Connecticut Attorney General William Tong on Tuesday fined Eversource Energy Inc. $1.8 million, the second state penalty in seven months over alleged deceptive marketing practices related to natural gas connections.
“Eversource misled homeowners to get them to switch to natural gas,” he said in a statement. “These high-pressure tactics are unacceptable coming from any business, much less a regulated utility.”
[ Kevin Rennie: Eversource’s marketing campaign didn’t live up to billing in my neighborhood ]
Eversource will pay $1.6 million to Operation Fuel, which helps low-income ratepayers, and $200,000 to the attorney general’s office for consumer education and enforcement, Tong said.
Eversource spokeswoman Tricia Modifica said the Berlin-based utility is “pleased to resolve this matter in a cooperative and constructive way by providing help to utility customers through Operation Fuel and the attorney general’s consumer education fund.”
The state Public Utilities Regulatory Authority in December fined Eversource $1.8 million for failing to disclose whether marketing materials for gas connections were paid for by shareholders, ratepayers or both, in violation of Connecticut law.
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Tong opened an investigation following a report in August 2021 by columnist Kevin Rennie of The Hartford Courant about notices from Eversource claiming homeowners in South Windsor would be unable to connect to natural gas when their road was resurfaced due to a “paving moratorium.”
Rennie reported that an Eversource representative later said the marketing materials referencing repaving and a cash back offer deadline were sent in error and the utility apologized.
Following its investigation last year, PURA said Eversource made “little, if any, good faith efforts” to achieve compliance “aside from a complete halt to its marketing efforts in this area.” Regulators said Eversource understood its obligation under state law “because nowhere in the record does Eversource demonstrate any instances where it inquired about the meaning of the statute” with PURA.
PURA calculated the fine as $500 for each of the 3,594 people who received marketing materials that did not include required advertising disclosures.
Stephen Singer can be reached at ssinger@courant.com.