EXCERPT:
TALARICO: “I mean, it was 90 out and it was right during the peak period.”
ALLEN (voice-over): “That’s when he found out he had no control of his thermostat. A message from Xcel on his thermostat saying temperature locked during an energy emergency.”
TALARICO: “Normally, when we see a message like that, we’re able to override it. In this case we weren’t, so our thermostat was locked at 78 or 79.”
ALLEN (voice-over): “It turns out he’s not alone. Xcel confirms to Contact Deven 7 22,000 customers were locked out of their smart thermostats for hours on Tuesday.”
ROMINE: “It’s a voluntary program. Let’s remember that this is something that customers choose to be a part of based on the incentives.”
ALLEN (voice-over): “Xcel VP Emmett Romine says customers enrolled in the Colorado AC Rewards Program sign up to get money back, but give up some control for the greater good.”
ROMINE: “So it helps everybody for people to participate in these programs. It is a bit uncomfortable for a short period of time, but it’s very, very helpful.”
ALLEN (voice-over): “And it’s rare. This is the first time since the six-year-old program started that the customers could not override their smart thermostats. Xcel says an unexpected outage in Pueblo, combined with hot weather and heavy AC use, led to the last-minute energy emergency.”
TALARICO: “To me, an emergency means there is, you know, life, limb or some other danger out, there are some massive wildfires.”
ALLEN (voice-over): “Tony is all about saving energy with solar panels and smart home systems, but he says he had no idea locked thermostats came with that, and it’s not what he signed up for.”