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OPINION & LETTERSTHE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR:The Oakville BeaverTHE OAKVILLE BEAVER IS PROUD OFFICIAL MEDIA SPONSOR FOR:Canadian Circulation467 Speers Rd.,Audit Board Member Oakville Ont. L6K 3S4 Recognized for Excellence by(905) 845-3824 Fax: 337-5571ClassiOntario CommunityCanadian Communityfied Advertising: 632-4440 Newspapers AssociationNewspapers AssociationCirculation: 845-9742 Open 9-5 weekdays,ATHENASuburban NewspapersAward5-7 for calls only Wed. to Friday, Closed weekendsof AmericaEditorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. NEIL OLIVERVice President and Group ROD JERREDManaging EditorMARK DILLSDirector of ProductionUnauthorized use is prohibited.Publisher of Metroland WestDANIEL BAIRDAdvertising DirectorMANUEL GARCIAProduction ManagerThe Oakville Beaver is a division ofDAVID HARVEYRegional General ManagerRIZIERO VERTOLLIPhotography DirectorCHARLENE HALLDirector of DistributionJILL DAVISEditor in ChiefSANDY PAREBusiness ManagerSARAH MCSWEENEYCirc. ManagerLetter to the editorLowest Time-of-Use Ratesunfair to manyof the lowRe:Ouch! Hydro bills will jumpwith introduction of Time-of-Use-Those who seek to defraud the elderly are among soci-Rates, Oakville Beaver,Feb. 25etys lowest of the low. I tend to agree with Jeff KnollLast weeks news that Halton police had busted up anwith respect to penalizing people foralleged fraud ring that preyed on seniors reveals a disturb-staying at home.ing reality about the potential risk associated with the sim-I have been very fortunate to be aple act of answering your own phone.stay at home mom so I tend to doAccording to police, an organization of seven people my chores during what hydro callsincluding two Oakville residents allegedly used a tech-the peak time 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. nique commonly referred to as the Emergency Scam orNow, thats no problem in theGrandson Scam.summer and spring. I guess I couldBetweendo my grass cutting and gardeningThey are drawing this November 2010 andthen. Also grocery shopping andinformation out of the last months Familypossibly housecleaning. Day weekend, policeseniors and that's whatBut I am still penalized as 11estimate a singlemakes this a particularly a.m. to 5 p.m. is mid-peak. I cannotoperation wasdespicable type of crime.believe that off peak for the winter isresponsible for tak-9 p.m. to 7 a.m. Who stays up thating an estimated $3late? Halton Police Superintendentmillion from seniorsWho has the luxury of having aChris Perkinsin the United Stateswasher and dryer miles away fromand Canada bedrooms and family room, so youThe Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerationsincluding a number of Halton victims.Letters toand grammar. In order to be published all letters must contain the name, address and phone number of the author. dont have to listen to it if you couldThe scam involves a caller claiming to be a relative Letters should be addressed toThe Editor, Oakville Beaver, 467 Speers Rd., Oakville, ON, L6K 3S4, or via do it at that hour? We go to bed ate-mail to editor@oakvillebeaver.com. TheBeaverreserves the right to refuse to publish a letter.the editoroften a grandson in trouble and in need of immediate10 p.m. how does one get anycash.loads turned around in an hour?Police say the phone fraud artists may use informationTime-of-Use-Rates encourage conservationThe summer hours are a bit bet-about their victim gathered from social networking sites orRe: Ouch! Hydro bills will jump with and senior consumers who can't adjust.ter, but still my 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. is aobituaries, but more commonly manipulate their victimsintroduction of Time-of-Use-Rates, Oakville If Toronto Hydro's experience is indicative, combo of mid-peak and on-peak. into revealing details that help them perpetrate the scam.Beaver,Feb. 25about 40 per cent of electricity users will see Would you not think that if every-They are drawing this information out of the seniorsThe only way hydro bills 'will' jump is if a decrease, and the average increase will be one who worked, a lot do of course,and thats what makes this a particularly despicable type of consumers are unable or unwilling to adjust about $1.50 per month. and people on shift or who stay upcrime, said Halton Police Superintendent Chris Perkins.how and when they use electricity. Sure the current TOU rate structure isn't late, that the off-peak of 9 p.m. to 7The Halton Regional Police Service urges people toFor some, bills will go up, for some bills perfect and most experts agree the spread a.m. would be the time everyonespeak to their elderly family members and pass on the fol-'will' go down. Unfortunately, there will be between peak and off-peak rates needs to be would be doing hydro usage stuff?lowing tips to help them avoid becoming a victim of a simi-those who will have a hard time reacting, but wider to create even greater incentives to shift And it would get overloaded? lar scam.the majority of consumers will be able to our energy use. Makes no sense at all. So theIf someone calls claiming to be a relative, ask them toadjust. But remember Oakville, the alternative homemakers and the unemployedidentify themselves first, do not volunteer names or anyHopefully, with an election on the horizon, could be the threat of another peaker gas-or elderly are penalized becauseother information. In some cases, the fraudster will havemaybe there will be mechanisms implement-fired plant in our backyards.they are home from 7 a.m. to 5obtained the first name of a grandchild. To further verifyed to help cushion the impact on low-income David Barrett, Oakvillep.m.?their identity ask them a personal question only your grand- Oh yes, and the remark by Lesleychild could answer such as the full names and dates of birthPud BY STEVE NEASEneasecartoons@gmail.comGallinger, Oakville Hydro vice presi-of their parents or siblings. Ask the caller for a callbackdent of corporate and regulatorynumber. This gives you time to verify their story. Be veryaffairs, that those at home duringsuspicious if the caller refuses.the day still have the ability to shiftSpeak to another family member about the matter toenergy consuming activities, suchconfirm the facts before deciding whether to provide assis-as laundry to off peak periods liketance.the weekends is she crazy?The Oakville Beaver is a member of the Ontario Press Council. The council is located at 80 Gould St., Suite Save laundry of a house of five206, Toronto, Ont., M5B 2M7. Phone 416-340-1981. Advertising is accepted on the condition that, in the until the weekend?event of a typographical error, that portion of advertising space occupied by the erroneous item, together with a reasonable allowance for signature, will not be charged for, but the balance of the advertisement will Boy, that was well thought out.be paid for at the applicable rate. The publisher reserves the right to categorize advertisements or decline. L. Grasset, Oakvillewww.insideHALTON.com OAKVILLE BEAVER Friday, March 4, 2011 6