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Common Complaints & Cost Savings
By: Claudia Raffay, Director of Marketing & Member Services
Email: craffay@sussexrec.com
Serving Our Members Responsibly
Since 1937, our mission has been to provide our members with the highest quality of service at the lowest possible cost. As a member-focused utility serving over 12,000 members, we strive to balance offering reliable service at a fair price with meeting the needs of all who depend on us.
We often receive questions from members on a variety of topics, from power blinks to tree maintenance to abandoned poles. We understand our members’ concerns and motivations. After all, many of us are members ourselves, so we can empathize. However, the reality is that everything we do comes with a cost. As a not-for-profit cooperative providing service at cost, we must be careful and responsible with how we spend our members’ money.
Power Blinks: A Sign the System Is Working
Many members contact us about power “blinks,” those brief interruptions that might reset digital clocks or trigger smart devices. While these momentary outages can be frustrating, they actually indicate that our system is doing its job and preventing longer, more disruptive outages.
Living in rural areas means more interaction with nature, and wildlife is a common cause of these blinks. This time of year, for example, squirrels are particularly active as they gather food for the winter and occasionally make contact with our lines.
Our electric distribution system includes switches and reclosers designed to protect the system from damage. These devices function much like the circuit breakers in your home, shutting off power temporarily to isolate a fault. The system may cycle power up to three times to check if the issue has cleared before remaining off. So, when you experience a few quick blinks, it’s the system working as intended to maintain reliability and prevent costlier repairs.
Managing Vegetation to Protect Our Lines
To reduce blinks and outages, Sussex REC invests heavily in system reliability through measures such as wildlife guards and a robust vegetation management program. Our crews trim and clear trees and brush within our rights-of-way on a four-year cycle to protect our lines.
We recognize that tree trimming is our single largest expense year after year. While we address trees within our rights-of-way, we cannot remove every large or tall tree that falls outside those areas. The cost to do so would be massive. In some cases, if a tree poses a potential future issue, we note it and schedule it for attention during the next trimming cycle to ensure safety and cost efficiency.
Understanding “Abandoned Poles”
Another issue that occasionally comes up is the presence of "abandoned poles" — poles that remain in place, unused, after new ones are installed. Members understandable wonder why those old poles are still there.
Here’s why: when new poles are installed, Sussex REC transfers our wires first. Other utility providers, such as phone or cable companies, must then transfer their equipment. The last company to move its equipment is responsible for either removing the old pole or making it safe. Often, these companies choose to cut the pole shorter rather than pay the full cost of removal, which includes labor, equipment, traffic control, police details, and proper disposal.
While we understand that these leftover poles can be unsightly, once we’ve completed our work, they are no longer our responsibility. Because we operate at cost, taking on those expenses would ultimately raise costs for all of our members.
We’re Here for You
We always welcome your questions and concerns. You can reach us in several ways:
- Website: www.sussexrec.com — use our online forms for inquiries about trees, outages, or other issues
- Email: info@sussexrec.com
- Phone: 973-875-5101
We take our responsibility to our members very seriously. Every decision we make is guided by our commitment to fairness, reliability, and fiscal responsibility — for all our members.
