All-electric house in Enfield

Marjorie Stradinger, a retired writer in Enfield, is highly concerned about the projected increase because she has an all-electric house, including electric heat. Her most recent monthly bill, she said, was $386, and she fears it could potentially reach $1,000 per month with the doubling of generation rates as her usage also increases in the cold winter months. In the past, she said she had saved “hundreds’’ of dollars in the winter while dealing with various third-party suppliers.

“We have our thermostat set for 61 degrees,’’ Stradinger told The Courant. “We’ve never had it this low. We had it at 65 last year.’’

Stradinger was so upset that she posted her concerns on an open forum on Facebook that reaches Enfield residents. In less than 24 hours, she had 67 responses from fellow residents concerned about the situation.

“They’re blocking us from our legal right to switch suppliers,’’ Stradinger said. “If I had signed up for it, I wouldn’t be angry. It’s 1984.’’

Customers who have been trying to switch to Constellation are receiving an automatic letter sent back by the generator.

“We have received an enrollment rejection from your local utility, Eversource, for ANEAccount Not Eligible,’’ the letter states. “This means that a block has been placed on your account that prevents it from switching to a supplier. If you believe that your account should be eligible to switch to Constellation, you can contact Eversource at 800-2862828 and request removal of the block so that you can enroll with an electric choice supplier. Any restriction on the account must be removed before Constellation can resubmit your enrollment or it will be rejected again.’’

In a statement, Constellation noted that hardship customers must sign a waiver before they can switch to a new electric generator — stating that more than 1,000 customers had been blocked from signing up.

“We recognize that this process may delay a customer’s ability to sign on with a third-party supplier, which could prevent those customers from taking advantage of some supplier offers,’’ the company said. “Constellation welcomes the opportunity to serve these customers and has been working with customers and PURA’s Office of Education, Outreach and Enforcement to help ensure that any customer who wants to enroll with Constellation and benefit from the certainty of our long-term fixed price offers is able to do so.’’

Black Lives Matter 860 recently tweeted, “Eversource prevents anyone on programs or assistance from switching providers. This locks the lowest-income Connecticut residents into paying Eversource’s higher rates. Low-income Connecticut residents are being preyed on by Eversource.’’