Category: Cost of Living
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Home insurers are dropping loyal customers, with non-renewals up as much as 216% since 2018 in disaster-prone areas
You can pay your home insurance bill on time for years and still open the mailbox to find your company has decided not to renew you. That is happening more often, and now there are hard numbers to show it. A first-of-its-kind national report finds that company-initiated non-renewals have climbed steeply since 2018, hitting hardest…
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Behind on rent in 2026? State and local programs still cover back rent and utilities in many areas
The big federal rental-aid program that helped millions during the pandemic has wound down, and that has left a false impression that help for renters is gone. It is not. Across the country, state and county programs, local nonprofits, and a national helpline still assist households that have fallen behind on rent or utilities. The…
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A federal program pays to seal and insulate a low-income home for free, cutting the monthly utility bill
Some of the most effective ways to cut a utility bill are also the least visible: insulation in the attic, sealing around drafty windows, a furnace that runs efficiently instead of straining. For income-eligible households, the federal government will pay for that work outright, with no cost to the homeowner or renter. It is one…
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Two million Duke Energy Florida customers are getting about $90 million back on summer bills after a storm-cost overcharge
Most of the news about power bills runs one direction: up. So a genuine refund is worth paying attention to, and roughly two million Duke Energy Florida customers are getting one this summer. State regulators ordered the utility to return about $90 million it collected but did not need, and the money is arriving automatically…
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Louisiana households can still get help paying summer cooling bills through September 30
A Louisiana summer turns air conditioning from a comfort into a necessity, and the electric bill that comes with it can crowd out other essentials for households already stretched thin. There is still time to get help. A federally funded program is taking applications for cooling-bill assistance through the end of September, and the aid…
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NV Energy is refunding over $63 million to customers it overcharged for years
Utility customers rarely learn when they have been overcharged, and even more rarely get the money back. In Nevada, both are happening at once. NV Energy is returning more than $63 million to customers it overbilled for years because of a classification mistake, and the refunds are already going out. The story is a small…
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Florida regulators are handing FPL customers a one-time $80 million refund
Millions of Florida households are about to see a rare line on a utility bill: a credit instead of a charge. State regulators have signed off on roughly $80 million in refunds from Florida Power & Light, and the money will show up as lower bills rather than a check you have to chase. Here…
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Minnesota ordered Xcel to refund $40.6 million after the utility’s crew cut a nuclear plant’s cables
A new primary record puts Minnesota’s order for an Xcel replacement-power refund into practical household terms. Timing, eligibility and remedy determine whether Minnesota’s order for an Xcel replacement-power refund changes a real budget. The official details of Minnesota’s order for an Xcel replacement-power refund are now clear enough to verify. The outage followed severed cables…
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$11 million is what Ohio ordered AES to credit customers, after its consumer advocate argued for $82.6 million
For households following Ohio’s order for an AES bill credit, the key issue is where the money moves and which official record controls. The latest primary record supplies a concrete answer about Ohio’s order for an AES bill credit while drawing limits that matter before anyone acts. Separating the verified dollars in Ohio’s order for…
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$5 billion is going back to State Farm auto customers, averaging $100 a vehicle, and former customers still qualify
A new primary record puts State Farm’s largest policyholder dividend has moved from announcement to payment into practical household terms. Timing, eligibility and remedy determine whether State Farm’s largest policyholder dividend has moved from announcement to payment changes a real budget. The official details of State Farm’s largest policyholder dividend has moved from announcement to…
