contract tariff - ergon energy

8/9/2019 Contract Tariff - Ergon Energy

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Helping you with allyou need to know:Retail CustomerCharter


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The Customer Charter is a formaldocument that sets out ourcommitment to our residentialand small business customers.

It provides you with information about your

electricity retail contract with Ergon Energy

Queensland Pty Ltd (Ergon Energy). That is,

information on the rights and obligations

of providing a retail service and other

services to you.

The Customer Charter is only a summary

of these rights and obligations. They are

explained more fully under various pieces

of legislation, regulations and codes.

What do we do for you?

Ergon Energy is your electricity retailer.

This means we send you a bill for the

electricity and related services that

are delivered to your premises by

your distributor.

We sell electricity to you under a Standard

Retail Contract at prices established by the

Queensland Competition Authority and theQueensland Government.

The prices we charge are called ‘notified prices’.

The Standard Retail Contract sets out our

obligations to sell electricity to you, and your

rights and responsibilities when receiving it.

Our contract with you will only stop if you

choose another electricity retailer, finalise

your account, the premises is disconnected,

or the amount of electricity you use changes

you from a residential or small business

customer to a large business customer.

What is theCustomer Charter?

Do you have any questions?

For all enquiries relating to your purchase of

electricity and your account, just contact us.

We’re happy to help in any way we can.

All contact details can be found on the

back page of this Customer Charter booklet.

Note that Ergon Energy is responsible for

selling you the electricity that is delivered to

your premises by your electricity distributor.

For all enquiries relating to the physical

connection and/or supply of electricity to

your premises you will need to contact your

electricity distributor.

Who is the Customer Charter for?

This Customer Charter is for residential and

small business customers that Ergon Energy

provides with customer retail services under

the Standard Retail Contract.

A residential customer is a customer who

acquires electricity principally for personal,

household or domestic use at the premises

and a small business customer consumes

less than 100MWh of electricity in a year.

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As part of our commitment toyou we’ve introduced a seriesof service standards acrossour business.

We’ll put you, our customer, first

In doing so, we will:

• make it easy for you to contact us;

• be courteous, friendly, and professional;

• listen and respond to your needs

and concerns;

• respect your privacy; and

• use plain language in all our

communications with you.

Our servicepromises to you

Calling us

When you call us, we will:

• identify ourselves on answering yourcall; and

• aim to transfer you only once if your

enquiry requires specialist attention; or

• arrange for the correct person to return

your call within a certain time, or at

a time convenient to you.

Writing to us

When you write, fax or email us, we will:

• acknowledge your correspondence;

• let you know who is dealing with your

enquiry; and

• aim to resolve your query within five

business days.

Access for all

We will:

• ensure our public areas are accessible

to people with disabilities;

• ensure our services are accessible to

people with vision or hearing impairments;

• provide free access to a translation

and interpreting service; and

• provide a copy of the Customer Charter

in a large print format upon request.

Our service promises are:

1 we’ll put you, our customer, first;

2 deliver simple electricity accounts

and flexible payment options;

3 provide expert advice; and

4 listen to your feedback.

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Simple electricity billsand flexible payment options

Simple electricity bills

Your electricity bill shows you how much

electricity you used. We will:

• send you a bill at least quarterly;

• aim to provide you with an accurate bill

every time; and

• if you believe there has been a mistake,

we will check your electricity bill, discuss it

with you, correct any error if a mistake has

been made, then send you a replacement.

Flexible payment options

At Ergon Energy we believe in making it as

convenient as possible for you to pay your

electricity bill through a range of flexible

payment options.

Difculty paying your bill

If you are having difficulty paying your

electricity bill, we want to help. Just call us

as soon as possible so we can discuss your

options with you.

Expert advice

We are committed to helping you reduce

your electricity use by providing you withpractical energy saving advice to help you

use electricity more efficiently.

