Can I Pay My Electric Bill At Food Lion?

Paying your monthly electric bill is an unavoidable part of life. But actually getting that payment processed can sometimes be a hassle especially if you don’t want to deal with mailing a check or setting up automatic payments. Many people wonder if they can simply stop by their local supermarket or big box store to quickly pay their electric bill in person. So can you pay your Dominion Energy or other electric company bill at Food Lion?

An Overview of Paying Electric Bills In Person

Most electric providers like Dominion Energy offer a variety of ways to pay your monthly bill. The most popular options are:

• Online bill pay through your utility company website
• Automatic bank draft payments
• Mailing in a check
• Paying over the phone
• Paying in person at an authorized payment location

That last method – making an in-person payment – is often the quickest and easiest way to pay, as you get same day confirmation that your payment was received. But not all in-person locations are created equal when it comes to convenience and fees.

Paying at Supermarkets and Grocery Stores

Many people understandably assume that major supermarkets like Food Lion would be able to accept bill payments for utilities like electricity, gas, water, etc. Stores like Food Lion provide so many other services to customers – pharmacies, Western Union, Redbox, money orders, coin counters – that it makes sense they would also offer bill pay.

Unfortunately, most national supermarket chains do NOT accept payments for utility bills. The only bills you can typically pay at grocery store customer service desks are for satellite/cable TV and cell phone service.

You might be able to pay your Verizon Wireless or DirecTV bill at Food Lion, but they won’t be able to handle Dominion Energy or other electric company bills.

Why Can’t You Pay Electric Bills at the Grocery Store?

There are a couple reasons why grocery stores don’t handle payments for your electric, gas, or water bills:

1. Lack of payment processing agreements. Each utility company has to set up contracts with retailers, banks, etc. to enable them to accept customer payments. This involves integrating the billing systems and arranging settlement of funds. Most supermarkets chains haven’t established these arrangements.

2. High costs. Accepting and processing utility bill payments requires proper staff training and payment handling procedures. For lower margin retailers like grocers, the hassle and expenses of supporting utility bill pay isn’t worth it.

3. Slow settlement of funds. It could take days or weeks for that money to reach your utility company and be applied to your account, even if you pay your electric bill at a grocery store. This lag isn’t ideal for time-sensitive bills.

4. Risk of errors. There is more potential for mistakes if untrained staff at a grocery store manually handle utility bill payments. Your account number, amount due, and other details could be entered incorrectly.

Overall, grocery stores like Food Lion aren’t really designed or equipped to be a convenient bill payment center for ongoing utility expenses. The personnel and systems just aren’t in place.

Other Bill Payment Options

Since you can’t pay your Dominion Energy or other electric company bills at the grocery store, what other convenient in-person payment options do you have? Here are a few authorized places you can stop and pay utility bills:

• Walmart – Most Walmart locations have electric company bill payment services at the customer service desk, money center, or self-checkout. Payments are quick and fees are reasonable (often $1.50 per bill). You can pay in cash or with debit/credit cards.

• Kroger – Many Kroger supermarket stores offer bill pay for Dominion Energy and other electric providers. Kroger locations accept cash, debit cards, checks, and money orders for bill payments.

• 7-Eleven – You can now pay your utility bills at over 7,500 7-Eleven convenience stores across the U.S. They accept cash or pin-based debit cards. Fees are around $1.99 per transaction.

• Check cashing stores – While fees are higher, most check cashing outlets do accept utility bill payments in person for a variety of electric companies and other service providers.

• Banks and credit unions – Your local bank or credit union branch may allow you to pay bills from Dominion and other electric providers. Log in to your bank’s app or call your branch to check their bill pay services.

• Authorized payment centers – Check your utility company’s website for a list of authorized walk-in payment centers in your area that will quickly process your electric, gas, or water bill.

• By phone – Call your electric company’s customer service line directly to make a payment over the phone using your checking account, credit card, or debit card information.

• Online – Paying your utility bills through your electric provider’s website is fast and secure. Just have your payment info handy.

Key Takeaways: Paying Electric Bills at Grocery Stores

While supermarkets like Food Lion provide many services to customers, accepting payments for your electric, gas, or water bills is unfortunately not one of them. Because grocery stores lack the proper agreements, staff, and systems to handle utility bill collections, your local Food Lion cannot process bills from Dominion Energy or other electric companies.

You’ll need to use alternative bill payment options like Walmart, check cashing stores, authorized payment centers, your electric provider’s website, or by phone. While paying your electric bill at the grocery store would be convenient, these other in-person and online methods allow you to easily and quickly take care of your monthly utility expenses.