Prepaid electricity gives you control over how much money you spend. You do not have any surprises. So long as you stay on top of how many electricity supply credits you have, you do not have to worry about disconnections.

There are many ways to make a prepayment on electricity. Payment options vary from state to state, in different areas, and between different electricity suppliers.

In some cases, consumers install a smart electricity meter near their dwelling. The customer then buys a special card authorizing the usage of a certain number of kilowatt hours.

The meter will indicate how many electricity supply credits have been used so the customer can know when to go buy another card.

However, not all places have these smart meters for prepaid electricity. In these regions, people must make other arrangements for purchasing electricity supply credits.

Many electricity providers now allow people to prepay electricity supply credits online. This is the most convenient way to buy them. Other companies allow for people to buy electricity supply credits over the phone.

Still other electricity suppliers will allow people to prepay their electricity at kiosks that are located in shopping malls. All the customer has to do is to provide his or her account number and purchase the electricity supply units with a credit card.

In some instances, the electricity supplier may require people to come into the office or to a payment center to make the payment.

In all of these instances, anytime there is no meter for the customer to read, the electricity supplier monitors the power usage for the customer. When the prepaid balance is near exhaustion, the supplier then issues a phone or email alert to the customer telling him or her that it is now time to purchase more prepaid electricity.

Qualification for postpaid electricity plans sometimes requires very large deposits for people with shaky credit. Not only does this cost more money in addition to the first months bill, but it also represents a chunk of money that it may take a great deal of time to recover from the provider once service is terminated.

For persons who do not like to make deposits like this, prepaid electricity is a much better path to take. It is paying up front just like a deposit, but it is often less than a postpaid deposit, and it involves no additional monthly bill other than the prepayment amount itself.

The benefits of prepaid electricity do not just extend to individual consumers. They have added value to the commercial marketplace as well, particularly in the residential rental business. Many apartment complexes get into disputes with tenants over unpaid power bills.

Depending on how the electricity is billed in a given complex, the apartment management can have all kinds of problems when tenants do not pay their bills.

These disputes typically end with tenants becoming angry and moving away. By installing smart electricity meters at every unit, however, apartment complexes allow people to see just how much electricity they have paid for and used.

It also keeps the responsibility of power costs squarely on the shoulders of the tenant. Studies indicate that apartments who have installed smart meters are now retaining more tenants for lease renewals.

Author Bio: For more information on Carbon offsets MXearth an initiative by mxenergy as well as more info on this energy company visit us online. For more information on electricity providers in your area visit the mxenergy site for service.

Category: Business
Keywords: Prepaid Electricity, Electricity Supply, Affordable Electricity, Electric Companies, Electric Plans