Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
10 years of keeping essential services within reach
annual report 07– 08
Ombudsman’s report
About us
Our work this year
Consumer issues
Working with stakeholders
Community outreach
Financials
Customer comments
2
6
12
20
26
30
40
41
The Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON) provides an independent way of resolving customer complaints about all electricity and gas suppliers in New South Wales and some water suppliers.
EWON’s service is free, fair and independent.
Our aim is to keep essential services within reach of everyone.
contents
EWON began as the Energy Industry Ombudsman NSW (EION) and was formally launched by the Minister for Energy on 9 June 1998.
The scheme was established by the six Government-owned electricity providers at the time and TransGrid, the transmission company, with the support of the Electricity Association of New South Wales.
A working group representing the energy industry, consumers, small business and government advised on EWON’s Constitution and processes. The aim was to provide electricity and gas customers with an independent, free and accessible dispute resolution service.
When EION began operation it only covered electricity providers. Its jurisdiction expanded after Sydney Water joined in December 1999 and EION became EWON, the Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW.
In the following year, 2000, AGL became the first gas provider to join the scheme. Up to this time membership of the scheme had been voluntary but through changes in legislation in 2001, it became a licence condition for all energy retailers supplying small customers in New South Wales to join the approved ombudsman scheme.
The requirement for EWON membership is also now written into the licence conditions of some water providers.
As required by the EWON Constitution, a Board of member providers is responsible for the scheme’s corporate governance and funding. A Council, representing the interests of consumers, small business, and member providers, oversees EWON’s policies and strategic direction.
Clare Petre was appointed Energy Ombudsman in April 1998 and she has overseen the organisation’s development over its first decade.
Our beginnings ten years ago
ombudsman’s reportComplaints to EWON increased 3% this year, with our investigations staff closing 8913 cases (up from 8641 last year).
clare petre – energy & water ombudsman nswphoto: sophie howarth
This upward trend is significant given that overall marketing activity in New South Wales slowed last year, a factor also reflected by the decrease in complaints to EWON about marketing practices.
Last year retail competition complaints eclipsed billing as the primary issue, however this year billing returns as the leading area of customer complaints to EWON.
Of greatest concern is the increase in complaints involving credit issues, in particular, complaints from customers who are facing disconnection or have been disconnected because of financial hardship.
Last year we had 1121 complaints involving disconnection due to non-payment, this year we received 1484 complaints, which represents a 32% increase.
Notably, we are also seeing an increase in complaints from customers who are disconnected in error when an account transfer between retailers does not go smoothly. Transfers in error can place, customers in crisis situations especially if they are faced with disconnection, a backbill or debt recovery action.
In the coming year we will continue to work with all stakeholders – member providers, government, regulators, community agencies – to address these affordability and transfer issues.
reflecting on the past ten yearsMore than once over the years I have observed that the only certainty in the energy industry is change. This is as true today as when EWON opened its doors ten years ago on 9 June 1998.
Looking back, it has been an eventful decade marked by significant change for EWON and for the energy and water industries in which we operate.
In 1996 the Chief Executive of the Electricity Association of NSW informed the delegates to an industry conference that:
“ In recent years there has been an increasing demand in the community for the provision of inexpensive, simple and readily accessible dispute resolution forums for consumers as an alternative to the formal legal system.
The NSW Electricity Ombudsman scheme has arisen as a voluntary initiative of the industry in the light of the heightened community awareness of the benefits of such a scheme, and the enthusiastic support of everyone in the industry who has been associated with the proposal.
The project has increased significance for NSW given the massive reforms which have taken place in the electricity industry and their likely impact on consumer issues. The ombudsman scheme will serve as a timely indicator to the community of the industry’s dedication to the welfare of its consumers in the move to a commercialised, competitive environment.”
These words are equally relevant in 2008, with the energy and water industries currently facing further significant reforms that will impact on consumers.
Our achievements
A tenth anniversary is an appropriate time to reflect on what difference EWON has made for customers and companies, and whether we have achieved the objectives of the scheme as stated in our Constitution:
to receive, investigate and facilitate the resolution of complaints and disputes, and
to assist in the avoidance of complaints and disputes
in the provision of energy and water services to domestic and small business customers in New South Wales.
Focussing attention on affordability issues
EWON has played a key role in focussing attention on the social aspects of essential utility services and the fact that in this day and age, we cannot have people living without light or heat because of affordability issues.
As soon as we commenced our service, we became aware of the hundreds of people disconnected or facing disconnection of their electricity supply, and the impact of disconnection on individuals and families.
We found that the credit departments of utilities tended to chase customers in a cycle of disconnection/reconnection/disconnection.
There were limited options for customers in financial hardship. We were regularly contacted by community workers who had unsuccessfully tried to negotiate payment arrangements on behalf of their clients. Disconnection rates in New South Wales were higher than most other states.
While there is certainly no room for complacency, it is pleasing to note that in ten years this fairly depressing picture has changed significantly.
Rather than dealing with credit departments, we now deal with utility providers’ customer assistance programs. Customers are offered realistic and affordable payment plans, energy saving advice, energy audits, Centrepay, referrals to NILS (No Interest Loan Schemes) and retrofit programs.
I believe that EWON has contributed to the changes in how providers view and deal with customers who are experiencing financial difficulty.
But such changes cannot be achieved in isolation. A key EWON message has been that keeping essential services within reach of everyone requires partnerships – between utilities, government, the community sector and EWON. The next ten years will bring renewed challenges. With an increasingly tight economic climate, higher utility charges and the impact of emissions savings targets, these partnerships will be even more important.
responding to change
Ten years ago residential and small business customers in New South Wales were supplied electricity by standard retailers based on geographical location. The extension of the retail market in 2002 provided consumers with a choice of energy retailer but it also led to some new challenges.
EWON received large numbers of complaints about energy marketing, particularly about marketing to people where informed consent was an issue because of factors such as frail age, language, health or intellectual disability. We raised this issue with energy retailers, government, the regulator and key community organisations. We provided information for consumers to assist them in making informed choices in the energy market.
We found energy retailers to be responsive to feedback about poor marketing practices and we will continue to monitor complaints in this area.
Recent New South Wales legislation has opened up water services to competition, but we expect that this may be more limited and slower to develop than the energy market.
the next ten years in a national environmentTo look to the future I’d like to return briefly to the past, to the Electricity Association paper in 1996.
“ Others have suggested that we should have a national electricity ombudsman scheme rather than separate State systems. This we believe also has some merit, but less so than the first proposal because the economies of scale would be diluted by the extended geographic spread, and the diversity of the separate State regulatory systems that currently apply to utilities in other States.”
The next ten years will see the national energy market, national regulator and national consumer protection framework well in place. EWON and ANZEWON* members have argued strongly for best practice national consumer protection. While the question of a national energy ombudsman will certainly be debated during the next decade, there will need to be discussion about the appropriate model for a national scheme. The premise for any model should be meeting the needs of utility consumers for access to timely, fair and effective dispute resolution regardless of where they live.
acknowledgementsEWON is the product of the many people who have been a part of the service or who have supported our work over the past ten years.
On behalf of EWON, I give special thanks to: Michael Sinclair, former Executive Director of the Electricity Association of NSW; Helen Swan, EWON’s first business manager; Chairs of the EWON Council Gae Pincus,
Lionel Bowen, and current Chair Professor Stuart Rees; Chairs of the Board Val Duncan, Geoff Lilliss and current Chair Terri Benson; Fiona McLeod, Energy & Water Ombudsman (Victoria); other ANZEWON and ANZOA* colleagues; the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal; the Department of Water and Energy; and the NSW Office of Fair Trading.
Thank you to the EWON Board and Council, who have been very supportive of the scheme through the provision of adequate funding and staffing, and constructive review of our operation.
Thank you to our member providers. While we have had our differences with some utilities, members of the scheme have generally been supportive and worked with EWON to achieve reasonable outcomes for customers.
Thank you to the community workers who have helped promote EWON. You provide an invaluable service for low income and disadvantaged consumers.
Finally, I wish to thank the EWON managers, and present and past staff. EWON’s success is their success. They are a skilled and committed group of people who perform their role with care and grace.
Clare Petre energy & water ombudsman nsw
* ANZEWON – Australia & New Zealand Energy and Water Ombudsman Network; ANZOA – Australian and New Zealand Ombudsman Association
ombudsman’s report
Transfer in error causes significant inconvenience for familyJenny contacted ewon because her electricity had been disconnected in error. she explained that in January 2007 she had moved into the property and opened an account with retailer a. in July 2007, she received a letter stating her account had been transferred to another retailer. Jenny contacted retailer a to say there had been a mistake and she had not authorised a transfer. retailer a said they would investigate the matter, but Jenny didn’t hear anything back.
she contacted retailer a again over the next few months to follow up on her account and each time she was told it would be sorted out. around four months later, retailer a told Jenny they would issue a bill for the may to november 2007 period. at the end of november 2007 however, she returned home to find her power had been cut off. Jenny called retailer a and asked them to call her back on her mobile, as she couldn’t use the landline without power.
retailer a didn’t call her back so Jenny went to her neighbour’s house to call them again. they told Jenny that according to their records, her electricity wasn’t disconnected and there must be an outage somewhere. Jenny went back to her property and realised a disconnection notice had been left by retailer b. she called their emergency number and retailer b confirmed that Jenny had been disconnected. retailer b also said that the meter number they had for Jenny’s account didn’t belong to her address, which meant she had been paying for someone else’s consumption.
retailer b organised for a three-way phone hook up with Jenny and retailer a. the account problem was sorted out and Jenny’s power was reconnected that evening. Jenny decided to stay with retailer b, who opened a new account for her and issued her with a bill for the period.
