Hawaiian Electric customer accounts that would normally face disconnection will instead be enrolled in a 12-month payment plan in order to retain service. Affected customers will see higher current charges when the first of 12 installments appears in bills starting in July 2021.

May 31 marked the end of the moratorium on disconnections set by the Public Utilities Commission. Collection activity resumes in July for past due Hawaiian Electric customers who are not already enrolled in a payment plan.

The automatic enrollment affects about 3% of Hawaiian Electric’s residential and smaller commercial customers whose accounts meet the threshold for disconnection – and who either have not contacted the company about their past due balance or are not currently enrolled in a payment plan.

Payment reminder notices have been sent to past due customers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The notices have urged customers to set up payment arrangement and over the past two months informed customers that their accounts would be placed on a 12-month installment plan to avoid disconnection, averting a large one-time payment and allowing time to apply for assistance.

Customers will receive a notice with their bill when the payment plan starts that explains how the arrangement works, including instructions on how to opt out. Bills for customers on payment plans – auto-enrolled or by customer request – will include the current charges, plus the installment amount. The installment amount will differ for each customer. If a customer’s past due amount is small, the installment amount will also be a fraction of the bill. However, if a customer has not made any payment toward their account over this past year, the total current month’s bill amount could more than double.