I began a 6-month contract with Champion last year in October 2010. I got a very good rate of 7.5cents per kWh and received two different new customer credit discounts of $25 each totaling $50 within the first 2-3 months of service. However, when I received an email notifying me that my contract would be ending and up for renewal this April, I thought I would have some time before renewing. Wrong! I began complaining about this, but only to see that as I login daily that the rates have been going up, up and up! Since 3/11/11 they have steadily (daily, weekly) risen from 8.6, 8.7, 8.8, 9.0 and today a posting of 9.3! They told me that it was due to fluctuations in the natural gas market prices, which I do not understand. They also told me when I had previously inquired about renewal rates in an email, that "your new rate will probably be the same or less than what you are currently on." Big LIE and they knew it ahead of time!! They also told me in a subsequent email that I was on their "winter rate plan" and "your new rates will be increasing for the summer." Valerie Contreras is one of the CS reps who will lie to you and just tell you what she thinks sounds good to get your hopes up to renew. Terrible business ethics who needs to be totally re-trained! I also saw where they quickly made the 14 month plan obsolete and deleted it completely from my viewing. They do not have any renewal plans for anything less than 12 months now just to force one into a horrible rate long-term. Before I knew it, someone messed around with the Promo code of 'RENEWPREF' which was going to give me a preferred customer rate of 8.7, and removed this from my being able to enter. Someone is messing with the system and jacking, jacking, jacking UP the rates. I'm thinking of starting to see a trend just like 'ol crappy, sucky TXU! Champion's online billing system is a backwards joke for sure. One cannot "schedule" a 'future' payment for when your bill is due. You either pay it realtime right when your're online or wait until the day it is due. They have some silly online Excel spreadsheet for reporting, which does not accurately work or make any sense..period! So why even have some nonsense out there at all? They are complete IDIOTS! They like to 'brag' about being a recipient of J.D. Powers & Associates. But go out to JDPA's website and you will not find a mention for the last year for them as a preferred Retail Electric Provider. Again, false advertising just to con one into signing up on their website! Also, they don't even have any customer testimonies on their website! WHAT business intheir right mind would ot do that??? I was the one who told them that they needed to get with the program and be on FaceBook, Twitter, etc. I mean really, they are major ass-backwards for eCommerce! I have to wonder who is running their Business Development team. I don't think they even have one. They are complete idiots with very, very inexperienced young and dumb (probably well-underpaid) staff who know NOTHING about online billing, ecommerce, customer retention, etc. And BTW, you don't even have the capability to change your telephone number. Big brother, yea is watching. Or goo-goo gah-gah I'm a baby and don't know what to do...!!! You have to 'notify' a CS person to do it cause the online system won't let you! Then, upon renewal if you don't renew a contract like RIGHT AWAY..they try and put the screws to you! If you "complain" as I have, then they start to get pissed off after a few emails and send a copy to 'escalating'. They are the ones who get unprofessional when they should be working to keep you as a valued customer. I'm looking at possibly contracting with StarTex Power, but have found that people either love them or just really hate their guts. Deregulation sucks, and all the corporate greedy, dirty (not to mention dumkopfs) have come out of the woodwork to take advantage of folks. (I wish I could get solar screens put on my roof.) Because raising the rates on a daily basis to get up to where greedy giants like TXU are now is just...WRONG!! I'm sure by April, May months Champion will be up to 11 or 12 cents per kWh and I feel sorry for the people whose contract ends at this time. If anyone has any suggestions I'm all to hear it.