Dive Brief:
- Customers that switch to prepaid electricity service reduce their energy usage by 5.5% to 14%, according to a new report.
- A study by Distributed Energy Financial Group of two electricity cooperatives found 75 % of customers reduced their energy usage after switching to prepaid service.
- A total of 92% of surveyed customers said they were satisfied or highly satisfied with the prepaid service.
Dive Insight:
The study confirmed findings by nationwide consumer surveys conducted by the Prepay Energy Working Group. Switching to prepaid services led to a higher reduction in energy usage than other traditional energy conservation measures. Prepaid services give customers more real-time information about their energy usage, which could be responsible for the reduction in usage.