Save money and be energy efcient

Our team of energy experts can offer you

advice on choosing the right products for

your home or business, and ways to use

them more efficiently. For more information

visit ergon.com.au

Choosing the best tariff

We can help you understand your tariffoptions so you can choose the tariff

structure that best suits your needs.

Listening to your feedback

Your feedback is important to us as it helps

us improve the way we serve you. We will:

• strive to understand your views and priorities;

• review your feedback when making

business decisions;

• keep you informed with up-to-date and

accurate information about us and our

services; and

• monitor our performance and service levels

every year to ensure we are meeting your needs.

Resolving complaints effectively

If our service does not meet your expectations,

please contact us so we can improve the way we

serve you. Ergon Energy endeavours to ensure

that its complaints policy guidelines and practices

are consistent with AS ISO 10002:2006.

If we have not resolved your concerns to your

satisfaction, you can refer your complaint

to the Energy and Water Ombudsman of

Queensland at ewoq.com.au or by

calling 1800 662 837.

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The contract between us

Ergon Energy will sell electricity to you

at your premises under the terms and

conditions of the Standard Retail Contract

at prices established by the Queensland

Competition Authority and the

Queensland Government.

You should note that you have a separate

contract with your electricity distributor

that deals with the physical connection

and/or supply of electricity to your premises.

Ergon Energy is generally only able to sell

electricity to you if:

• we are the existing electricity retailer for

your premises; or

• your premises are being connected to

the electricity network for the first time.

If you have a contract with another retailer, or

the previous occupant of your premises had a

contract with another retailer, Ergon Energy is

not able to sell electricity to you. Your existing

retailer is required to sell electricity to you,

but you can always seek market contracts

from other retailers.

Before we can start selling electricity to you,

your premises must be connected to the

distribution network. We will arrange this with

your electricity distributor. The connection

of your premises to the distribution network

and associated connection services are

governed by the terms and conditions

of your connection contract with your


Rights andobligations

Before we are allowed to sell electricity

to you, you must provide us with some

relevant information. For instance:

• acceptable and valid identification;

• contact details for billing purposes;

• safe and convenient access to the meter

at the premises;

• satisfaction of any other pre-conditionrequired under legislation.

When does the contract start?

The Standard Retail Contract applies

without the need for you or us to actually

sign a contract.

Your contract with Ergon Energy starts when

you begin receiving retail services related to

the provision of electricity to your premises.

Pricing

We charge you for providingcustomer retail services to youaccording to the notied prices

established by the QueenslandCompetition Authority and theQueensland Government.

There are conditions that need to be

satisfied for each tariff and charge.

We will advise you through your bill of any

relevant changes to the notified prices.

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Prices include network charges and

your bill may also include distribution

non-network charges:

• which your electricity distributor is

entitled to charge you under your

connection contract; and

• which have been charged to us on

your account.

We will pay any amounts received from you

for customer connection services, being the

network charges and distribution non-network

charges, to your electricity distributor.

You must tell us if your eligibility for a tariff

changes. For example, if the electricity

consumed at the premises is no longer

primarily for residential purposes. In these

circumstances, you may need to transfer

to a more applicable tariff. If you fail to

tell us about the change in circumstances,

we may transfer you to the applicable tariff,and advise you of this in writing.

If the tariff rate or charge applying to

you changes during a billing cycle we will

calculate your bill using:

• the old tariff up to the date of change; and

• the new tariff from and including the date

of change.

If you think you are eligible for another

type of tariff and wish to transfer, you can

request us to review your circumstances.For more information about tariffs go to

ergon.com.au

Security deposits

In some cases we will ask for a security

deposit to be paid before providing

customer retail services. If we ask you for a

security deposit, you will need to pay this

within five business days.

We will not request a security deposit

greater than 37.5% of your estimated bills

over a 12 month period.

We will pay interest to you on any security

deposit we hold at a rate in accordance with

regulatory requirements.

We will not ask you to provide a security

deposit unless:

• you have left previous premises with a

debt outstanding and have not made

acceptable arrangements to pay this debt;

• you have fraudulently acquired or

intentionally consumed electricity other

than in accordance with electricity

legislation within the previous two years;

• you are a new customer and have

refused or failed to produce acceptable

and valid identification;

• you have not provided the credit historyinformation we require; or

• we have reasonably formed the view that you

have an unsatisfactory or no credit history.

Use of security deposit

We may use your security deposit and any

accrued interest to offset any amount owed

by you to us:

• if you fail to pay a bill resulting in

disconnection of the premises; or

• to pay a final bill if you vacate the

premises or stop purchasing customer

retail services from us at the premises

or ask us to disconnect the premises.

If there are any goods or services charges

outstanding, we will use your security

deposit to pay for electricity charges first,

unless you direct us otherwise. We will tell

you what we have used the security deposit

for and pay the balance, if any, to you within

10 business days.

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Repayment of security deposit

We will repay the security deposit to you,

together with any accrued interest,

within 10 business days of you:

• completing one year’s payment (if you are a

residential customer) or two years’ payment

(if you are a small business customer) by

the due date on your electricity bills; or

• ceasing to take supply fromErgon Energy at the premises.

Unless you request otherwise, we will credit

this amount on your next bill. If you are a

business customer that has provided a bank

guarantee, we will return this to you within

10 business days.

Billing

We will always aim to send you abill at least once a quarter. The billwill be sent to your premises orany other address you nominate.If you are a business customer wemay issue a bill more frequently.If you have a card-operated meteryou will not receive a bill from us.

Your bill will include the following information:

• the amount of electricity you have used;• the estimated date of your next meter reading;

• all relevant tariffs, fees and charges;

• the payment due date;

• a list of available payment methods; and

• details on how to contact us.

We will base your bill on a reading of the

meter at your premises unless we have agreed

otherwise with you. You must make sure there

is safe and convenient access to the meter.

If a meter reading is not available, we may

base your bill on an estimate of your electricity

consumption. However, we will always try

to make sure that an actual meter reading

is obtained at least once every 12 months.

Estimated readings are identified on your bill.

If you have denied us access to a meter,

and then requested us to replace an estimated

bill with a bill based on an actual meterreading, we will try our best to do so. However,

we may pass on to you any costs incurred.

If there is no meter at your premises, we will

base your bill on the notified price schedule

set by the Queensland Competition

Authority relating to unmetered supply.

Payment

You must pay your bill by thedue date. The due date forpayment will be at least 12business days after the datewe send your bill, unless we’veagreed alternative arrangements.

Ergon Energy offers a range of payment

methods, including:

• direct debit;

• BPAY;

• in person at a network of agencies or

payment outlets;

• Postbillpay;

• Visa or Mastercard;

• by mail;

• Centrepay; and

• Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT).

You can find out more about your payment

options on your bill.

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If we have sent you a reminder notice for two

consecutive electricity bills, or a disconnection

warning for two consecutive electricity bills,

we may place you on a “Shortened Collection

Period” plan. On this plan you will no longer

receive reminder notices before receiving

disconnection warnings. Once you have paid

three consecutive bills by the due date you will

return to our standard collection path.

If requested, we will accept payment from you

in advance. If you are a residential customer

and your account is in arrears, or as an

alternative to you paying a security deposit,

we may ask you to pay in advance by instalments.

Payment difficulties

If you are experiencing difficulty in paying

your bill, you should contact Ergon Energy

as soon as possible.

If you are a residential or business customer,

there are a range of services we can discuss

with you, depending on your circumstances.

These may include:

• an interest and fee free instalment plan

that gives you more time to pay your bill

and arrears;

• a variety of payment methods;

• having your bill redirected to a third person

who has agreed in writing to the redirection;

• information on independent financial andother relevant counselling services;

• information regarding government

concessions, rebates or grants that

may be available to assist with financial

hardship; and

• arrangements for advance payment

towards future bills.

Ergon Energy will provide advice on how

you can arrange for an over-the-phone

electricity audit of your premises.

If you have had two payment plans

cancelled due to non-payment in the last

12 months, we will only offer another

payment plan if we are reasonably satisfied

you will comply. Payment options do not

apply if you are convicted of an offence

involving fraud or theft of electricity.

Ergon Energy’s Customer Assist program

is available to help residential and rural

customers experiencing financial hardshipto stay connected. For more information on

this program go to ergon.com.au or call us

on 13 10 46.

Reviewing your bil l

If you disagree with your bill, you can requesta review. We will undertake this review andinform you of the outcome as soon as possible.

When we review your bill, we may require

you to pay the greater of:• that portion of your bill that is not being

reviewed; or

• an amount equal to the average amount

of your bills over the previous 12 months

(excluding the bill in dispute); and

• any other bills that are properly due.

During the review, you can also requestthe meter reading or metering data to bechecked, or the meter tested, and we willarrange for this to occur. You may have topay in advance any fee charged by yourelectricity distributor for reading or testingthe meter.

If the bill is found to be incorrect, we will:

• correct your bill and issue a new bill;

• refund any fee you paid in advance to

have the meter read or tested and;

• advise you of our complaint handling process.

If the bill is found to be correct, you will be

required to pay the outstanding amount in full.

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Undercharging and overcharging

In the event that we undercharge you,

we are entitled to recover the amount

undercharged. If the undercharge was

caused by something we or your electricity

distributor did, or failed to do, we will limit

recovery to the amount undercharged in

the previous 9 months (or 24 months forlarge customers). We will explain the reason

for the undercharge to you and identify the

amount in your next bill, or a special bill.

You will then be given the chance to pay the

undercharged amount by agreed instalments.

Sometimes, restrictions on recovery

do not apply. For instance, if we have

undercharged you because of something

you (or an occupier of your premises) have

done or failed to do, if a fraud has taken

place, or electricity has not been consumed

in accordance with electricity legislation.

If we become aware that you have been

overcharged, we will inform you within

10 business days. If you have already paid

that amount we will repay that amount as

you reasonably direct us to, otherwise we

will credit your next bill. If the amount is

less than the overcharge threshold we will

credit your next bill. If you are no longer a

customer, we will do our best to repay the

amount to you within 10 business days.

If the overcharging was not due tosomething we or your electricity

distributor did, or failed to do, we will

only credit or pay you the amount you

were overcharged in the 12 months (or 24

months for large customers) before the

error was discovered.

If you have a complaint relatingto our service, product, staff orcomplaint process, we encourageyou to contact us.

Ergon Energy endeavours to ensure that ourcomplaints policy, guidelines and practices

are consistent with the AS ISO 10002:2006

Customer Satisfaction – guidelines for

complaints handling in organisations.

More information about our complaints

process can be found at ergon.com.au under

Contact Us and Complaints & compliments.

We’ll make every effort to address your

complaint when you first contact us. If we

can’t resolve it to your satisfaction we will

refer it to the most appropriate person forinvestigation. If you are not happy with that

outcome your complaint can be escalated

within our internal review process.

Our Customer Response and Improvement

Team is responsible for reviewing escalated

complaints and will do all they can to achieve

a fair and reasonable outcome.

This team maintains a close relationship

with Ergon Energy’s Customer Advocate.

The Office of the Customer Advocate is

the last internal point for resolution of a

complaint within Ergon Energy. The CustomerAdvocate’s role is to understand and

represent your interests within Ergon Energy

and will help us to ensure they are considered.

If we cannot resolve your complaint

internally you can take it to the Energy

and Water Ombudsman of Queensland.

They can be contacted at ewoq.com.au or by

calling 1800 662 837, once you have provided

us with the opportunity to resolve it first.

Complaints

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Otherservices

Historical billing data

At your request, we will provide you with

your billing data for the previous two years if

the data is available. This data will be sent to

you promptly, free of charge.

