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Brief Filed In Formal Complaint Against Supplier
“This Post-Hearing Brief is submitted by Complainant Vincent Mattiola in the above captioned matter against SmartEnergy Holdings, LLC (“SmartEnergy”). It is intended to demonstrate, through evidence and governing law, that SmartEnergy’s conduct constituted a violation of Pennsylvania’s consumer-protection framework for Electric Generation Suppliers (“EGSs”).
“SmartEnergy’s four-month fixed-rate agreement, memorialized in its own Disclosure Statement (SmartEnergy Ex. 3), was clear and definite. Yet, through ambiguous internal interpretation and deceptive renewal practices, SmartEnergy extended service beyond the contracted term, charged a variable rate nearly three times higher than the original fixed rate, and failed to provide adequate notice as required by 52 Pa. Code § 54.10, which require clear disclosures and customer consent before any change in term or rate.”
“The record establishes that the Complainant never received any renewal letters prior to the abrupt imposition of the 17.8¢ per kWh variable rate. Mr. Mattiola testified, “I never received any renewal notice whatsoever—nothing. Not a single piece of mail.” (Tr. 109– 110). This is not an opinion or a belief, but a fact. The two “renewal notices” produced by SmartEnergy are inconsistent in format and content and were likely created after-the-fact to justify unlawful billing. (Tr. 921–931; SmartEnergy Exs. 4 & 5).”
“The company’s procedural conduct was no better. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“Commission”) e-served the Formal Complaint on April 25, 2025, at 10:42 a.m. Under 52 Pa. Code § 5.61, SmartEnergy’s response was due within twenty (20) days—by May 15, 2025. Instead, it waited until June 26, 2025—sixty-two (62) days after service and forty-two (42) days late—to file its Answer and New Matter. This open disregard for a statutory deadline mirrors the company’s disregard for its contractual one.”
“This case therefore raises not merely a private billing error but a systemic breach of consumer trust in Pennsylvania’s competitive-energy market. The Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (“Commission”) was created to ensure that all utility service is “reasonable, safe, adequate, and in conformity with the regulations and orders of the Commission.” (66 Pa.C.S. § 1501). SmartEnergy’s disregard for contractual clarity, renewal-notice requirements, and the principle of informed consent contravenes that mandate.”
“Consumers should not need to audit their suppliers to ensure honesty. When an electric generation supplier undertakes to provide power for a definite term, it must do precisely that—no more and no less. It is irrelevant whether the term extension described by the witness is for “the benefit” of the consumer. That is not a decision to be made by the EGS. SmartEnergy’s conduct was not a harmless error; it was a calculated indifference to both its contractual duties and the Commission’s consumer-protection rules—a betrayal of the very trust that makes retail energy competition possible. This is precisely the kind of practice the Commission’s disclosure regulations were designed to prevent.”
“The Complainant respectfully requests that the Commission sustain the complaint, order restitution of overcharges, and consider broader corrective measures consistent with precedents previously upheld.”
F-2025-3054761
(Formal Service Complaint – Vincent Mattiola, Complainant v. SmartEnergy Holdings, LLC, Respondent)
