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What you need to know about buying clubs

There’s a saying that not everything that glitters is gold. That saying can be applied to home energy buying clubs. They may look like a best buy but when the going gets tough, they may not be able to deliver.

We’ve seen quite a few interesting things in our 50+ years in business. A recent trend is buying “co-ops”. These groups really aren’t cooperatives but rather groups that a propane supplier agree to deliver to at a lower rate. This may sound great on the surface but in reality, it can be quite different.

For example, in Dec 17, 2017 – Jan 18, 2018 our area had an extend cold streak. Propane gas supply got tight, but even worse – delivery drivers simply couldn’t keep up. This particular marketer in the Albany, NY region was the main supplier for a buying “co-op”. The customers couldn’t get their deliveries. Unfortunately, they ran out of fuel and no other dealers would deliver. They were taking care of their own customers. These buying clubs push greedy gas suppliers to take on more than they can handle. Then when it gets cold and resources get stretched, the first customers to not get deliveries will be these club members – not their regular customers which they place a higher value upon.

Don’t believe us? Try searching the internet or click here to read just one of the articles.

Instead of taking a chance, just go with a dependable locally owned supplier that treats their customers fairly and has the infrastructure to keep you supplied no matter how cold it gets. Combined Energy Services reinvests constantly by improving our storage and distribution infrastructure with over 700,000 gallons of propane stored locally. We’ve added 120,000 gals this year to make sure we have supply. In addition, we have over 1.5 million gallons stored in contracted underground storage.

Our fleet of tractor trailers and 15 home delivery tankers work from our 9 local storage facilities. We reinvest to make sure we’re there when you need us most. Since 1968, CES has been here for our customers at competitive prices, no gimmicks, or tricks.

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    *For those requesting a fuel delivery and NOT currently a CES customer, complete the form and a CES Representative will be in contact within 1-2 business days to schedule a tank inspection and complete necessary paperwork PRIOR to delivery confirmation.