Following the reconnection, Jenny made a complaint to ewon. she said the disconnection had caused her significant inconvenience and she was very upset with retailer a’s delay in providing information.
she said the day she was disconnected was very hot and she had to negotiate reconnection while managing the needs of her two children – a six month old baby and a preschooler. Jenny was seeking a prompt refund of the money she had paid retailer a and compensation for food spoilage following the disconnection.we contacted retailer a to advise them of Jenny’s situation. retailer a agreed to send Jenny a claim form for compensation and they confirmed a refund cheque for the double-billing had been issued. Jenny said she was happy to liaise directly with retailer a about her compensation claim and would contact ewon again if needed.
Customer disputes a high bill
gina contacted ewon when she received a high electricity bill for her small business. gina
explained that in october 2007 she received an electricity bill for $2546 and a letter from the
retailer apologising for the lateness. after she paid the bill she realised the bill was for the may
to July 2007 period (88 days), not the most recent quarter. she contacted the retailer to ask
why the bill was so late, but they didn’t give her a clear answer.
a few days later, gina received a bill for $6211 which didn’t reflect her most recent payment
and meant the bill for the august to october 2007 period (100 days) was $3665.
she rang the retailer to query the high bill and explained her bills were normally around $2500.
gina confirmed the reading on her electricity meter with the retailer and it appeared the meter
was read correctly. the retailer told her that the larger bill was probably due to 1 July price
increases and more days in the billing period. they offered to do a high bill investigation but said
their investigation may take a long time, and she would have to pay for the meter test if it was
found to be registering correctly. gina was not happy with this response and contacted ewon
for help.
we discussed the retailer’s offer of a high bill investigation with gina, who said she preferred
ewon to investigate the disputed account. gina offered to pay $1200 towards her account
pending the outcome of our investigation.
we contacted the retailer and asked them to put a hold on gina’s account while we
investigated the matter. the retailer confirmed that gina’s meter had been changed six
months before and forwarded the billing data to us.
our investigation of the billing data over two years revealed that the business’ electricity
consumption before and after the new meter was installed was very consistent, and
averaged between 230 to 250kwh per day.
based on this information, we discussed with gina that our investigation indicated she had
been billed according to the meter registrations and the terms and conditions of her electricity
agreement. the two factors that appear to have contributed to the higher bill were that the
billing period was slightly longer than normal, and there was a price increase during the period
which was authorised under the terms of her contract with the retailer.
Jose called ewon on behalf of sencia, his mother, when she moved into a new property
and received her first electricity bill for $6832 for a three month period.
he had contacted the retailer to query the amount and mentioned to them that his mother
had been away for 34 days of the billing period. he noted that the bill was based on the
meter read starting from ‘nil’, however the retailer had recently done a reading and it was
40790. the customer service officer at the retailer asked Jose about the appliances in the
house and then told him the bill was correct. Jose asked if someone could come out to check
the meter but he was told if there was nothing wrong, his mother would have to pay for the
meter check.
we suggested to Jose that we could refer his problem to a senior officer in the retailer and
Jose agreed. we referred Jose back to the retailer and said he could contact us again if he
didn’t receive a response.
the retailer didn’t contact Jose and he called ewon again for help. our investigation
revealed that the retailer had incorrectly billed sencia based on a start read of ‘nil’. this
meant she was billed for more than 40,000 units of consumption instead of the 223 units
she used. the retailer re-issued sencia a corrected bill of $30.82 for her consumption.
Customer shocked at first bill of $6832 for three months
what we doThe Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON) is the approved dispute resolution scheme for New South Wales electricity and gas customers, and some water customers.
Our aim is to provide high quality, independent dispute resolution for energy and water customers, and to contribute to the raising of overall standards of customer service in the energy and water industries.
Consumers can approach EWON about a range of issues related to:
provision or failure to provide energy or water services
disconnection or restriction of supply
billing and credit
quality of supply
actions by a provider that impact on land or other property
transfers between energy providers
electricity and gas marketing
We work with energy and water providers in a number of ways, including:
reviewing disputes that have not been resolved by internal systems
encouraging continuous improvement and consistency in customer service
providing reports and analysis to help raise industry standards
creating opportunities to improve relationships with customers
about us
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000
Structural reform of the electricity industry sees
six retailer/distributor entities created as State
owned corporations under the Energy Services
Corporations Act 1995.The Electricity Association
of NSW, representing the electricity providers,
proposes the establishment of an ombudsman
scheme similar to the Victorian Energy Industry
Ombudsman and other industry dispute resolution schemes.
A working group of industry, government
and consumer representatives advises
on the structure and operation of the
new scheme.The Board of Directors
of Energy Industry Ombudsman (NSW) Limited, comprising
representatives of all members of
the scheme, is formally established
and registered.
Sydney Water joins the scheme and EION
becomes EWON, the Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW.
The Council of the Energy Industry Ombudsman NSW meets, comprising
Chair Gae Pincus and equal representatives of consumer
and industry interests.Clare Petre is appointed Energy
Industry Ombudsman NSW and Helen Swan is appointed Business Manager.
EION is officially launched by the [then] Minister for Energy, the Hon Bob Debus on 9th June.Along with the Victorian and
Tasmanian Electricity Ombudsman schemes, EION establishes the National
Electricity Ombudsman Network (NEON). This network evolves to
become the Australia & New Zealand Energy and Water Ombudsman
Network (ANZEWON).The NSW government regulates to
require inclusion of information about EION on all reminder and
disconnection notices.
NSW Ombudsman and EWON sign a Memorandum of
Understanding.AGL, a private company gas provider, joins the scheme.Under the Electricity Supply
Amendment Act 2000, it becomes a licence condition for all electricity retailers to
join an approved ombudsman scheme. EWON’s jurisdiction
is extended to cover electricity issues for residents of
residential parks, and small businesses supplied by other
exempt retailers.
gae pincus, clare petre and michael sinclair in 1998
Year 98–99 99–00 00–01 01–02 02–03 03–04 04–05 05–06 06–07 07–08
Complaints 2730 3648 4344 4908 6242 8568 8259 7624 8641 8913
2001 2002 2005 2007 2008
Under the Gas Supply Amendment (Retail
Competition) Act, it becomes a condition of licence for gas retailers to join an approved
ombudsman scheme.The Minister for Energy approves EWON as the
electricity and gas industry ombudsman for NSW.
Office of Fair Trading and EWON sign a Memorandum
of Understanding.The NSW market is opened to full retail competition and second-tier energy retailers
join the scheme.Hunter Water joins
the scheme.
Participated in the Minister for Energy’s reference group on
consumer protection and the Water Competition
Regulation consultation.
The Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal and EWON sign a Memorandum
of Understanding.
The Ombudsman meets with the Unsworth Committee regarding its review of the
impact on consumers of the proposed privatisation of state
owned energy retailers.
2007
–200
8
2006
–200
7
2005
–200
6
2004
–200
5
2003
–200
4
2002
–200
3
2001
–200
2
2000
–200
1
1999
–200
0
1998
–199
9
10000
9000
8000
7000
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
EWON officially launched
9 June 1998
Sydney Water joins the scheme
Gas retailers join the scheme
NSW energy market open to full retail competition
Hunter Water and
second-tier retailers join the scheme
Increase in affordability
and disconnection
complaints
Enquiries decrease, complex
investigations increase
Increase in complaints
about energymarketing
Retail competition
overtakes billing as the
primary complaint
issue
Billing and credit
complaints increase in line with
economic conditions
Complaints and milestones 1998 –2008
our structure
EWON Board
The Board is responsible for corporate governance and funding and is made up of representatives of the electricity, gas and water providers. Members of the Board up to 30 June 2008 were:
Terri Benson (Country Energy), Chairperson
Rod Howard (Integral Energy), Deputy Chairperson
Samantha Bartlett (Origin Energy) from November 2007
Nadia Dimmock (Jackgreen)
Jim Galvin (AGL)
Geoff Lilliss (EnergyAustralia)
Kevin Murray (TransGrid)
Colin Ridley (Sydney Water)
Governance
EWON operates in accordance with our Constitution and is committed to the principles of good governance.
message from the board chairperson
This year marks EWON’s tenth year in operation. The organisation’s achievements in this time have, without doubt, benefited the energy and water industries in terms of raising customer service standards and promoting best practice.
The Ombudsman has had, and will continue to have, the full support of the Board in dealing with customer issues and raising and addressing systemic issues arising from customer complaints. In particular, the scheme has actively promoted the need for programs to assist customers in financial hardship, for best practice in marketing, and for improvements in business-to-business relationships.
In the future, EWON will continue to have an important role to play in ensuring that consumer protection measures remain high on the agenda of energy and water providers, government and regulators.
On behalf of the EWON Board, I would like to thank and commend the Ombudsman for her work and commitment over the past ten years. She has led the organisation by example in applying the principles of procedural fairness and independence. EWON’s success is a credit to her and to her talented staff who have been exemplary in their management of increasing workloads and a challenging casework environment.
