If you own a business, it means that your computers, machinery, or cash registers can always be counted on to work when things are busiest.
At home, it means your personal space can always be relied on to be well-lit and comfortable, and the electricity-driven items that make your life easier are always doing their jobs when you want them.
Reliable electricity even makes a difference when you’re out on the road. It powers streetlights, traffic lights and crossing signals that make travel safe and orderly.
Strong electric service touches just about everything you do, everywhere you go. That’s why we’re proud to say that PPL Electric Utilities’ reliability in 2017 was our strongest on record.
In recent years we’ve been installing smart grid technology, using data analytics to improve equipment maintenance and replacement, replacing older poles and equipment with strong newer models, doing comprehensive clearing of vegetation along power lines, installing better protection against damage from lightning strikes, and more.
The result? Our customers experienced 550,000 fewer interruptions in 2017 than they did 10 years before. In fact, PPL Electric Utilities customers now experience some of the best electric reliability in the country: PPL ranks in the top 11 percent of utilities nationwide in terms of the lowest average number of outages per customer, according to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.
You might have noticed this reliability during the extreme cold of January. Our system handled high demand and cold temperatures without missing a beat. That’s our goal any time extreme weather arrives, whether it’s winter cold or summer heat.
What’s next? Well, we continue to invest in improving our grid. There are always places where we can improve – places where the system can be strengthened or made more flexible. We continue to trim trees, rebuild power lines, replace old poles, and more.
We’ll never be able to completely banish outages – especially after high winds, ice storms or other natural menaces.
But we’re committed to continued improvement. Because we know that whether you’re at work, at home or on the road, you count on us to deliver.
Thinking about promoting your yard sale, band concert, or campaign for township supervisor by posting signs on utility poles?
Please don’t.
Posting signs or posters on utility poles is unsafe and, in many cases, illegal. Our line workers can be injured if their climbing hooks strike a nail, tack or staple that has been hammered into a pole. The fasteners also could tear the rubber equipment our workers wear to protect against electrical shock.
Section 6905 of the Pennsylvania Crimes Code makes it a summary offense to drive a nail or tack into a utility pole. (Don’t believe us? You can read it here.)
Even if the posters are affixed with tape or string, they can still cause problems. The signs can hide identifying markers on poles, slowing our efforts to locate the source of trouble in the event of a power outage.
In addition, many communities have laws prohibiting the posting of signs or posters on poles by any means. (Some communities are cracking down on these postings, as seen in this WBRE/WYOU news story from November 2017.)
We know our poles appear to be a high-visibility place to post messages. But when you do that, you’re putting our workers at risk, and most likely breaking the law. So, again, please don’t.
At Halloween, we love to see princesses, vampires and superheroes ring the bell. But if fake utility workers come to your house, we want you to shut the door.
Utility impostors are an evergreen-type scam that shows up now and again. Here’s how it works:
Someone will come to the door claiming to represent PPL or a PPL contractor. (They may also pose as a utility worker from the cable, water, or phone company.)
They’ll ask the customer to come outside to look at work that needs to be done.
Another scammer will enter the house and take money or valuables while the customer is outside and distracted in conversation.
It’s fairly rare that we will ask customers to come look at work that needs to be done. And the employees and contractors who might do this – such as meter technicians – often work alone, not in pairs. But it’s possible that a legitimate PPL representative might invite a customer outside to look at work or equipment.
How can you slam the door on scammers? Here are a few suggestions.
If you choose to come outside with any person – PPL or otherwise – it’s a good idea to close and lock all doors so no one can enter your home while you’re out. A legitimate PPL employee or contractor will wait while you do this. (Don’t forget to bring a key with you, of course.)
Any PPL employee or contractor will provide ID on request.
You can also call us at 1-800-DIAL-PPL (342-5775) to confirm that we have employees or contractors working in your area. (Have the person at your door tell you what company they represent and give you a clear description of the work they are there to do. This will help us verify.)
If you contact PPL, and you are still not completely sure of the identity of the people at your door, dial 911 to have law enforcement respond for assistance.
This scam sometimes targets elderly customers or those who live alone. If you have a friend or family member who fits that description, please share this information with them.
Together, we’ll make “utility impostor” a costume that doesn’t pay off.
We want everyone to have a cool and efficient summer. But some days, when the air is thick and the temperature reaches 90 or above, it can be a challenge to stay comfortable without air conditioning.
Check out our video above. Give the tips a try. And stay cool!
