20180131Report.pdf

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Avista Corp.
l4l I East Mission P.O. Box 3727
Spokane, Washington 99220-0500
Telephone [phone]
Toll Free 800-727-9170
January 31,2018
State of Idaho
Idaho Public Utilities Commission
472W. Washington St.
Boise,ID 83702-5983
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Re:
Attention: Ms. Diane Hanian, Secretary
Case Nos. AVU-E-16-01 and AW-G-16-01 - Avista Utilities Q4 2017 Fee-Free
Payment Program Report
Dear Ms. Hanian:
On April 1,2016 the Commission issued Order No. 33494 in Case Nos. AW-E-16-01
and AVU-G-16-01 approving Avista Corporation's, dba Avista Utilities (Avista or Company),
petition for an order authoizing accounting and ratemaking treatment of its residential fee-free
payment program. In its petition, the Company sought to defer the costs associated with offering
the fee-free payment for up to 36 months from the time the program went into effect. The fee-
free payment program was successfully launched on February 19,2017.
In its petition, the Company agreed to provide updates to the Commission every six
months about the program's progress. In the Company's Washington and Oregon jurisdictions it
agreed to provide updates to the Commission every three months. For consistency across
jurisdictions and ease of reporting, the Company will be providing updates to the Idaho
Commission every three months that coincide with the quarters of the calendar year.
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Avista's residential fee-free payment program encompasses previous methods of
payments that were assessed a fee or not available. The program includes the following payment
methods and channels:
o Credit and debit card payments made through a Customer Service Representative
(CSR), through the Company's lntegrated Voice Recognition (IVR) system, through
its website as a one-time guest payment, through its website as an authenticated user,
and for Automatic Payment Service (APS) payments.
o Automated Clearing House (ACH) payments made through a CSR, through the
Company's IVR system, and through its website as a one-time guest payment.
Prior to the launch of the program customers could free of charge by ACH through the
Company's website as an authenticated user and for APS payments. Also, prior to the launch of
the program APS payments were limited to only ACH payment methods.
The following table represents the residential payment information for the Company's
Idaho customers by month:
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Table No. I
Pavments January February March Aoril Mav June Julv Auqust September October November December Total
Total Payments 107,528 99, I 84 I 13,208 103,789 I 09,400 l0l,93l t06,273 109,977 97.55s I15,769 108.400 96.553 1.269.567
Fiserv Payments 12,768 49,581 46,770 50,919 44,555 49,245 50,200 44,543 54.927 52.218 45.495 sot.22t
Fee-Free Fiseru 3,601 I 1,060 10,836 I 1,659 12,458 13,794 14,332 t4.t29 17,t41 t7.817 16.278 1 43.1 05
Kubra Fee-Free
Equivalent*7,495 4.810 8 12,314
Total Fee-Free 7.495 8.41I I 1.068 10.836 I 1.660 12.458 t3.794 14,332 14,129 l7,l4l t7,817 16,278 155,419
Fee-Free
Payments as oZ
ofTotal 7.0%8.s%9.8%l0.4yo 10.7%13.0%13.0%14.5o/o l4.gyo 16.4%t69%t2.2%
Equivalent - these payments represent payments from February l'r - I that would have come through the fee-free payment program. Kubra
did not process APS payments, which Fiserv now does, including the ability for customers to sign up for APS by credit or debit card.
Table No. 2 below includes additional detail on certain payment channels. This information is highlighted to monitor trends in customers'
payment behavior. Note that the data in Table No. 2 will not subtotal to the data in Table No. I as there is overlap in payment information by
channel (i.e., "Total Card Payments" includes card payments made through APS, CSRs, the IVR, and web).