Terri Benson ewon board chairperson
about us
clare petre, stuart rees, terri benson at ewon’s tenth anniversary celebration photo: sophie howarth
ActewAGL Retail
AGL Electricity
AGL Retail Energy
AGL Victoria
Aurora Energy
Australian Power and Gas
Country Energy
EnergyAustralia
Energy One
Hunter Water
Independent Electricity Retail Solutions
Integral Energy
Jackgreen
NSW Electricity
Origin Energy Electricity
Origin Energy LPG
Powerdirect
Red Energy
State Water
Sydney Water
TransGrid
TRUenergy
EWON members – 1 July 2007 to 30 June 2008
EWON Council
The Council is chaired by an independent Chairperson and comprises equal representation of consumer and industry interests to ensure EWON’s independence. Members of the Council up to 30 June 2008 were:
Professor Stuart Rees, Chairperson
Don Anderson (EnergyAustralia)
Darren Bailey (AGL) January to March 2008
Mark Byrne (Public Interest Advocacy Centre) to April 2008
Helen Campbell (NSW Council of Social Service)
Bill Frewen (Country Energy) from January 2008
Faye Hargreaves (small business representative) from January 2008
Lynda Johns (Financial Counsellors’ Association NSW)
Craig Johnston (Shelter NSW) from January 2008
Craig Murray (Country Energy) to December 2007
Stephen Phillips (Hunter Water)
Bruce Rowley (Integral Energy)
Anna Stewart (AGL) to December 2007
Laurie Walsh (AGL) from June 2008
Graeme Wiffen (Australian Consumers’ Association) to December 2007
Denise Wilson (small business representative) to December 2007
message from the council chairperson
EWON’s ten years of service correspond to the Ombudsman’s ten years in office. This interdependence of EWON achievement and executive leadership has provided the public with high standards of service, and utility companies, regulators, government and community agencies with a highly professional partnership. Such services and partnerships have also been enhanced by committed, skilful staff and a high morale work place.
In those ten years EWON has adapted to large increases in customer contacts and a broadening of responsibilities as they relate to the supply of electricity, gas and water.
In addition to likely increases in retail competition in the next ten years, EWON will also be anticipating the consequences of policies to use energy wisely and a probable need to evaluate practices which contribute to environmental sustainability. In addition to these developments, EWON will not lose sight of its major responsibility: to provide strong consumer protection for energy and water consumers.
On behalf of my colleagues on the Council I congratulate the Ombudsman and her staff on their impressive professionalism. They have created a vibrant and imaginative organisation whose high standards should enable all participants and stakeholders to anticipate the next ten years with confidence and optimism.
Stuart Rees ewon council chairperson
Our teams
EWON comprises four teams who work under the leadership of the Ombudsman.
investigations
The Investigations team is made up of specialist staff who handle complaints of varying complexity. They aim to assist customers and their providers to resolve problems as quickly as possible.
Investigations Officers undertake a range of actions to resolve customer complaints, including comprehensive review of information provided by the parties to a dispute, research of relevant legislative/technical provisions, site visits and referral to independent experts for advice. In reaching an outcome, they consider the law, industry best practice, and what is fair and reasonable in the circumstances of each case.
community and service development
The Community and Service Development team promotes and raises awareness of EWON’s services and energy and water issues affecting consumers. It also manages member and stakeholder relationships, coordinates internal and external reporting functions, organises learning and development for staff, and provides other essential resources for the Investigations team.
policy and research
The Policy and Research team helps to identify and address systemic issues that arise from our investigations, provides research support to the Investigations team, and informs stakeholders and the community generally of the issues customers have raised with EWON.
corporate services
The Corporate Services team provides administrative, information technology and human resources support for the organisation.
our servicesEWON plans its activities and measures its success against six industry-standard benchmarks.
1. Accessibility
2. Independence
3. Fairness
4. Accountability
5. Efficiency
6. Effectiveness
We constantly review how we can improve our services and maintain efficient processes. This year we undertook a range of projects to ensure and enhance our performance against these benchmarks.
Improved accessibility
In line with our outreach to culturally and linguistically diverse consumers, we increased our translated information resources to cover 29 community languages.
Consumer awareness survey
EWON engaged McNair Ingenuity to conduct a consumer awareness survey in June 2008. A representative sample of consumers across New South Wales was asked a series of questions to test their awareness of EWON. Key survey results:
Unprompted: 10% of consumers knew to contact EWON if they had a problem with an electricity, gas or water company that they couldn’t sort out and a further 6% nominated an Ombudsman service.
Prompted: 14% of consumers said they had heard of EWON.
44% of consumers who were aware of EWON knew about us through the media.
We will use these results as a benchmark and guide for our promotion and outreach activities during the next 24 months, and test community awareness levels again in June 2010.
Learning and development
Retaining well trained, experienced and motivated staff is critical to EWON’s success. It enables us to provide an effective and accessible dispute resolution service, and helps us contribute to a strong consumer protection framework.
Our staff members undergo an intensive orientation and induction program before taking up their roles. This initial training is followed up with group or individually tailored training. This year we provided staff with training in alternative dispute resolution, investigative best practice, plain English writing, electricity networks, performance management, project evaluation and stress management.
We also developed and implemented EWONPRO, an electronic performance review tool. This will help staff and supervisors more easily link learning and development plans to individual needs, and assist in the management of the biannual review process.
Internal review
EWON applies the principles of procedural fairness in our decision-making. We provide opportunities for all parties to have input into an investigation and we explain the reasons for our decisions in writing. If customers are not satisfied with an outcome they can request a review of our decision if they can indicate an error in our investigation or provide relevant new information. This year we received 14 formal requests for internal review from a total of 3417 investigations.
Sustainability initiatives
EWON takes environmental sustainability and energy efficiency seriously. The EWON Green Group (EGG) looks for opportunities to reduce EWON’s ecological footprint and we have a range of initiatives in place to recycle, re-use, and avoid consumption of resources. We have an organisational goal to reduce paper use and this year we were able to reduce consumption from 11 reams to 10 reams of paper per staff member per annum.
about us
Energy/water provider 3071
Community agency or financial counsellor 649
Office of Fair Trading 236
Other complaint agency 233
Other government agency 151
Legal/tenancy advisor 106
Department/Minister for Energy/Water 86
Private contractor 64
IPART 58
Total referrals 4654
Referrals we provided to customers
Time taken to finalise complaints
1–2 days 3–14 days 15–30 days 31–90 days 91–180 days >180 days 60% 23% 4% 7% 4% 2%
member 38% EWON promotion 17% government 15% unknown 8% previous contact 6% own knowledge 5% community organisation 5% word of mouth 4%other 2%
How customers heard about us
negotiated/facilitated resolution 83% no further investigation 17% determination <1%
Outcome of investigations
our work this year
Total number of complaints 2007–2008
Cases opened 8861
Cases closed 8913
change in reporting We have reviewed the categorisation and reporting of customer complaints to take into account the following:
significant growth in retail competition complaints
the move to national regulation of the energy market
consistency across Australian and New Zealand Energy and Water Ombudsman schemes.
The most significant change is in the way we classify ‘retail competition’ complaints. This one category has been split into two complaint areas – marketing and transfers.
Marketing issues relate to the activities of an electricity or gas retailer seeking to win a new customer (eg through door-to-door or telemarketing). Complaints can include:
misleading conduct or information, pressure tactics by marketers
third parties signing contracts thereby cancelling the existing account holder’s contract/account without their knowledge or approval.
Transfer issues relate to the process involved in a customer switching from one retailer to another. Complaints can include transfers in error, delays, double billing and contract issues.
complaint levels
Refer to higher level
EWON strongly supports the best practice approach of encouraging communication between the parties in a dispute. Where appropriate and with the customer’s consent, EWON will refer a complaint back to the energy or water provider for a further opportunity for resolution, but at a higher level in the company.
In such cases the outcome is recorded as ‘Refer to Higher Level’ (RHL). The provider then has a designated timeframe within which to respond to the customer, and the customer is invited to contact EWON again if they are not satisfied with the outcome.
This higher level referral process has been very successful, and generally works well for both customers and providers. This year however, EWON dealt with 146 cases where the provider missed this opportunity to resolve the matter with their customer. These complaints went to investigation after the provider failed to contact EWON about the referral or follow-up the referral with their customer.
Investigations
This year we carried out 3417 investigations, a 12% increase from last year.
Level 1 investigations have increased 13%. This is in line with an increase in credit related complaints, as first level investigation cases often relate to affordability.
Level 3 investigations have increased by 28%, which is in line with increasing complexity in the utilities environment. Level 3 cases generally require significant time to resolve.
Determinations
In cases where a negotiated outcome cannot be reached, the Ombudsman may make a determination (a ‘binding decision’) to resolve a case. The complainant can choose whether or not to accept the determination, however if they accept the decision the provider is bound by its terms. We have been pleased to see a significant decrease in determinations, with the Ombudsman determining only one case this year. Determinations are available at www.ewon.com.au
who used our servicesOverall, the information on who used our service is consistent with previous years.
