Customer Choice

If you’re a residential or small business customer that pays TOU electricity prices, you can choose to switch to Tiered prices beginning November 1, 2020.

If you want to continue paying TOU prices, no action is required.

To switch from TOU to Tiered prices, you must notify Entegrus by completing an election form. Entegrus will begin accepting election forms on October 13, 2020. There is no deadline. You can ask to switch at any time.

Since June 1, 2020, customers on TOU have been paying a fixed electricity price of 12.8 ¢/kWh for all hours of the day (known as the COVID-19 Recovery Rate) which the government put in place as part of the its response to the COVID pandemic.

This fixed price ends on October 31, 2020. On November 1, 2020 the TOU prices approved by the Ontario Energy Board (OEB) will replace the fixed price.

With TOU prices, the price depends on when you use electricity.

There are three TOU price periods:

• Off-peak, when demand for electricity is lowest. This price applies in the evenings on weekdays and all day on weekends. Every household and small business is different, but on average, Ontario households use nearly two thirds of their electricity during off-peak hours.

• Mid-peak, when demand for electricity is moderate. These periods are during the daytime, but not the busiest times of day.

• On-peak, when demand for electricity is generally higher. These are the busier times of day – generally when people are cooking, starting up their computers and running heaters or air conditioners.

With TOU pricing, you can help manage your electricity costs by shifting your usage to lower price periods when possible.
People use electricity differently depending on the season, so the TOU price periods are different in the summer (May 1 to October 31) than they are in the winter (November 1 to April 30).

With Tiered prices, you can use a certain amount of electricity each month at a lower price. Once that limit (called a threshold) is exceeded, a higher price applies. For residential customers, the threshold changes with the season to reflect changing usage patterns – for example, there are fewer hours of daylight in the winter and some customers use electric heating. In the winter period (November 1 – April 30), the Tier threshold for residential customers is 1,000 kWh, so that households can use more power at the lower price. In the summer period (May 1 – October 31), the Tier threshold for residential customers is 600 kWh. The Tier threshold for small business customers is 750 kWh all year round.

Tiered prices give you the flexibility to use electricity at any time of day at the same price, although that price will change if you exceed the threshold during the month.

There are four ULO price periods:

• Ultra-Low Overnight, when demand for electricity is lowest on average.
• Weekend Off-peak, when demand for electricity is generally lower.
• Mid-peak, when demand for electricity is moderate.
• On-peak, when demand for electricity is highest on average.

The ULO price periods are the same in the summer as they are in the winter.

The OEB sets TOU and Tiered prices based on a forecast of how much it will cost to supply TOU and Tiered customers with the electricity they are expected to use over the next 12 months. The OEB sets TOU and Tiered prices to recover the same forecast average cost of supply.

The OEB sets both TOU and Tiered prices under the Regulated Price Plan (RPP). The RPP is designed to provide stable pricing, encourage conservation and ensure that the price customers pay for electricity better reflects the price paid to generators that produce the electricity that customers use in their homes or small businesses.

Electricity utilities are not allowed to make a profit from the sale of electricity.

The OEB typically sets new rates November 1, based on an estimate of how much it will cost to supply residential and small business customers on the Regulated Price Plan with the electricity that they are expected to use.

There is no guarantee you will save money if you change price plans. The total bill impact of switching will vary depending on how much electricity you consume in a month and when it is consumed during the day

Considering a switch? For more information, go to oeb.ca/choice and use the bill calculator to compare what your bill might look like if you switched..

If you’re a TOU customer and don’t want to switch to Tiered prices, you don’t need to do anything. You will stay on TOU prices.
If you do want to switch to Tiered prices, here are the rules that apply. These rules also apply if you later want to switch back to TOU prices.

• Starting October 13, 2020, Entegrus must make its election form available on its website, and to any customer that requests it. Entegrus must accept election forms by email or mail at a minimum. You’ll need to fill out the election form to notify Entegrus that you want to switch. The form is intended to be as simple as possible in terms of the information that you need to provide. You should have a recent electricity bill on hand when filling out the form, as you will need your utility account number.

• Within 10 business days of receiving your election form, Entegrus tell you if your election form can’t be processed and must explain why (for instance, if you’re not authorized to make changes to the account, or the account can’t be verified).

• If there are no issues with your election form, Entegrus has the same 10 business days to let you know when you can expect to start being billed on Tiered prices.