Table No.2
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Pavment Method January February March April M.v June Julv August September October November December Total
APS by ACH 13,861 14,970 I 8,645 17,937 2t,099 16,087 I 8,894 20, l 86 I 5,988 21.585 19,315 15,414 2 13.981
APS by Debit or
Credit Card l0 198 465 8s8 9t4 1.360 1.769 t,692 2,518 J <'r)2,194 14,500
Total APS Paymcnts l 3.861 14.980 I 8.843 I 8.402 21.957 17.001 20.2s4 21.955 I 7,680 24,103 21,837 I 7,608 228,481
Total Card Payments 7,O4l 7.814 I 0.079 9.879 10.744 I l.l 80 12.s37 13,t25 I 3,004 I 5,8 l2 16,493 I 5,086 142,794
CSR Payments 1.793 2.t90 3.019 2.601 2.602 2.693 2.534 2.s44 1 10a 2,663 2,418 2,1 85 29,539
IVR Payments 2,668 2.913 3.501 1 155 3.424 3.819 3.965 3,780 3,633 4,094 4,042 3,512 42,706
Bank Bill Payments 20.856 18.824 2l.051 19,145 20.346 19,362 I 9.585 20. r 58 17.655 21,t06 18,332 16,817 233,237
Mailed & Lobby
Payments 35.1 I I 30,422 35,521 31,467 32,1s2 32.298 3t,844 33.671 30. l 00 34.010 3l .315 27.6|385.s22
Pay Station Payments 5,82 I 5,451 6,046 s 557 5,523 5,151 5,264 s.2l 8 4,717 5.33 I 4.756 4.036 62.871
Web Based Payments 25.363 23,174 24.t84 22,376 22.907 20.99s 22,445 2 I.885 20.893 24.017 23.866 )) l<)274.2s7
I
Chart No. I below displays the payment trends from Table No. 2.
Chart No. 1
2OL7 lD Residential Payment Trends
,ooo25
40,ooo
35,OOO
30,ooo
20,ooo
15,OOO
10,ooo
5,OOO
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*"" ..""-"" .rg"t €$ *q- r""" t"t*
""-- *c """" """""" _""""
..--Total APS Payments +Total Cerd Payments
.-.-Mailed & LobbV Payments+Pav Station Payments
<*CSR Payments
.+-Web Based Payments
+lVR Payments
+Bank Bill Pavments
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For historical comparison purposes Table No. 3 displays residential payment data from
2015 and 2016. The column labeled "Payments Subject to Convenience Fee" represents the
payments that were previously charged a fee and no longer do through the Company's fee-free
payment program.
Table No.3
Year # of Residential
Payments
Payments Subject
to Convenience Fee 7o of Total
2015 1,273,654 71,375 5.60%
2016 1,286,848 82,977 6.45%
Chart No. 2 gaphically shows the trend in fee-free payments in 2017 compared to the
historical annual average in 2015 and2016.
Chart No.2
ldaho Fee-Free Payments by Month Compared to Historical Avenges
18.0%t6.9%
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14.5%
14.0%13,0%
12.2%
12.gYol?'7%
10.(Vo l1.4o/o l0'7%85%9.8Yo
8.0% 7.0%
6.4%6.SYo
5,6%
4.0%
2.0o/o
Jan-17 Feb-17 Mar-17 Apr-17 May-17 lun-17 Jul-17 Aug-17 Sep-17 Oct-17 Nov-17 Dec-17
..e-2017
-2015
Avg _2015 Avg
-2017
Avg
0.0%
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To date the Company has paid invoices through November, of which $189,830 has been
deferred for customer transactions through the fee-free payment program.
Please direct any questions regarding this report to Shawn Bonfield at 509-495-2782 or
[e-mail] or myself at 509-495-4975 or [e-mail]
Sincerely,
.4rrda Eounto
Sr. Manager Regulatory Policy
Avista Utilities
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Definitions
Automated Clearing House (ACH) - an electronic network for financial transactions in the United States.
Payments made by checking or savings accounts.
Automatic Payment Service (APS) - payment option by which a customer can sign up to have payments
automatically deducted from their checking account, savings account, debit card, or credit card on their
bill due date each month.
Bank Bill Payments - payments initiated through a customer's bank account and transferred to the
Company via ACH.
Card Payments - debit and credit card payments.
Customer Service Representative (CSR) - Avista employee who works in its Customer Service
Department and answers customer phone calls.
CSR Payments - payments taken by Avista's Customer Service Representatives over the phone.
Fiserv - Avista's payment processing vendor as of February 19,2017 .
Integrated Voice Recoglition System (IVR) - Avista's automated phone system a customer first reaches
when calling the Company at l-800-227-9187.
IVR Payments - payments received through the Company's IVR system.
Kubra - Avista's payment processing vendor prior to February 19,2017.
Mailed & Lobby Payments - payments mailed to the Company or taken in one of the Company's lobbies
located in Spokane, Washington, Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, or Lewiston, Idaho. These also include payments
placed in drop boxes at the Company's office centers.
Pay Station Payments - payments made at authorized Company pay stations.
Web Based Payments - payments made on the Company's website.
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