New charter to protect energy consumers

Elderly and vulnerable consumers of electricity and gas are to have increased protection under new codes of practice announced by the Commission for Energy Regulation yesterday.

The codes, which include a requirement that each energy provider introduce a "cash incentivised" customer charter, covering disconnection, complaints, nuisance marketing, billing and vulnerable customers such as the elderly or those on life-support machines.

While some suppliers such as the ESB already offer some of these protections voluntarily, the Commission for Energy Regulation said yesterday the new codes put the protection on a statutory basis for the first time.

They include provision for a network operator to refuse to disconnect a customer where there is evidence of hardship. Power providers will be required to be flexible in their approach to payments and to use best practice methods in working with third parties such as Money Advice and Budgetary Service and the Society of St Vincent de Paul.

A vulnerable customers code will ensure that elderly people are not disconnected in winter; that people on life-support machines are never disconnected and that arrangements are in place for the visually impaired and the hard of hearing.

A billing code is to ensure that bills are prompt and regular, that advance warning is to be given of price increases and that customers can nominate a third party to handle all billing matters.

The complaint-handling code is designed to ensure that the supplier tries to solve any problem but also informs the customer that they can refer the complaint to the Commission for Electricity Regulation.

There are rules about the hours that customers can be approached with unsolicited marketing offers. An opt-out option must be offered to those who do not want to receive such calls.

While all suppliers will be required to have customer charters, the amount of financial compensation is to be set by the suppliers, subject to the approval of the commission.

Commission chairman Tom Reeves also played down reports that the State was facing power cuts. Mr Reeves said the "amber alerts" of recent years had "never yet led to power cuts".

In addition the commissioning this September of the Huntstown power station would widen the gap between supply and demand. "We are experiencing an increase in demand of about 200MW this year, but Huntstown will provide more then 400MW," he said.