Utility Deposit Bond - CORE Electric Cooperative in Colorado

Brief Summary

When CORE asks for a deposit equal to an estimated 90 day electric bill, its own regulations let you offer an insurer's bond instead of cash, subject to CORE's approval. For a business or a large new account that can mean keeping several months of power costs in your operating account rather than parked with the cooperative until service ends.

CORE Electric Cooperative may require a deposit equal to an estimated ninety day bill from members with no payment record at CORE, members with late or incomplete payments in the last 24 months, and members whose usage more than doubles. Section 3.18 of CORE's Rates and Regulations allows a bank letter of credit, insurer's bond or other surety in place of cash, upon CORE's review and approval. The bond must be replaced before it expires.

We can help with all Colorado bonds!

How to Apply for a Utility Deposit Bond:

• Get the deposit amount for your account from CORE. It is an estimated 90 day bill or, without usage history, a minimum CORE sets for the service type.
• Confirm with CORE that it will accept a surety bond for your account and ask whether it has required bond wording.
• Have the account holder's legal name and service address exactly as they appear on the CORE account.
• Complete the bond application and review the quoted premium.
• Pay the premium and deliver the signed bond to CORE for review and approval.
• Renew or replace the bond before it expires so CORE does not bill a cash deposit in its place.

Detailed Information About the Colorado Utility Deposit Bond:

How CORE sets the amount

CORE Electric Cooperative serves members along the Front Range south and east of Denver. Its deposit rules sit in Section 3.18 of the Electric Service Regulations, Part IV of CORE's Rates and Regulations. The deposit is an estimated ninety (90) day bill for the account. Where CORE cannot estimate 90 days of usage, it sets a minimum based on typical usage for that service type. There is no fixed dollar figure, so the bond amount is whatever CORE calculates for your account.

When a deposit is required

CORE may require the deposit when:

• You have no previous payment record with CORE.
• You received CORE service within the past 48 months but did not make timely and complete payments over your most recent 24 months of service.
• Your account was disconnected for nonpayment, your CORE internal credit assessment exceeds 68, or usage at the location rises more than 100% above its history. In that case CORE may ask for a new or additional deposit based on the increased usage.
• You are setting up temporary service of 1,000 kVA or more.
• You leave the prepaid billing plan or AutoPay before completing 12 months of continuous enrollment.

Waivers that apply only to homes

Residential members without a CORE payment record in the past 48 months can avoid the cash deposit by passing a credit check, or by enrolling in prepaid billing or AutoPay and staying enrolled for 12 months. A widowed or divorced spouse of a member with a good 24 month record can also be treated as having satisfactory credit. Residential members with a completed bankruptcy or write off with CORE in the past ten years must post cash, unless they enroll in prepaid billing for at least 12 months. Commercial and other non-residential accounts do not get these waivers.

Using a bond instead of cash

The regulation lists an insurer's bond as an accepted non-cash deposit, alongside a bank issued letter of credit, but only after CORE reviews and approves it. CORE is the obligee. You must replace the bond before it expires. The one exception is a residential account that CORE's records show has gone 24 consecutive months with no past due amounts. Non-residential deposits are held until service ends, so a business should plan to keep the bond in force for as long as the account is open.

What the bond covers

If the account closes with an unpaid balance for electric service and fees, CORE can claim against the bond up to its amount. The surety pays and then collects that sum back from you. A deposit or bond never replaces paying your monthly bill when it is due.

Ask CORE member services for the deposit amount on your account and for any bond wording it requires before the bond is issued.

Eligibility and Requirements for a Colorado Utility Deposit Bond:

• CORE Electric Cooperative named as obligee.
• Bond amount equal to the deposit CORE calculates, an estimated 90 day bill.
• Acceptance is at CORE's discretion under Section 3.18 of its Rates and Regulations.
• The bond must stay in force. Non-residential deposits are held until service ends.
• Credit review of the business owner or account holder, which mainly affects the premium rate.

Colorado Utility Deposit Bond FAQs:

Official and Additional Resources for the Colorado Utility Deposit Bond: