Quick question for the group - Empire District Electric here in Missouri is requiring a $5,000 security deposit for a new commercial gas customer with good credit. Seems excessive compared to what I've seen with other utilities. Anyone familiar with their deposit policies? Customer has excellent payment history with other utilities.
Simple question about Empire District gas deposits
Elmer, that does seem high. Most utilities calculate deposits based on estimated annual usage or peak month billing. $5K suggests they're expecting significant gas usage. Have you seen their deposit calculation worksheet? They should be able to provide the methodology behind that number.
Warren's right about the calculation methodology. Here in North Carolina with Piedmont Natural Gas, deposits are typically 2-3 times estimated monthly usage. If Empire is quoting $5K, they might be projecting very high consumption or applying industrial rates instead of commercial. Worth challenging if the usage projections seem unrealistic.