(ABC 6 News) – Minnesotans are no stranger to cold weather, but the Cold Weather Rule protects you from having your heat cut off during the winter.

The law prevents your utilities from being shut off from October 1st to April 30th, if you arrange a payment plan with your utility company.

“Disconnection is a last resort for us, we never want to see our customers disconnected and we have a number of options available to help,” Minnesota energy resources spokesperson Alison Trouy said.

Energy services like the Minnesota Energy Resources and Xcel Energy have those options for customers. Just call your utility service to make payment arrangements if you think you’ll have trouble staying on top of those energy bills these next few months.

If you make and keep a cold weather rule payment plan you are protected during that window.

“That’s part of being a utility company, you have to take care of those customers, and that’s first and foremost on our list of things to do,” Xcel Energy manager of customer assistance and advocacy Diedra Howard said.

Each payment plan won’t be the same for everyone.

“It varies based on a number of factors, including the number of people in your home, how much money you make, a lot of items like that,” Trouy said.

Some utility services may even provide their customers with information on how they can save on energy. Some strategies can be simply done at home.

“There’s also passive solar, you know just keeping your windows or your shades pulled when there’s sunshine available, that’s another great way to help get those bills down,” Howard said.