People say they were taken for a ride by alternative energy suppliers. How you can protect yourself.

Diashawn Wright and his wife, Ella Allen. The couple say they were unknowingly signed up for Direct Energy as their natural gas supplier, which nearly doubled the price they paid for gas. (Pat Nabong / Sun-Times)

When Ella Allen and Diashawn Wright got an unusually high gas bill for their home in West Pullman toward the end of 2022, the parents of five young children thought it was a fluke.

But when the monthly charges skyrocketed during winter — reaching a whopping $1,030.77 for their bill due last March — they took a closer look. That’s when they noticed an entry on the last page of the bill that said “alternative energy supplier service.”