93% of complaints were from residential customers
7% of complaints were from business customers
33% of complaints were from regional and rural customers
53% of customers were female, 47% male
89% of customers contacted us by phone
5% of customers used our online complaint form to submit their complaint
We do not routinely collect the following information, but it is recorded if offered by customers. So while the numbers are low and almost certainly underestimated, they are still significant. A snapshot of our customers shows:
at least 24% (2144 customers) received a pension or benefit
at least 5% (419 customers) lived in public housing
1% (113 customers) identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander
6% (504 customers) identified as CALD (culturally and linguistically diverse)
Complaint levels
0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%
146 investigations (4%) resulted from ‘failed’ RHLs
3559 enquiries (40%)
1937 RHLs (22%)
3417 Investigations(38%)
electricity 75% gas 14% water 8% dual fuel 2% non energy/water 1%
Complaints per industry
Complaints about electricity:• 5778 complaints about retailers• 732 complaints about distributors
Complaints about gas:• 1248 complaints about retailers• 14 complaints about distributors
Complaints about water:• 399 complaints about retailers• 319 complaints about distributors
Complaints about dual fuel:• 211 complaints about retailers
Change in complaint levels
2006–2007 2007–2008 % change
Enquiry 3621 3559 –2%
Refer to higher level 1964 1937 –1%
Level 1 2166 2483 +13%
Level 2 609 567 –7%
Level 3 264 366 +28%
Determination 17 1 –1600%
Total complaints 8641 8913 +3%
explanation of terms Complaint enquiry: a request for information or assistance that can be
settled or referred quickly Refer to higher level (RHL): complaint enquiry referred to a senior officer
in the energy or water company Investigation: complaint cannot be resolved between customer and
company, EWON investigates and negotiates an outcome Determination (or binding decision): outcome cannot be negotiated
between the customer and company, Ombudsman resolves the matter through a determination which is binding on the company
our work this year
billing 30% credit 21% customer service 19% transfer 15% marketing 5% supply 3% land 3% provision 2%general 2%
All issues raised by customers
notes on how we categorise complaint issues:
Billing: high and disputed bills, fees and charges, responsibility for accounts
Credit: disconnection, arrears, difficulty in payment, payment arrangement declined, debt collection
Customer service: failure to respond, incorrect advice, poor attitude/service
Transfer: error in billing or transfer of account due to switching retailers, contract terms, delay in transfer, site ownership
Marketing: conduct by marketers, misleading information, pressure, non-account holder signed up
Supply: quality, damage/loss, outages
Land: impact of network assets, maintenance, environment
Provision: problems with new or existing connections
General: non energy/water related, contractors
billing 29% credit 24% customer service 17% transfer 17% marketing 5% supply 3% land 2% provision 2%general 1%
Electricity issues
billing 40% customer service 29% credit 15% transfer 9% general 5% marketing 2% land <1% provision <1%
Gas issues
billing 32% customer service 22% supply 12% land 11% credit 9% provision 9% general 5%
Water issues
transfer 29% customer service 23% billing 21% credit 13% marketing 13% general 1%
Dual Fuel issues
Complaints per 10,000 customersEnquiry RHL Investigation
Jack
gree
n
Act
ewAG
L
Orig
in E
nerg
y
TRU
ener
gy
Inte
gral
Ene
rgy
Cou
ntry
Ene
rgy
Ener
gyA
ustr
alia
AGL
Sydn
ey W
ater
Hun
ter
Wat
er
275
325
225
175
125
75
25
20
15
10
5
0
Complaints about other providers
Provider Enquiry RHL Investigations Total complaints
Australian Power and Gas 6 3 4 13
Energy One 7 7 21 35
NSW Electricity 3 0 0 3
Powerdirect 25 23 59 107
Red Energy 2 0 0 2
State Water 4 1 2 7
Provider Enquiry Refer Higher Level Investigation Total per 10,000
ActewAGL 13 8 22 43
AGL 5 6 7 18
Country Energy 4 2 2 8
EnergyAustralia 5 3 4 12
Hunter Water 2 1 3 6
Integral Energy 6 4 6 16
Jackgreen 29 37 85 151
Origin Energy 101 40 140 281
Sydney Water 2 1 1 4
TRUenergy 17 10 16 43
source data for graphThis graph shows complaints relative to customer numbers. It uses a variable y-axis, that is, the scale used between the value of 0 to 25 is ten times greater than the rest of the graph. Customer numbers are based on data provided by IPART.
Top issues by provider
Provider Issues % Issues % Issues %
ActewAGL Billing 32% Customer service 22% Transfer 20%
AGL Billing 36% Customer service 27% Transfer 18%
Australian Power and Gas Transfer 30% Marketing 22% Billing 22%
Country Energy Billing 30% Credit 20% Customer service 15%
Energy One Billing 42% Transfer 30% Credit 11%
EnergyAustralia Billing 32% Credit 20% Customer service 19%
Hunter Water Billing 33% Customer service 29% Land 14%
Integral Energy Billing 31% Credit 25% Transfer 17%
Jackgreen Transfer 24% Credit 24% Billing 23%
NSW Electricity Billing 67% Marketing 33%
Origin Energy Credit 38% Billing 19% Transfer 18%
Powerdirect Billing 44% Customer service 21% Transfer 17%
Red Energy Marketing 50% Billing 50%
State Water Billing 29% Customer service 29%
Sydney Water Billing 30% Customer service 22% Supply 14%
TRUenergy Billing 34% Transfer 29% Customer service 20%
our work this year
our work this year
0 5 10 15 20 25
Central West 11
8
8
8
8
9
9
17
17
21
14
13
12
12
Far West
Hunter
Illawarra
Mid North Coast
Murray
Murrumbidgee
North West
Northern
Richmond-Tweed
South Eastern
Sydney Inner
Sydney Outer
Sydney Surrounds
Source of population data: Australian Bureau of Statistics
Complaints per 10,000 people per NSW region
Top three issues per NSW region
Region Complaints Issues % Issues % Issues %
Central West 200 Billing 30% Credit 24% Customer service 19%
Far West 18 Billing 29% Credit 17% Provision 14%
Hunter 1006 Credit 28% Billing 25% Customer service 19%
Illawarra 561 Billing 26% Credit 24% Customer service 18%
Mid North Coast 215 Billing 25% Customer service 19% Transfer 17%
Murray 144 Billing 30% Customer service 24% Credit 20%
Murrumbidgee 105 Billing 25% Transfer 20% Credit 19%
North West 88 Credit 36% Billing 26% Customer service 14%
Northern 132 Billing 25% Credit 19% Transfer 18%
Richmond-Tweed 192 Billing 35% Customer service 17% Transfer 14%
South Eastern 250 Billing 25% Credit 24% Customer service 17%
Sydney Inner 2171 Billing 36% Customer service 21% Credit 15%
Sydney Outer 2923 Billing 29% Credit 24% Customer service 19%
Sydney Surrounds 707 Billing 26% Credit 24% Customer service 21%
Distributor provides poor customer service and incorrect information
peter, a solicitor, contacted ewon on behalf of michael, who owned two small takeaway food
shops. he said there was an unexpected 7 hour outage which resulted in food spoilage and
loss of business for the shops. michael contacted the distributor about compensation and they
referred him to a third-party contractor. they said the contractor cut an underground cable
which caused the outage and michael should pursue them about his claim.
michael called the contractors who denied they were responsible and referred him back to
the distributor.
once again, michael approached the distributor. they denied responsibility for the interruption,
but this time said they couldn’t confirm the identity of the third party. it was left up to michael to
find the contractor responsible for the damage.
we advised peter that distribution companies did not guarantee uninterrupted supply and do not
usually pay claims for business loss, especially where the damage was caused by a third party.
however, we would try to clarify the basis for the distributor’s divergent information about the
contractor, as this suggested that the distributor had provided poor customer service.
we contacted the distributor to discuss the conflicting information michael had been given.
we also requested a copy of the incident report, as this would most likely include the name of the
contractor. the distributor advised that what they told michael initially was incorrect and was
related to another event, and they would look into the incident report.
we continued to make requests for the incident report to investigate the accuracy of the
information the distributor had given to michael. then, some months later, the distributor
informed ewon that they had successfully claimed against the contractors for damage to their
network. moreover, the third-party involved was in fact the contractor they had referred michael
to in the beginning.
the distributor eventually provided the incident report which confirmed this was the case. we
suggested to the distributor that they consider making a customer service gesture to michael in
recognition of the delay in clarifying information about the event. the distributor offered $400 in
acknowledgement of the poor customer service and we advised michael’s solicitor of the offer.
while michael felt the distributor had handled the situation very poorly, he accepted the offer to
finalise the matter.
From its inception, EWON has reported to providers and other stakeholders on systemic issues identified in our investigation of customer complaints. These issues may have related to a particular provider, or to the electricity, gas or water industries, or to utilities overall.
In EWON’s first years of operation, the clear issue that required a systemic response was financial hardship and disconnection. To address this, EWON hosted regular forums which brought together representatives from industry, community and government. At the forums participants discussed support for customers who were struggling to pay utility accounts and ways of reducing the high rate of energy disconnection in New South Wales. A customer hardship forum which EWON initiated in 2004 continues to operate today under the auspices of the energy and water retailers.
Where appropriate EWON has promoted best practice regulation and we welcomed the New South Wales regulatory requirement for all energy retailers to have a hardship charter and offer customers payment plans. More recently, EWON supported the inclusion of customer assistance measures into a new national consumer protection framework.
Overall, EWON’s approach to working with our member providers has helped to promote best practice in customer service. By raising provider-specific issues in our reports to individual members, we have also helped reinforce the information they receive from their internal complaint handling processes. This has created opportunities for ongoing discussion to address and resolve complex matters. Our reports to members have become an essential part in working with them to address customer concerns.
While EWON’s primary role remains that of dispute resolution for utility customers, our work to prevent complaints is equally important. Our work in raising systemic issues with key stakeholders such as the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, has seen us extend our reporting function and communicate customer concerns to a broader audience.
Over the years EWON has looked for opportunities to contribute our experience of customer issues to Government processes and reviews. EWON raised a number of concerns with the Unsworth Energy Consultative Reference Committee, which were incorporated into the Committee’s final recommendations. In particular, we highlighted the need for review of the pensioner utility rebate and the Energy Accounts Payment Assistance program.
Retrospective
consumer issues
systemic issues raised this yearSystemic issues typically affect a number or a particular group of customers. Our Policy and Research team is responsible for coordinating EWON’s response to the systemic issues identified through customer complaints. The team provides information and works with providers, government, regulators and community groups to address these issues. In doing so EWON encourages improvements to benefit consumers and to prevent or reduce similar complaints in the future.
Systemic issues identified this year include:
Disconnection of supply and inability to access hardship programs
Despite new regulations requiring retailers to provide alternative payment arrangements and hardship programs, the number of customers contacting EWON who have been disconnected or are facing disconnection has increased over the last year.
EWON was also contacted by customers experiencing financial hardship who should reasonably have been referred by the contact centre to their retailer’s hardship program in the first instance.
EWON continues to work closely with the Department of Water and Energy in monitoring the impact of new disconnection regulations. We will continue to advise providers of any barriers faced by customers in trying to access hardship programs and identify potential areas for improvement in dealing with disadvantaged customers.
Failure to accept reasonable offers from customers who can’t pay their bills
EWON continues to receive complaints regarding the failure of contact centre staff of some energy retailers to accept what appears to be a reasonable offer to pay a debt by instalments.
Delays and errors in billing
Customers complained about electricity billing errors and large catch-up bills issued by one retailer to customers undercharged for long periods. Some delays and errors were caused by factors such as physical meter data extraction problems or an error during the conversion of meter data into the consumption data used to generate bills.
Failure in business-to-business communication
Over the last year EWON has identified an increase in complaints where customers have been adversely affected by failures in communication between retailers and distributors. We also saw a significant rise in errors (eg disconnection) related to customers transferring between retailers.
Failure to act on customer cooling-off requests
Customers complained that they had cancelled energy offers during the ten-day cooling off period only to find that their cancellation had not occurred. This indicated that some energy retailers did not have the necessary administrative checks in place to ensure all requests by customers to cancel an energy offer are acted on in the regulated period.
Poor customer service in new gas connections
Customers complained about poor levels of service, inconsistent quote information and delays following requests for a new gas connection.
Feed-in tariffs
We received complaints from some home owners who installed photovoltaic cells on their premises with the aim of feeding back any electricity they do not consume onsite into the electricity grid via a bi-directional meter.
Some customers were disappointed to learn that they were limited to being a customer of their standard retailer. They reported that no other retailer was able to offer bi-directional billing.
In some cases, customers were already signed to a second-tier retailer when they installed a bi-directional meter and photovoltaic cells, and this meant they had to cancel their contract, thereby incurring a fee.
Other customers complained that the tariff they paid for electricity they fed back into the grid was not proportional to the tariff they paid their retailer to buy electricity.
policy and research submissionsAs EWON moves into its second decade, two critical areas of policy that will impact on energy providers, customers and EWON are the move to national regulation and the introduction of carbon pricing. EWON will continue to contribute to these debates to ensure that the outcomes provide adequate consumer protection, particularly for disadvantaged customers.
Our individual and joint submissions this year included:
ANZEWON submission on the Ministerial Council on Energy’s Cost Benefit Analysis of Options for a National Smart Meter Roll-Out (Phase Two – Regional and Detailed Analyses): Regulatory Impact Statement
ANZEWON comments on the Australian Energy Regulator’s proposed Electricity Distribution Network Service Providers: Service Target Performance Incentive Scheme
Comment on the Review of Prices for Sydney Water Corporation’s Water, Sewerage, Stormwater and Other Services: Draft Report and Draft Determination
ANZEWON submission to National Framework Energy Community Service Obligations
ANZEWON submission to Productivity Commission’s Review of Australia’s Consumer Policy Framework: Draft Report
Response to IPART’s Review of the Last Resort Supply Fee for Small Retail Customers (Electricity): Draft Report
Response to the Ministerial Council on Energy’s Cost Benefit Analysis of Smart Metering and Direct Load Control: Phase 1
Water Industry Competition Act 2006 Regulations Consultation Paper
Our submissions are available at www.ewon.com.au
consumer issues
snapshot of main customer issues
Billing
A total of 4170 customers complained about billing issues
Issue No. complaints
High or disputed account 1551
Delay in bill or bill not received 340
Backbilling 326
Estimated account 254
Marketing
A total of 745 customers complained about energy marketers and/or marketing practices
Issue No. complaints
Misled by marketers 417
Pressured into signing or agreeing to a contract
145
Non-account holder was approached for consent
98
Transfer
A total of 1984 customers complained about problems with transfers between retailers
Issue No. complaints
Problems with the new billing system 481
Did not consent to the transfer 440
Disconnection due to transfer problem or error, site ownership issues
365
Transferred in error 264
Credit
A total of 2660 customers had problems paying their utility bills
Issue No. complaints
Arrears or utility debt 1549
Facing disconnection due to non-payment
866
Disconnected due to non-payment 618
Denied an extension or instalment plan 381
Contacted by debt collectors 345
Customer service
A total of 3038 customers complained about the customer service they received
Issue No. complaints
Poor service 1745
Failed to respond 912
Incorrect advice or information 404
consumer issues
Retailer recognises hardship and grants special consideration
Jane called on behalf of a small strata plan and explained that a pipe had burst under
the concrete in a common area, and they had arranged for a contractor to fix the
leak. while their quarterly bills were usually around $1000, following the leak they
received a bill of $5430. Jane said the strata plan had only recently imposed a special
levy to cover $55,000 for urgent repairs to the building. as some of the residents were
pensioners, Jane said they couldn’t afford to impose another special levy and had
asked the water retailer for special consideration given that the high bill was a result
of the leak rather than usage.the retailer told Jane they had applied the maximum rebate their policy would allow
in such instances. Jane was referred to ewon and she advised us that the strata plan
wasn’t satisfied with this.ewon contacted the retailer who confirmed they had applied the maximum rebate
however there was a discretionary provision for special consideration if customers
were in financial hardship. we asked Jane if they could provide receipts for the work done and substantiate the
residents’ financial difficulties.Jane was able to show that four of the residents were pensioners and that they had
already borne considerable expense repairing the damage to the property.
we provided this information to the retailer who acknowledged that the high bill
could cause financial hardship to some residents. the retailer offered to reduce
the bill by 50%. the strata plan accepted this offer and asked if the retailer would
consider a payment plan. the retailer agreed for the strata plan to pay the bill over
five months.
abu called ewon with the help of a dari intepreter. he received a final bill from retailer a
for his electricity account and when he queried this, he was advised that his account had
been transferred to retailer b. he rang retailer b to query the bill and they told him he
would be charged a termination fee for ending the contract.
abu remembered a marketer ringing him several times about a discount on his electricity
and gas accounts. however abu said he didn’t agree to a contract because he wasn’t sure
what they were offering.
we contacted retailer b who confirmed they already held abu’s gas account and a marketer
had contacted him about bundling his electricity account and transferring it to them. we
explained abu’s situation and that he wanted his gas account to be transferred back to his
original retailer. retailer b retrospectively transferred his account back to retailer a and
waived the fees and charges on his account.
we highlighted to retailer b that in our dealings with abu, it was clear that he was
genuinely confused about the transfer and did not understand the bundled offer initially
put to him. we asked retailer b to retrieve the voice recording of the transaction to establish
if the marketing had been appropriate.
after listening to the recording, the retailer agreed with our view that abu did not
understand the offer put to him. while abu responded ‘yes’ to a number of the marketer’s
questions about wanting to receive a discount, the marketer did not clearly state that abu’s
account would be transferred to another retailer. in recognition of the marketer’s error,
retailer b made a customer service gesture of $30 to abu and sent him a letter of apology.
When ‘yes’ is not consent
Retailer recognises hardship and grants special consideration
mark paid $295 for a new standard gas connection and was told it would take three to four
working days. when this didn’t happen, he repeatedly called the retailer for an explanation
but said he was treated rudely, was often put on hold and then the phone would ring out.
when he finally spoke to a supervisor, they told him the work was delayed because he
needed an oversized meter. mark explained that his wife was 35 weeks pregnant and they had been living in the
property without hot water or cooking facilities. he said an inspector had just completed
a site visit and told him they only needed a standard meter and it would be connected the
next day. mark told ewon he was frustrated by the delay and he wanted to complain about
the poor customer service he had received.we contacted the retailer about the delay. the retailer agreed to contact the distributor to
put through an urgent request for the connection but advised it may still take three to four
working days. we advised that mark understood from the inspector that the connection
would occur the next day. we informed mark of the retailer’s advice about a possible further delay with the connection.
we explained that the company actually doing the work was the distributor, not the retailer.
mark and his wife felt the further delay needed to be acknowledged and asked for their
money to be refunded.the retailer agreed to mark the connection order as urgent and to refund the fee as a
customer service gesture, in recognition of the incorrect information and poor customer
service mark received.
Miscommunication between retailer and distributor leaves customer without hot water
Error in transfer sees customer twice threatened with disconnection
in august 2006 Jeff contacted ewon on behalf of maya, after she began receiving letters
addressed to ‘dear customer’ from a new retailer threatening to disconnect her electricity
supply. he said maya had contacted the retailer to tell them there was an error, but they
refused to switch her back to her original supplier.
ewon’s investigation established that maya’s account had been transferred in error
ten months earlier, but there was a delay in the retailer’s billing system. the retailer had
transferred maya’s nmi* number instead of someone else’s number. the retailer said they
would transfer the account back to maya’s original supplier and write off what she owed
because of their mistake.
in april 2008 Jeff contacted ewon again on behalf of maya, to say that she had recently
returned from a trip away to find a final bill from her supplier. when she contacted them
she was told her account had been transferred to the same retailer again.
Jeff confirmed that in 2006 the retailer had transferred maya’s account and she had been
receiving bills from her original supplier since then.
our investigation revealed that the retailer had not completed all the actions required
when they transferred maya’s account back to her original supplier in 2006. this meant the
contract that was set up in error in 2006 was not properly cancelled and when it expired,
maya was re-contracted which initiated another transfer in error. the retailer corrected the
error and sent maya a $50 customer service gesture to acknowledge the inconvenience
they had caused her.
* national metering identifier
working with stakeholders
Early on, EWON recognised the importance of developing strong links and partnerships with all parties with an interest in consumer issues in the energy and water industries – customers, providers, government, regulators, community organisations, peak bodies and other complaint handling agencies.
To meet our objectives, it has also been important to understand the business environment in which our members operate, the concerns and interests of individual consumers or groups of consumers, and the role that government and regulators play in helping to create a robust industry environment with strong consumer protection measures.
EWON, as the primary place of review for complaints about energy and water providers, has always been well placed to work with all stakeholders to improve customer service standards and consumer protection, in order to reduce or prevent complaints. No one group can do it alone.
