As the region continues to deal with a propane shortage, state consumer protection officials have been flooded with complaints about delivery companies failing to meet their obligation to provide the fuel.
The state Division of Consumer Protection has received dozens of calls tied to propane delivery companies in recent weeks, with many of those about people not receiving scheduled deliveries tied to contracts.
The state offered businesses $8 million in credit last month to help suppliers purchase propane, so they could at least serve customers who were already paying for fuel. Governor Scott Walker says “most of the cases we hear complaints about are companies that have not honored their contact with the end user, and certainly we think we provided a way for them financially to do that.” He says “if they haven’t, obviously that’s an area we are going to push back hard on.”
Concerns have also been raised about possible price gouging by propane companies. Walker says that’s an issue the state has no control over, although he has asked President Obama and federal regulators to look into the issue.