If you request billing data that is more than

two years old, we will do our best to provide

this if the data is available. We may impose

a reasonable charge for providing the data.

Advice on concessions,rebates or grants

Ergon Energy will be happy to provide youwith information regarding the availability

of concessions, rebates or grants that may

be applicable to you or your circumstances.

This information is provided free of charge

on request.

Life Support Program

If a person living at the premises has a

medical condition and may be at risk without

continuous access to an electricity supply,

you can register the premises for Life Support.

We will register the premises with your

electricity distributor and will:

• register the premises as having life

support equipment;

• not arrange for the disconnection of that

premises while the person continues to

reside at the premises and requires the

use of life support equipment; and

• provide you with an emergency

telephone contact number for your


You must inform us if the person on the

Life Support Program vacates the premises

or no longer requires this service.

Interpreter services

If you require the services of an interpreter,

Ergon Energy will refer you to multi-lingual

services to meet your reasonable needs.

Large Print Version

Upon request, Ergon Energy can also

provide you with a large print version of

this Customer Charter. This information is

provided free of charge.

Advice on the use of electricity

If you are a residential customer,

Ergon Energy will provide you with:

• general advice on how you may reduce

your electricity costs;

• advice on how to arrange for an

electricity audit of your premises and the

estimated cost to you; and

• advice on the typical running costs of

major domestic appliances.

This information is provided free of charge.

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When we can disconnect

As a last resort, it may be necessary for

Ergon Energy to disconnect your premises.

Before we do that, we will follow all necessaryprocesses required by legislation and the

Standard Retail Contract, including giving

you notice. Disconnection may occur if:

• you have not paid a bill and you:

- fail to agree to the terms of an agreed

payment plan; or

- do not agree to an offer to pay the bill

by instalments or having agreed, fail to

adhere to the arrangements;

• you have failed to allow access to your

premises to read a meter for three

consecutive meter readings;

• you do not pay a security deposit that we

are entitled to request;

• you have fraudulently acquired or

intentionally illegally consumed

electricity other than in accordance

with electricity legislation; or

• we are otherwise permitted to do so

under legislation.

When we will not disconnect

Ergon Energy will not arrange for your

premises to be disconnected:

• for non-payment of a bill, if the

amount outstanding is less than an

amount approved by the Queensland

Competition Authority and you have

agreed with us to repay that amount;

• where you or a person living at the

premises have advised us you (or a

person living at the premises) are

dependent on life support equipment;

• where you have made a complaint

about the reason for the proposed

disconnection to the Energy and Water

Ombudsman or to us, and the complaint

remains unresolved;

• where you have formally applied for financial

assistance from an agency and a decision on

the application has not been made;

• where you are a hardship customer

or residential customer adhering to a

payment plan;

• where you have failed to pay an amount

on a bill for goods and services other

than your electricity consumption; or

• during a protected period:

- before 8am or after 3pm on

a business day;

- on a Friday, on a weekend,

on a public holiday or on the day

before a public holiday; or

- between 20 December and 31

December (inclusive) in any year,

except where requested by you.

Reconnection after disconnection

When the grounds for disconnection

have been resolved and all conditions for

reconnection have been met, we will make a

request on your behalf to be reconnected.

Disconnection

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Your contract with us will end onthe earliest date that one of thefollowing occurs:

• the end of the notice period after you

notify us to stop providing customer

retail services (even if you have vacated

the premises earlier);

• a date agreed between us and you;

• if your consumption increases to

100MWh per annum or more (which may

occur if there is a change of usage of

electricity at your premises);

• where a different customer starts to receive

customer retail services at the premises;

• where a different retailer becomes

responsible for the provision of customer

retail services to the premises; and

• where the premises are disconnected

and you no longer have a right to

be reconnected.

Depending on where your premises is located,

up to 20 business days may be needed to

stop providing customer retail services to

the premises when requested by you.We encourage you to contact us as soon

as possible with your request.

