8 Questions Delawareans Should Ask Before Switching Utility Providers

Delaware’s Division of the Public Advocate says electricity supply prices jumped 19% this summer for the state’s largest utility, pushing the average bill higher before anyone switched a thing.

That’s the price for doing nothing.

More than a hundred companies hold a state license to sell you electricity instead.

These are the questions Delawareans should ask before switching utility providers.

Note: This is general information, not financial or legal advice. Supplier pricing, contract terms, and licensing details are subject to change, so confirm the current specifics with the Delaware Public Service Commission.

1. Is This Even Delmarva Territory?

Delmarva Power is the only electric utility in the state whose customers can shop around for a different supplier.

Delaware opened its electricity supply to competition back in 1999.

That boundary hasn’t moved since.

Not every address counts, though.

Nine Delaware towns run their municipal electric utility, including Newark, Dover, Milford, Seaford, and Lewes.

None of those customers can switch suppliers.

Delaware Electric Cooperative members are technically eligible too, but no supplier has signed up to serve them.

That leaves them with nobody to switch to in practice.

Check the name on your bill before you take a call from anybody selling power.

2. Is the Supplier Certified?

Delaware’s Public Service Commission has to certify a utility company before it can sell you electricity.

More than 100 companies hold that certification today.

Most of them aren’t selling to anyone, though.

Only about 16 are active and registered to serve Delaware households.

The other 84 aren’t actively serving anyone.

The commission keeps that shorter list on its website, updated regularly.

That shorter list is the difference between a licensed supplier and a stranger with a script.

3. Fixed Rate or Variable Rate?

Delaware regulators require every electricity provider to spell out whether a plan is fixed-rate or variable-rate before you sign.

A fixed rate holds steady for the length of the contract.

A variable rate moves with the market, sometimes every billing cycle.

Ask first.

That distinction matters more than it sounds like it should.

The supply you’re shopping for makes up about 65% of a typical Delmarva bill.

Delivery charges stay fixed no matter which supplier you pick.

That’s the only part of the bill a competing supplier can touch.

4. When Does the Deal Expire?

Delaware suppliers often lead with a promotional rate that undercuts Delmarva’s price for the first few months after you switch.

The commission’s guidance warns that suppliers may offer a lower price at first, then let it expire and reset higher.

Once that window closes, the price can reset well above what first sold you on switching.

That’s not a rumor.

Ask exactly how long the introductory period runs and what the rate becomes after it.

Get that answer in writing, not over the phone.

5. Is There an Early Termination Fee?

Delaware regulation makes a provider’s sales agent walk through the contract before you agree to anything.

That includes whether an early termination fee applies if you cancel.

Some contracts charge nothing to leave.

Others charge a flat fee for every month left on the term.

Read the fine print.

Breaking a twelve-month contract in month three isn’t free.

A written clause holds up.

A spoken promise doesn’t.

6. Does It Beat Delmarva’s Rate?

A competing electricity provider’s rate only saves you money if it beats Delmarva Power’s current default rate.

That default rate, called Standard Offer Service, jumped 19% this summer.

Residential summer supply now runs just over 11 cents a kilowatt-hour, up from about 9.4 cents the year before.

That’s the bar to clear.

A supplier’s rate has to sit meaningfully below that number to make the switch worth the paperwork.

If a sales pitch never brings up Delmarva’s current rate for comparison, ask why.

7. Did They Call You First?

The Delaware Public Service Commission has caught third-party marketers spoofing Delmarva Power’s customer service number to pressure people into switching.

The caller ID says Delmarva.

The person on the line doesn’t.

No supplier speaks for the state, the commission, or Delmarva Power.

If you didn’t call them, be skeptical of anyone who calls you first.

Hang up and look up the company yourself.

Delaware’s Division of the Public Advocate takes complaints about pushy sales tactics too.

8. Who Handles an Outage?

No matter which electricity provider you pick, Delmarva Power keeps owning the poles, wires, and meters.

Switching suppliers only changes who bills you for the electricity.

Delmarva still reads the meter, maintains the lines, and responds when the power goes out.

That part never changes.

Delaware’s Public Service Commission is direct about it: Call your local utility during an outage, never your supplier.

That number should already be saved in your phone, not handed to you by a canvasser.

What About Your Gas Bill?

Natural gas customers can’t switch to a different supplier at all.

The state tried it once.

A gas choice pilot ran from May 1999 to October 2001, open to a limited group of homes and small businesses.

Rising gas prices pushed the participating suppliers to walk away, and the commission shut the pilot down.