• A switch from TOU to Tiered or ULO prices can only take effect at the start of a billing period. A billing period is generally about 30 days long, and the start and end dates are identified on your electricity bill. Many customers are not billed based on a calendar month, and the start of your billing period can be any given day of a month.

Entegrus must start charging you Tiered or ULO prices as of your next billing period after you submit your election form if Entegrus receives that form at least 10 business days before that billing period starts, and provided there are no issues with your form (see above).

If Entegrus receives your complete election form less than 10 business days before the start of your next billing period, Entegrus might still be able to switch you for your next billing period. But if Entegrus can’t do so, Entegrus has to start charging you Tiered or ULO prices at the start of the next billing period after that.

Because a switch in prices can only take effect at the beginning of a billing period, it will take some time between the day you provide your election form and the day you actually start getting charged Tiered prices.

Even if you provide your election form to Entegrus before the end of October, you’ll very likely pay TOU prices for at least some period of time – between November 1 and the time when your next complete billing period starts (or the billing period after that, depending on when you provide your election form).

Yes. And the rules that apply to switching also apply if you later want to switch back..

If you live in a condo or apartment that has its own individual meter and your bill comes from a company other than your electricity utility, you are a customer of a unit sub-meter provider (USMP). Customers of USMPs also can’t switch. That decision can only be made for the building as a whole by the master consumer, who is the person that retained a USMP for the property. In most cases, the master consumer is the property manager, landlord or condominium board.

No. You will still receive the credit.

No. You will still receive the credit.

Yes. Utilities are required to inform all new Regulated Price Plan customers that they have a choice between TOU, Tiered or ULO prices when they set up the account.

There are three TOU periods:

• Off-peak: When demand for electricity is lowest. Ontario households use most of their electricity – nearly two thirds of it – during off-peak hours.

• Mid-peak: When demand for electricity is moderate. These periods are during the daytime, but not the busiest times of day.

• On-peak: When demand for electricity is generally higher. These are the busier times of day - generally when people are cooking, starting up their computers and running heaters or air conditioners.

People use electricity differently depending on the season, so the TOU price periods are different in the winter than they are in the summer.

View current TOU prices

In the winter period (November 1 – April 30), the Tier threshold for residential customers is 1,000 kWh so that households can use more power at the lower price. In the summer period (May 1 – October 31), the Tier threshold for residential customers is 600 kWh.

For small business customers, the Tier threshold is 750 kWh all year round.

Tiered prices give you the flexibility to use electricity at any time of day at the same price, although that price will change if you exceed the threshold during the month.

View current Tiered prices

There are four ULO price periods:

• Ultra-Low Overnight, when demand for electricity is lowest on average.
• Weekend Off-peak, when demand for electricity is generally lower.
• Mid-peak, when demand for electricity is moderate.
• On-peak, when demand for electricity is highest on average.

The ULO price periods are the same in the summer as they are in the winter. On weekends and holidays the cheapest rates are in effect all day

View current ULO prices

Do you pay TOU or Tiered prices for your electricity? If you’re unsure, take a look at the Electricity line of your bill. Most residential and small business customers in Ontario pay TOU prices

How much electricity do you use in a month? If you’re unsure, take a look at the Electricity line on your bill. You might also want to look at the historical usage graph on your bill, which shows your average daily usage over the past 12-month period.

Entegrus customers can also Login to My Account to view detailed consumption history and compare price plans using your own consumption.

When you use electricity can be another factor in your choice. Historically, the typical residential customer who paid TOU prices has used nearly two thirds of their power at off-peak times – the time when the lowest TOU price applies. The other third of their power used was typically split equally between on- and mid-peak times. Look at the Electricity line of your bill to see how much power you use in each of the three TOU price periods.

Entegrus customers can also Login to My Account to view detailed consumption history and compare price plans using your own consumption.

As described above, the TOU price periods and Tier thresholds change with the season and are different during the winter (November 1 – April 30) and summer (May 1 – October 31) periods. The ULO price periods are the same in the summer as they are in the winter. Does the amount of electricity you use change based on the season?

If you’re thinking about switching, you should pay close attention to how much electricity you use in a month, because on Tiered pricing the price is higher for every kWh of electricity that you use above the Tier threshold of 1,000 kWh in the winter or 600 kWh in the summer. For instance, if you heat your home electrically, your monthly use in the winter may be higher. And the same goes for the summer if you need to run your air conditioner.

