RecoverIR™ Blog

In early December 2010, with the nationwide unemployment rate edging up to 9.8%, the jobless rate hovering above 9% for 19 consecutive months, more than 3 million people scheduled poised to lose unemployment benefits unless Congress extends benefits beyond an unprecidented 99 months, and local and state governments cutting budgets including subsidies for home heating, more heads of household will be motivated to become energy thieves.

As utilities across the nation push for installation of smart meters and smart grids, these same utilities hope to reduce their manpower required to “read the meters”, there will be fewer and less frequent actual eyeballs monitoring for illegal activity in homes. If you don’t think more people break the law when there is less monitoring, then ask yourself, “Do more people speed when fewer tickets are given out? Why do department stores hire people to prevent theft? Why does Wal-Mart, Best Buy, Costco, and many other retailers post someone at the exits to their stores?”

As more are motivated to steal energy, the indirect costs to cities go up as a result of more fires, deaths, electrocutions, and other avoidable accidents associated with energy theft.

Who will pay for the direct and indirect costs of these energy thieves? The bill paying customers? Through higher utility bills? Through more taxes on energy bills?