they hear your accent. I lived in 3 places-- Shellburne Ontario, Brampton, Ontario and now Caledon. Non of those cities asked me to deposit any money before they give power at my house.
This is very sad though this is happening in Guelph where they have one of the best University.
Please beware of Guelph hydro

I love how I can be late paying my bill when I paid it 5 minutes after receiving it. Also, if you want something paid by a certain day try using a new concept called a due date!

Smart Thermostats etc. Why are rebates not being offered?
For a city that claims to be green and promotes a smaller carbon footprint, why aren't there any incentives for smart technology??

As many people who are long time residents of Guelph will agree since Alectra Utilities merged with Guelph Hydro every aspect of the service has gone downhill. First off, payment options are a nightmare. I try to pay online and their website rarely works on mobile devices. When you pay with a credit card through the phone they charge you a "convenience fee" through a third party.

When I first moved to Guelph I went to their head office to get some clarification on payment options with hopes that a staff member could guide me. I was trying to pay them. Their response was to shoo me away and inform me they no longer have an in person customer service department. On top of that it's nearly impossible to speak to a real human being through their phone lines.

On top of all of that I had a terrible experience with Alectra Utilities tree trimming crews. I understand that trees have to be cut back from power lines but they gave no notice that they would be cutting branches in front of my place (above my car). When they arrived there they asked my partner if the vehicle could be moved, which it couldn't because I had the keys and had taken an alternative vehicle to work. They were then informed to come back the following day but instead they proceeded to cut branches above my vehicle and create scratches and small dents on the roof.

Needless to say, Alectra Utilities needs to reevaluate their business practices, as I'm not the only person who has similar complaints and concerns.

I'm starting to have similar issues to everyone else here, mail not being delivered, ZERO customer service, attempting to change the phone number they have on record and can't do it via their automated system and no option for human assistance... Bill not arriving before they are due etc... Tied with Bell Canada for their poor service

Extremely expensive. Terrible service. Prices don't even make sense given your expected usage. Just a miserable option.

Complete rip off. $60 delivery fee with bills costing upwards of $200+ with minimal usage. I lived in Toronto where hydro would cost less than Alectra's delivery fee. Good tip for those of you who want to save a little extra on your hydro bill; flip the breaker switches on the electric heaters during spring and summer months. Even if you have the heaters off, they are still using a ton of electricity. So flip the breaker switches for them and save a little extra each month.

Changing their billing cycle and not receiving bills till 3 days before due date.

I appreciate the work our local utility does for us.

Shame on the city for selling to Alectra. My hydro bill has gone from $55/mo to a smidge over $100. So salty. Bunch of greedy pigs. Then I go to pay my bill in person at the Guelph Hydro building and I'm told they no longer accept payments anymore and that I could do it online (For an extra 2% fee) or go to some random convenience store and pay them to pay my bill in person. I'd give 0 stars if it were possible.

Update. So I received a card in the mail telling me my rates have been cut by nearly 30%. For that I'll give 2/5.

Closed account on sale of home, missed the final bill notice. That's on me. People make mistakes. I rarely miss a payment on anything, but I am still human, and that is what reminders are for. 22 days past due the company sends me an email to pay the balance or be submitted for collections, no prior notices. 7 years I paid my bill on time. They subsequently advised notices of late payment were sent, but I don't have any such notices, and if I had, I would have paid the remainder of the tiny remaining balance immediately. No company has ever threatened me with collections in less than one billing cycle, let alone ever being threatened with collections in the first place. 7 years I had an account in good standing... Can't believe it. I have an excellent credit rating. Beware. A simple mistake could damage your credit with this company.

Too expensive! Impossible to keep up with these bills.

They are NOT open until 6pm. Try 4:30, the laziest office hours ever. How on earth is a working person to make it in by 430pm!?

To make matters worse, they insist on almost immediate payment. I've never experienced such hostility, hand delivering "final notices" for sums of barley 100 dollars. I frequently paymonths in advance, but if I'm 2 days late on a bill, THAAATS IT! POWERS CUT! LOL

Too expensive. Why are you charging more than guelph hydro when we are getting the exact same electricity??? I shouldn't have to choose between paying the bill and putting food on the table when I never had that issue before with Guelph hydro.