With TOU prices, the price depends on when you use electricity. Although the TOU price periods also change with the season, the electricity you use after 7 p.m. every day, and all the time on weekends and holidays, is charged at the lowest price under TOU all year round.

Are you often home during the day on weekdays, so that shifting your usage is more challenging? Do you have large appliances that you need to run during the day on weekdays? Can you shift more of that usage to nighttime or weekend hours?

If you’re a small business owner, some of the same factors mentioned earlier also apply – how much electricity do you use each month, and when do you use it? Keep in mind that the Tier threshold for small business customers is 750 kWh all year round. And not all small businesses are the same. A large restaurant with several ovens running in the evening may have a very different electricity usage pattern than a small salon that’s only open during the day. So may a dry cleaner compared to a convenience store, or a clothing store compared to a bakery.

You can switch through the 'Rate Plan Comparison' tool. 

Login to My Account: 

• select the Smart Meter tab on the left. 
• select 'Rate Plan Comparison'
• select the dates you would like to compare, and press 'refresh chart'
• If you would like change your rate plan, click the 'Change My Rate Plan' button (marked by red arrow below).

Register / Login

Email: customerservice@entegrus.com

Live Chat: Entegrus.com

Telephone: 1-866-804-7325 (Option 2)

• Starting October 13, 2020, Entegrus must make its election form available on its website, and to any customer that requests it. Entegrus must accept election forms by email or mail at a minimum.

• You’ll need to fill out the election form to notify Entegrus that you want to switch. The form is intended to be as simple as possible in terms of the information that you need to provide. You should have a recent electricity bill on hand when filling out the form, as you will need your utility account number. For help to find the account number and other parts of the electricity bill, see sample TOU and Tiered bills on the Ontario Energy Board’s website at www.oeb.ca/choice.

• Within 10 business days of receiving your election form, Entegrus must tell you if your election form can’t be processed and must explain why (for instance, if you’re not authorized to make changes to the account, or the account can’t be verified).

• If there are no issues with your election form, Entegrus has the same 10 business days to let you know when you can expect to start being billed on Tiered prices.

• A switch from TOU to Tiered prices can only take effect at the start of a billing period. You are generally billed for a 30-day period, and the start and end dates are identified on your electricity bill.

• Entegrus must start charging you Tiered prices as of your next billing period after you submit your election form if it receives that form at least 10 business days before that billing period starts, and provided there are no issues with your form (see above).

• If Entegrus receives your complete election form less than 10 business days before the start of your next billing period, it might still be able to switch you for your next billing period. But if it can’t do so, it has to start charging you Tiered prices at the start of the next billing period after that.

• Because a switch in prices can only take effect at the beginning of a billing period, it will take some time between the day you provide your election form and the day you actually start getting charged Tiered prices.

• Even if you provide your election form to Entegrus by the end of October, you’ll very likely pay TOU prices for at least some period of time – between November 1 and the time when your next complete billing period starts (or the billing period after that depending on when you provide your election form).

• If you have chosen to switch to Tiered prices and later decide you want to go back to TOU prices, you can do that at any time. The process described above applies.

• Entegrus is required to inform all new residential and small business customers that they have a choice between TOU or Tiered prices when they set up the account.

• The choice between TOU and Tiered prices is available to nearly all residential and small business customers that have smart meters and are billed on TOU. Some residential and small business customers are charged Tiered prices because their meters can’t be used to bill TOU prices. They can’t switch to TOU prices at this time.

• If you live in a condominium or apartment that has its own individual meter and your bill comes from a company other than Entegrus, you are a customer of a unit sub-meter provider (USMP). Customers of USMPs also can’t switch to Tiered prices. That decision can only be made for the building as a whole by the “master consumer,” who is the person that retained a USMP for the property. In most cases, the master consumer is the property manager, landlord or condominium board.

• Customers that are buying their electricity from an energy retailer pay the electricity price set out in their contract. Once they have left their retail contract, they will have a choice between paying TOU or Tiered prices. For details about your energy contract, contact your energy retailer.

For more information about TOU and Tiered pricing, visit our Frequently Asked Questions regarding TOU / Customer Choice or visit oeb.ca/choice.