What would you do if you received a shut-off notice and did not have the money to prevent the shut-off? (Q37 Sp2020)

This chart reflects responses to Question #37 from the Spring 2020 survey, which asks respondents, “What would you do if you received a shut-off notice and did not have the money to prevent the shut-off?” This is an open ended question and responses were manually categorized.

Eighty-three respondents answered the question, and some respondents provided multiple options. 

• Twenty-four respondents (28.9%) indicated they did not know. 

• Thirteen respondents (15.66%) reported they would take on a loan. 

• Eighteen respondents (21.69%) stated they would ask for assistance from friends or family. 

• Fourteen respondents (16.87%) said they would call their provider. 

• Two respondents (2.4%) would ask for an extension

• Fifteen respondents (18.07%) mentioned energy assistance

• Five respondents (6.02%) would sign up for a payment program

• Seven respondents (8.43%) said they would look for government assistance. 

• One respondent (1.2%) mentioned LIHEAP

• One respondent (1.2%) said they would look for assistance without elaborating what kind. 

• Eight respondents (9.64%) said they would let it shut off or deal with it. 

• One of these respondents (1.2%) mentioned getting a generator

• Four respondents (4.8%) said they would seek work or save up money. 

• Five respondents (6.02%) would move away.

• Two respondents (2.4%) would go into savings

The data was produced by the Shifting Energy Demands in COVID-19 Survey - Overview, which was administered to 86 people over a six week period in May-June 2020. Visit the Shifting Energy Demands in COVID-19 - Survey Results page to view more data from our survey. The project is approved by Drexel’s IRB.