Meralco rebuts claim of earning from convenience fees

MANILA: The Manila Electric Company (Meralco) on Monday said it does not earn from convenience fees from online payment but only processes it for its payment partners. 'We would like to reiterate that there is no charge if customers use Bayad e-wallet and that convenience fees for other providers go to our payment partners,' Meralco vice president and head of corporate communications Joe Zaldarriaga said in a statement. 'We do not earn a single centavo from these convenience fees contrary to what was inaccurately stated.' Zaldarriaga issued the clarification following the call of House Committee on Legislative Franchise vice chair Rep. Johnny Pimentel for Meralco to do away with the online payment convenience fee of PHP15 per transaction. The Surigao del Sur 2nd District congressman said in a news release on Sunday that the fee goes to Meralco's sister unit, CIS Bayad Center, Inc. Zaldarriaga said Bayad has waived the fee when paying via Meralco Online. On the other hand, those paying through e-wallets l ike GCash and Maya are processed with PHP6 and PHP7 charges, respectively, while those paying through Visa, Mastercard, and JCB cards are charged PHP15 to ensure that the transactions are reliable and secured. The Meralco spokesperson reiterated that the company does not profit from the convenience fees and the charges go to its payment partners. "Our customers are empowered to use whichever secure payment channel they prefer when settling their electricity bills,' Zaldarriaga said. Source: Philippines News Agency