In keeping with this approach, each year we have visited different utilities and regions across New South Wales to understand the particular issues facing customers and companies. Distributors such as Country Energy, Integral Energy, EnergyAustralia, Sydney Water, Hunter Water and State Water, have provided our investigations staff with field training that has proved invaluable in the investigation and resolution of customer complaints. Similarly, retail companies have regularly presented to our staff on key policy and process changes regarding pricing, marketing, green energy products, billing systems and customer assistance programs.
Over the past ten years complaints to EWON have highlighted issues that could only be addressed through broad industry discussion. We have hosted a series of forums on key issues including affordability, customer service, complaint handling practices, marketing and business-to-business relationships.
The formal information sharing and referral arrangements we have in place with key government agencies and regulators – Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, Department of Water and Energy, Office of Fair Trading and NSW Ombudsman – have also been critical to our work.
Retrospective
anniversary celebrationOn Tuesday 3 June 2008, around 150 guests gathered at the Arthouse Hotel in Sydney to mark EWON’s tenth year anniversary. Guests included representatives of industry, government, regulators, and community agencies. We were pleased to welcome Gae Pincus, the first Chairperson of EWON’s Council and a number of industry representatives who were part of the original working party which established the scheme.
Photos by Sophie Howarth
providersEWON works closely with our energy and water members to share information on industry developments and customer concerns. We aim to work with members to address customer issues as quickly as possible, raise customer service standards, share best practice information, and prevent complaints coming to EWON.
Forum: The impact of business-to-business relationships on energy customers
EWON hosted an industry forum to facilitate discussion between retailers, distributors and other key stakeholders on how to address business-to-business issues that were contributing to customer complaints to EWON. The forum was well attended with representatives from all retailers and distributors as well as National Electricity Market Management Company, Gas Market Company, Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal and the Department of Water and Energy.
Feedback from participants was positive with many noting the value of retailers and distributors being able to sit down as a group to discuss the issues, look for solutions to common problems and improve working relationships.
Inductions for providers
All key member contact staff are invited to attend an EWON induction. One of the realities of retail competition is that it is increasingly necessary for EWON to conduct induction sessions at members’ offices interstate. This year we provided training sessions for AGL and Powerdirect in Melbourne, and Origin Energy and AGL in Adelaide.
Sharing knowledge
Each year EWON plans a number of activities with member providers to ensure that we are familiar with utility issues affecting customers and providers across New South Wales, as well as enabling providers to gain a better understanding of EWON’s role. This year some of the activities included:
Dubbo: We visited State Water’s head office and various sites in Warren and Narromine. EWON staff had the opportunity to learn more about the process of bulk water delivery to customers living in regional areas and to observe typical irrigation farming activities and new metering equipment.
South East: We visited the Queanbeyan, Cooma and Bombala areas with Country Energy. EWON staff had the opportunity to observe Country Energy’s operations at their call centre, dispatch and field service centres. EWON staff also met with local community representatives and learnt about the local issues and challenges Country Energy experience when delivering electricity to regional areas with extreme climate variations.
Newcastle: We visited Hunter Water’s head office to participate in training with their technical specialist in plumbing and drainage services. EWON staff learnt about Hunter Water’s processes, water infrastructure and their approach to resolving issues such as sewer chokes.
Western Sydney: We visited Cecil Hills to learn how Integral Energy manages their network and retail operations in large growth areas. EWON staff had the opportunity to see the planning involved in the placement of electricity infrastructure in new development areas.
Customer assistance programs
EWON visited Integral Energy to learn more about their customer assistance program. EnergyAustralia and Country Energy gave presentations on their new initiatives for customers in financial hardship.
government agencies
Australian Energy Regulator (AER)
EWON has contributed submissions on discussion papers and draft legislation, as well as attending stakeholder consultations with the AER, in preparation for the move to national energy regulation and a national consumer protection framework.
Department of Water and Energy (DWE)
As in previous years, EWON met regularly with DWE on key industry issues throughout the year.
Additional activities this year included an induction day for various DWE staff, which provided them with an opportunity to learn more about the environment in which EWON operates. Participants noted that the day helped them to create a closer link between their individual policy work and real outcomes for individual consumers. DWE also presented to EWON staff on green energy products and the GreenPower accreditation program.
working with stakeholders
The Energy & Water Ombudsman NSW (EWON) invites you to an industry forum on the impact of B2B relationships on energy customers.
Monday 3 December 20078.30am – 2pmat the Crown Plaza, 150 Day StreetDarling Harbour, Sydney
SPEAKERS WILL INCLUDE:
RETAILER’S PERSPECTIVE :: Darren Bailey, Manager Business Relations, AGL
DISTRIBUTOR’S PERSPECTIVE :: Graeme Ferguson, Manager Business Administration Performance, Country Energy
NATIONAL ENERGY MARKET PERSPECTIVE :: Keith Armstrong, Business Process Analyst Metering and Settlements, NEMMCO
PANEL SESSION :: Panel members will include representatives from AGL, Country Energy, EnergyAustralia, Integral Energy, Origin Energy and NEMMCO. The session will be facilitated by EWON.
ENQUIRIES / RSVP:by Friday 23 November 2007Linda Brown, EWONPhone (02) 8218 [email protected]
WHO SHOULD ATTEND: • Executive / Senior Retail and Network Managers• Regulatory and Compliance Managers• Complaint Handling Sta�
Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART)
EWON continues to provide IPART with quarterly energy and annual water reports. These reports detail the number and types of customer complaints, and any systemic or compliance issues. We continued to make submissions to IPART on pricing and other reviews, as well as contributing at stakeholder consultations.
NSW Office of Fair Trading (OFT)
EWON has a strong relationship with OFT based on our related areas of jurisdiction. This year we welcomed an opportunity to present an information session on our services as part of the induction program for frontline OFT staff.
working with our peersEWON continues to be an active member of key interest groups, including:
ANZEWON – Australia & New Zealand Energy and Water Ombudsman Network
ANZOA – Australian and New Zealand Ombudsman Association
JIG – Joint Initiatives Group
JOIN – Joint Outreach Initiatives Network
The Ombudsman is an active member of ANZEWON and ANZOA, where schemes share ideas and best practice initiatives for complaint handling, outreach, and systemic work. Members of EWON staff participate in various ANZOA interest groups including public relations and communications, IT, and learning and development.
We continue to participate in JIG and JOIN groups.
JIG is a network of federal and New South Wales complaint agency representatives who meet regularly to discuss topical issues relating to dispute resolution, investigative best practice and training initiatives.
JOIN continued to meet this year and is made up of the staff from JIG agencies who conduct public relations, community education and outreach initiatives. The JOIN meetings are an opportunity to discuss partnership opportunities, and to share information and outreach approaches.
visit to dubbo with state water
EWON’s community outreach activities began in 1998 soon after the scheme was established, with the aim of promoting the scheme and preventing complaints.
Initially the activities were undertaken by investigations staff, however EWON developed a team dedicated to public and stakeholder relations, community education and service development. The team includes an Indigenous Project Officer whose work is focused on outreach to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
It also became clear soon after EWON began, that we needed to focus outreach activities on culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities. In 1999 EWON launched its first campaign to six major ethnic groups: Arabic, Chinese, Greek, Italian, Spanish and Vietnamese communities.
Today EWON has information translated into 29 languages and our work has expanded to include the smaller, emerging ethnic communities.
Over the years EWON has worked with hundreds of workers and advocates in community agencies including legal information centres, neighbourhood centres, Anglicare, Centacare, Creditline, St Vincent de Paul, Salvation Army, Samaritans, The Smith Family, disability services and migrant resource centres. Our Indigenous staff have forged relationships with Aboriginal land councils, and legal and medical services.
We have hosted numerous forums for consumers and advocates on issues such as affordability and sustainability.
We regularly host stalls at diverse community events including multicultural festivals, Yabun, Mardi Gras Fair Day and Seniors Days at the Easter Show.
We also participate in training days for financial counsellors, electorate officers and customer service staff in government services.
The success of our outreach has relied upon community leaders and frontline staff in agencies helping us to spread the word about our service. We thank everyone who has promoted or partnered with EWON to ensure energy and water customers across New South Wales have access to our service.
Retrospective
community outreach
our work with the community this yearIn February 2008 EWON brought together second-tier retailers and community workers to discuss financial hardship issues. The forum provided an opportunity to create positive working relationships between retailers and community workers, with the goal of improving direct communication channels without the need for community workers to contact EWON on behalf of their clients.
This year we partnered with NSW Ombudsman to present forums for disability workers. Together with the Commonwealth Ombudsman and NSW Ombudsman, we hosted a joint stall on Seniors’ Days at the Royal Easter Show. Our participation in Community Access Forums hosted by the Office of Fair Trading has also become a regular activity for our outreach program.
As a member of ANZOA (Australian and New Zealand Ombudsman Association) we coordinated the ‘Free, Fair and Independent’ postcard which was launched during O-Week activities and then distributed throughout New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland. EWON also participated in joint Ombudsman stalls during O-Week at the University of New South Wales and University of Sydney.
We continued to present forums covering affordability and sustainability issues this year at various community venues. In May 2008 we presented three of these forums in the Hunter region at Muswellbrook, Maitland and Newcastle.
Our Community Development Officer received a number of invitations to present to communities, including the Cynthia St Neighbourhood Centre, Ryde Family Support Services and The Smith Family Settlement Services.
EWON was invited to contribute to the Corrective Services Responsibilities and Rights CD, aimed at training staff to deliver information sessions to prisoners to assist them with credit or debt problems. We also continued to participate in regular pre-release information days for inmates at various prisons.
Culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities
This year we worked with the Greek Welfare Centre and presented to a number of their community members across Sydney. We also partnered with the NSW Refugee Health Service to raise awareness of our services in African migrant communities and to provide basic information on opening/closing accounts and avoiding high bills. As part of our regional trip to the Hunter, we were invited by Northern Settlement Services to present to their interagency meeting in Tamworth.
cald complaints
There were 504 complaints (6%) from customers who identified as CALD. Of these customers, 37% of complaints involved billing, which is higher than the overall average.
Around 51% of these complaints came from Outer Sydney and 38% from Inner Sydney.
Of the CALD-identified complaints, 68 were from Chinese speakers, 56 Arabic, and 37 Greek. However a large proportion (204 complaints) of CALD customers represented smaller language groups in the community.
Overall, complaints from customers who identified as CALD continue to increase – 201 complaints in 05/06, 394 complaints in 06/07, 504 complaints in 07/08. While this data shows that information about EWON is reaching CALD communities, it also highlights an ongoing need to promote our services to the many and diverse cultural groups in New South Wales.
billing 37% credit 22% customer service 16% transfer 15% marketing 7% general <1% provision <1% supply <1%land <1%
Issues raised by CALD customers
community outreach
choon-hee contacted ewon with the help of a Korean interpreter. when she
arrived in australia recently she moved into a property with electricity supply
only and established an account with the retailer. choon-hee then moved into
a new property with both electricity and gas supply. she asked the retailer to
transfer her account and thought that one retailer managed both the electricity
and gas.
she told ewon she had received a letter addressed to ‘dear occupant’ but
it was from a different retailer so she didn’t open it. the gas supply was
disconnected for arrears of $166 when the bill was not paid.
choon-hee paid what was owing on the account to have the supply
reconnected however she called ewon to see if the retailer would consider
waiving the disconnection fee of $85.
we contacted the retailer to discuss choon-hee’s situation. the retailer
acknowledged that it was a genuine misunderstanding and agreed to waive
the fee. they established a gas account in choon-hee’s name.
Retailer recognises difficulty of new migrant
Presentation to a Greek community group in Thornleigh
Stall at Redfern Legal Centre’s International
Human Rights Day Forum
Breach of marketing code leads to a deceased person’s account
being transferred
nadia was living in her aunt’s house and the account was with retailer a. her aunt
died in July 2005 but nadia continued to pay the electricity bills in her aunt’s name.
late in 2006, nadia went to stay with friends for a while. when she returned to her
aunt’s house, she noticed there was a bill from a new retailer (retailer b) for $1023,
for the period march 2006 to march 2007.
she paid the bill but contacted retailer b to say she wanted the account
transferred back to retailer a. they agreed to do this if she provided a copy of her
aunt’s death certificate.
nadia forwarded the certificate and then contacted retailer a to establish an account
in her name. retailer b retrospectively transferred nadia’s account to retailer a, from
december 2006 onwards, and said they would issue a refund cheque.
when nadia received her first bill from retailer a, she noted they had billed her
from december 2006 onwards. she paid what she could afford but called them
to say she had already paid retailer b for part of this period. retailer a said they
would sort out the problem.
nadia didn’t hear back from retailer a about the double-billing. she then received
a disconnection notice from retailer a for the amount outstanding.
nadia was concerned about being disconnected so she called ewon. she also
asked us to investigate how the transfer happened when her aunt was deceased
at the time the contract was established.
we immediately contacted retailer a and asked them to put a hold on the
disconnection. we then contacted retailer b to find out who authorised the
account transfer. retailer b confirmed that the aunt’s account was transferred in
december 2005, five months after she died. it appeared a door-to-door marketer
had visited the house and nadia had provided her identification details along with
an electricity bill in her aunt’s name.
retailer b had no record that a verification call was made to confirm the consent
to transfer given nadia was not the account holder. they indicated there may have
been a breach of the Marketing Code of Conduct and they agreed to issue a refund
cheque to nadia for the amount she had paid them along with a letter of apology.
they also provided nadia with a $100 customer service gesture in recognition
that the delay in issuing the refund cheque had inconvenienced her. retailer b
confirmed they would report the breach to the regulator.
community outreach
Indigenous outreach
As a member of the Good Service committee, we attended forums in Lismore, Redfern, Broken Hill and Wilcannia. EWON was represented at major Indigenous events such as Yabun and NAIDOC. This year the Indigenous Project Officer continued to attend interagency meetings and focused on making contact with leaders in Aboriginal organisations. Presentations were made to elders at Tharawal Aboriginal Corporation (Campbelltown) and Kurranulla Aboriginal Corporation (Jannali), La Perouse and Dubbo.
aboriginal and torres strait islander (atsi) complaints
There has been a slight increase in complaints from ATSI customers (113 this year compared with 96 last year). Credit remains a primary issue for ATSI customers, though billing issues have increased from 13% to 17% this year.
Around 30% of ATSI complaints came from Outer Sydney, 17% from Inner Sydney, 12% from North West and 9% from the Hunter.
Of the 113 ATSI complaints, 37 customers had been disconnected and 23 were facing disconnection. Most of the credit difficulties resulted from customers carrying arrears or debt on their electricity account.
credit 67% billing 17% transfer 6% customer service 5% marketing 4% general 1%
Issues raised by ATSI customers
Joint disability forum with NSW Ombudsman
Stall at Housing NSW community forum
Sole parent faces disconnection over substantial debt
scott is an aboriginal man who contacted ewon because he was concerned he couldn’t pay his electricity arrears and he would be disconnected. as a sole parent with two young children in a rural area, he said he couldn’t afford to be without power and the weather had been cold.
scott said he owed $4700 and he did not dispute the amount, as he knew part of the arrears related to his previous address. however, the energy retailer was asking him to pay $104 per week which he couldn’t afford.
scott explained he relied on a pension for his income and had other debts. he did odd jobs for extra income, but was finding it difficult to find regular employment that fitted in with picking up his children from school. he was also in the process of filing for bankruptcy so that he could start again and get his financial affairs back on track.
we contacted the retailer to discuss scott’s situation and the large arrears that had accumulated on his account.
the retailer confirmed that scott had made some payments but they were not regular and the household was consuming at least $75 per week in electricity and gas. they were concerned that scott’s debt would not reduce if he didn’t keep up his payments. we asked the retailer to put a hold on the disconnection while scott sought assistance, and they agreed.
we spoke to scott about eapa*, what he could afford, and ways of reducing the amount of energy his family used. scott said he would seek eapa and set up a centrepay arrangement of $75 per week.
the retailer agreed to scott’s payment plan and said they would refer him to their customer assistance program. they would also review scott’s account in a few months time to determine whether it was appropriate to make new arrangements.
Retailer works with customer to help manage debt
tanya, an aboriginal woman, was facing disconnection for arrears of $2180 when she called
ewon for help.
tanya had moved into a new property with her daughter six months ago and had paid the
security deposit and first bill.
she explained the arrears related to her previous address where she lived with her husband.
tanya thought her husband had paid the account and as they were now estranged, she didn’t
want to contact him about the debt.
tanya agreed that we could advise the retailer of her personal situation, providing there was no
information passed on to her ex-husband. she was willing to go on a payment plan but said she
could only afford $20 per fortnight, as she relied on a disability pension for her income. we gave
tanya the names of eapa* distributors in her area so she could seek financial assistance while we
spoke with the retailer.
we explained tanya’s situation to the retailer and they put a hold on the disconnection. the retailer
said that tanya had been on their customer assistance program before but this had not continued
after she missed payments. they traced her debt back to three previous properties and noted that
her pension details were not recorded on her current account.
the retailer was concerned that tanya’s offer of $20 per fortnight would not cover her usage and
reduce the arrears. they offered to do an energy audit to help reduce tanya’s bills and put her on a
payment plan for an extended period of 18 months, provided she saw a financial counsellor. they
suggested a password could be added to her account as a further security measure.
tanya wasn’t sure about seeing a financial counsellor but we explained their role was to provide
advice to help her manage her bills. tanya was happy with this and said she could realistically
afford a payment plan of $40 per fortnight. she accepted the retailer’s offer of an energy audit and
password protection on her account. tanya said she would seek eapa to help cover the cost of her
bills and provided her pension number so she could receive a rebate on her energy account.
*energy accounts payment assistance vouchers
community outreach
1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Consulted with key government and
community stakeholders (NCOSS, PIAC, SOCAP) to
develop a communications strategy to raise
awareness of EWON.
Implemented the communications strategy
which included broad promotion to consumers and visits to regional and rural areas. Forums were
held to introduce our services to Arabic, Chinese,
Italian and Vietnamese community leaders.
Hosted the first industry and consumer
seminar on payment options for customers in financial hardship.
Promotion to multicultural communities began with
information translated into six languages: Arabic,
Chinese, Greek, Italian, Spanish and Vietnamese.
Conducted community consultation to drought-
affected Far West NSW and met with
Indigenous community leaders in Kempsey.
Joint Ombudsman stall at University of Sydney
Roundtable discussion with community
workers and second-tier retailers
2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
Appointed the first Indigenous Project
Officer to raise awareness of the scheme in Aboriginal and Torres Islander communities.
Vee Thornbury, a Wiradjuri artist from Dubbo, was
commissioned to produce ‘Within Reach’, an
artwork telling the story of EWON. EWON hosted a community forum with Professor Tony Vinson to
discuss his study on social disadvantage Community Adversity and Resilence.
Launched EWON’s new website with an
online complaint form translated into 12
community languages.
Coordinated the first joint awareness campaign ‘Speak
up!’ on behalf of ANZOA. Hosted the first ‘affordability
and sustainability’ forum in Penrith.
Began multicultural promotional campaign on SBS radio. Joined the
Good Service committee and participated in their
first forum for Indigenous consumers in Mt Druitt.
Participated in Anti-Poverty Week by hosting a forum in Broken Hill on financial hardship and customer
assistance programs. Began working with staff of the Department of Corrective Services and conducted pre-release information sessions for prisoners.