Where you provide us with notice and a

date you intend to vacate the premises,

we will do our best to have your meter

read and to send you a final bill to your

forwarding address. Your contract will not

end until safe access to the premises has been

provided and a final meter reading obtained.

Information collection

We collect personal information fromyou so that we can identify you, manage

your account, provide services you have

requested, and inform you of other related

products and services that meet your needs.

In some circumstances we may need to

collect health related information from

you to protect your health and safety.

For example, for customers that require

an uninterruptible electricity supply for

kidney dialysis or continuous positive air

pressure machines.

Where possible, we will collect your

information directly from you. Where relevant

and with your consent, we will confirm your

details with external agencies such as the

Queensland Department of Communities,

Child Safety and Disability Services,

Centrelink or other government agencies.

On occasion, we will collect your personal

information with your consent from other

parties such as real estate agents. We only

collect personal information by lawful and

fair means.

Ending yourcontract

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Privacy


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acceptable and valid identication in

relation to:

(a) a residential customer, includes one or

more of the following:

(i) a driver’s licence, a currentpassport or other form of

photographic identification;

(ii) a Pensioner Concession Card

or other entitlement card issued

by the State or Commonwealth

Government; and

(iii) a birth certificate;

(b) a business customer which is a sole

trader or partnership includes for one or

more of the individuals that conduct the

business to provide one or more of the

forms of identification for a residential

customer; and

(c) a business customer which is a body

corporate, includes the body corporate

Australian Company Number or

Australian Business Number;

business customer means a customer who

is not a residential customer;

business day means a day other than a

Saturday, a Sunday or a Queensland widepublic holiday;

card operated meter means a meter that

contains control equipment that switches

on and off in accordance with the amount

of credit stored in the meter;

connection contract means any contract

under which a distributor agrees to

provide customer connection services to a

customer’s premises;

credit history information means:(a) providing us with permission to obtain a

credit check of your credit history; and

(b) any other information that relates to

your credit history that is reasonably

required for us to assess your ability to

meet your financial obligations under a

Standard Retail Contract;

distribution non-network charges means

a distributor’s charges set out in the

distributor’s price list that:

(a) are referable to a specific request by a

small customer or its retailer; or

(b) are referable to a requirement under

electricity legislation and do not include

network charges;

distributor means Ergon Energy

Corporation Limited ABN 50 087 646 062;

Ergon Energy / we / us means Ergon Energy

Queensland Pty Ltd ABN 11 121 177 802;

nal meter reading means the last

recording of actual electricity data for a

customer when they vacate an address or

change retailer;

Definitions

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network charges means charges made by a

distributor for:

(a) the distribution use of system charges

for the use of a shared supply network

of the distributor; and

(b) any charges payable by the distributor

for the use of a transmission grid to

which the supply network is connected;

instalment plan means a plan for residential

or small business customers who are

experiencing payment difficulties.

It allows them to pay a retailer by periodic

instalments, in accordance with regulatory

requirements, any amounts payable by

the customer for the sale and supply

of electricity.

premises means premises owned or

occupied by the customer;

residential customer means a customer

who acquires electricity principally for

personal, household or domestic use at

the premises;

security deposit means an amount of

money or other arrangement acceptable

to us that is used as a security against a

customer defaulting on a bill;

small business customer means a business

customer who consumes less than 100MWh

of electricity per annum;

you means the customer to whom we areproviding customer retail services.

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Customer service

13 10 46

7.00am – 6.30pm, Mon to FriPO Box 308 Rockhampton QLD 4700

FAX (07) 4922 7562

Faults only

13 22 96

24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Life-threatening emergencies only

Triple Zero (000) or 13 16 70

24 hours a day, 7 days a week

Office of theCustomer Advocate

PO Box 264 Fortitude Valley QLD 4006

[email protected]

ergon.com.au

How to contact us

E E Q l d Pt Ltd

E R G 1 3 6 0_ 0

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contract tariff - ergon energy

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