Collaborated with NSW Ombudsman to host
forums for disability workers. Began outreach
to new and emerging migrant communities.
Marketer signs up a vision impaired customer without his consent
david lives in public housing and relies on a disability pension for his income. as he is vision
impaired, he doesn’t sign anything without advice from his carer.
when he hadn’t received an electricity bill for nine months, david contacted his supplier
(retailer a) and was told his account had been transferred to another retailer (retailer b).
he contacted both companies to find out what had happened but he was referred back and
forth between the two companies. he then received a backbill from retailer b for $720.
david rang to query the bill and told retailer b he had never signed a contract with them. they
disagreed, and david asked them to send him a copy of the contract. the next day retailer b
contacted david to say they didn’t have a contract on file. they agreed to transfer david’s
account back to retailer a. david questioned whether he should have to pay what was owing
to them as there was no contract in place, but the retailer continued to make demands for the
money owing. concerned about his credit rating, david made fortnightly payments and with
eapa assistance he managed to pay $340 towards the arrears with retailer b.
retailer b contacted him again to say there was still $700 outstanding and asked when he
intended to pay. at that point david decided to call ewon for help.
david told ewon he remembered being visited by a door-to-door marketer who had asked for
his pension card. when the marketer told david the retailer required payment by direct debit
and did not offer a centrepay arrangement, david told the marketer he wasn’t interested.
we contacted retailer b. they advised that their file notes indicated the contract was
established on the basis of david’s pension details and driver’s licence, however they were
not able to locate a contract or provide a voice recording as verification. they confirmed they
had not made any requests for a regular monthly payment as per the contract and had only
issued the first bill after 12 months.
we advised retailer b that david was vision impaired and did not have a driver’s licence.
the fact that an account had been established on this basis indicated a possible serious
breach of the Marketing Code of Conduct.
given this and the inability to produce a contract, the retailer agreed to waive the $700
outstanding on the account, to return david’s account to retailer a and to report the matter
to the regulator.
community outreach
Misleading marketer transfers terminally ill customer
without authority
sue contacted ewon on behalf of her husband John after they received a bill from a
new electricity retailer (retailer b). John has terminal cancer for which he takes heavy
medication and requires oxygen support to help him breathe.
John remembered a marketer visiting his house but he told the marketer about his
illness and said he wasn’t interested in a contract. despite this, a marketer kept
ringing them.
John insisted he never signed a contract or agreed to one over the phone, and was
happy with his original supplier. either way, sue said that as a result of the illness she
had power of attorney over John’s affairs and John would have told the marketer this.
sue asked ewon for help to sort out the problem and investigate the misconduct of
the marketer.
we contacted retailer b to investigate how the contract was established. they
confirmed John was visited by a door-to-door marketer, but the contract was set up
after a follow-up telemarketing call. we explained John’s situation and they agreed to
transfer his account back to retailer a and waive all the fees and charges. we asked
retailer b to provide a copy of the taped call.
it was clear from the voice recording that the marketer did not specifically state
that John was consenting to transfer his electricity account to retailer b. rather, the
marketer elicited responses from John about receiving a discount on his electricity bill.
we advised retailer b of our assessment and pointed out that in any case the
marketer had breached the marketing code by contacting John within 30 days of him
saying no to the offer. we raised our concerns that the marketer had not taken into
account John’s illness or clearly stated the terms of the contract in their call.
we confirmed that we would be reporting the breach to the regulator.
in recognition of their error, retailer b sent John a letter of apology and $50 as a
customer service gesture.
sue was pleased that the breach would be reported to the regulator, as she was
concerned the marketer may have misled other customers.
Stall at Holroyd Carnivale
Stall at Mardi Gras Fair Day
Elderly customer contacts retailer three times to fix an
incorrect transfer
thelma is an elderly pensioner who contacted ewon because her electricity account
had been transferred to another retailer without her consent.
thelma’s account had been with retailer a for some time. she was contacted by
a marketer from retailer b who said they could send her some information about
an energy offer. she told them she would have a look at it. thelma looked over the
information they sent but decided not to take up the contract.
a year later she received a bill from retailer b for $1500. thelma rang them to query
the bill and was told she had signed a contract. thelma disputed this and was told
someone would look into it and get back to her. thelma told ewon it had been over
four weeks and no-one had contacted her. she said she was very worried and was still
paying her account with retailer a.
we explained that we could refer the matter to a senior representative at retailer b
and thelma was happy for this to happen.
a few months later, thelma’s niece, Jenny, contacted ewon to say thelma had
received an arrears notice for $1079. Jenny confirmed retailer b had apologised to
thelma and said they would sort out the problem.
Jenny said thelma had been paying her monthly bills to retailer a. thelma was
very upset by the arrears notice and was very worried by the thought that she
owed this money.
we contacted retailer b who said that they were in the process of cancelling thelma’s
account and she could ignore the arrears notice. they also said thelma shouldn’t
receive any more notices as she wasn’t their customer. we relayed this information
to Jenny.
Five months later, Jenny contacted ewon again. she said thelma had returned home
after being in hospital to find a notice from a collection agency for arrears owed to
retailer b.
we contacted retailer b who said that they had made another error. they assured us
they would withdraw any collection action and that thelma had no debt with them.
we advised thelma that this matter finally seemed to be at an end.
balance sheet 2008 $ 2007 $ CURRENT ASSETSCash 1,315,863 988,825 Receivables 30,697 6,699 Other 56,225 52,428 Total Current Assets 1,402,815 1,047,952
NON-CURRENT ASSETSProperty, plant and equipment 112,663 233,992 Total Assets 1,515,478 1,281,944
CURRENT LIABILITIESPayables (348,461) (293,578) Provisions for staff entitlements (325,244) (264,172) Total Current Liabilities (673,705) (557,750)
NET ASSETS 841,773 724,194 Representing:EQUITYRetained earnings 435,509 317,930 General reserve 406,264 406,264TOTAL EQUITY 841,773 724,194
cash Flow statement 2008 $ 2007 $ CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIESFunding received (Members) 4,491,057 4,207,691 Interest received and sundry income 77,953 66,993 Payments to employees, suppliers, etc (4,254,992) (4,167,579) Net cash Inflow from Operating Activities 314,018 107,105
CASH (OUTFLOW) FROM INVESTMENT ACTIVITIESPayments for plant equipment and fitout costs (44,693) (48,556) Net increase in Cash Held 269,325 58,549 Cash at beginning of year 980,240 921,691 CASH AT END OF YEAR 1,249,565 980,240
detailed income & eXpenditure statement 2008 $ 2007 $ INCOMEFunding received:Joining fees and establishment fees 0 12,000 Operating funding provided by Members 4,524,221 4,211,977Interest received and sundry income 77,787 67,235Gross income 4,602,008 4,291,212 Less EXPENDITURESalaries and oncosts 3,241,684 3,221,147 Employee Related Expenses 201,645 173,998Operating expenditure 303,196 227,097Communications Strategy 167,465 116,320Premises 516,472 480,740Council and Board costs 53,967 54,968 Operating funding in advance – transfer (from)/to reserve 0 (31,058) Total Expenditure 4,484,429 4,243,212
EXCESS OF INCOME OVER EXPENDITURE FOR THE YEAR 117,579 48,000
financials
customer commentsI would like to thank you for your efficient, speedy and supportive response to my complaint. Without your assistance I do not believe that I as an individual could have … understood the territory, navigated the potholes or achieved the outcome. While it does not restore the status quo prior to the recent work, I do believe it is probably the most we can expect from [the distributor]. Your work on this is very much appreciated. It is not just an acceptable compromise for today but something that will affect our entire future here.
Thank you for your efforts on our behalf in regard to our ....electricity invoices which did not include off-peak consumption charges. Subsequent to your contacting [the retailer] we received a call from a senior customer service representative ... and this matter was resolved in a few days. Following their call we received an account which was reduced by $506.50. I was astonished at the rapid action to your call to [the retailer] when the eight calls I made only resulted in them telling me it was our fault and we had to pay, when clearly it wasn’t and my pleas were falling on deaf ears. Great customer service usually goes unnoticed and [your staff’s] excellence in service has not.
[I wish to tell you] how efficiently you handled this matter for me and how quickly you managed to resolve it after so many attempts I had previously made in vain. I paid the ‘final’ $41.38 pretty much the moment I got off the phone with you so hopefully this will be the end to the matter. Unfortunately I have gas in my [new] premises but have changed [retailer]. Hopefully my new meter will be spinning (slowly) in the right direction (forward) but only when I am actually using gas! I exhausted every avenue and you were the last. I have 4 kids, trying to survive, I’m not doing it easy … It is a relief off my shoulders.
…I read with concern and appreciation your report about the problems experienced by frail aged clients approached by [energy marketers]. I note that some of the confusions they have experienced mirror my own problems. I would point out, however, that I am certainly not frail, and scarcely qualify as ‘aged’. I would add that, from within the rather small sample of my own family, I know of two young men, one in his late thirties and the other in his early forties, and both professional men in their own right, who have been caught by similar marketing dilemmas. It would seem that the ruthless behaviour of some telephone and door-to-door marketers impacts badly on a much wider proportion of society than just the frail aged. You might hear less from younger victims, because they may tend to be embarrassed by what has happened to them. I, on the other hand, was just old enough for my anger and frustration to out-weigh embarrassment. I am so glad that I was stimulated to complain about my experiences. I thank you again for your part in restoring the threatened part of my self-esteem.
design by popomo designs
Freecall 1800 246 545
FreeFaX 1800 812 291
Freepost Reply Paid K1343, Haymarket NSW 1239
address Level 10, 323 Castlereagh Street, Sydney
email [email protected]
web www.ewon.com.au
abn 21 079 718 915
