Aussies losing in energy bill fight

DESPERATE Australians hit by soaring energy prices are signing up to financial hardship programs in tens of thousands to help cope with rising bill stress.

Latest statistics show some Australians, signing up to hardships programs, are staying in the programs for as long as two years.

The nation’s major energy retailers remain under tough scrutiny over rising electricity prices after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull called for power companies to do more to help people cope with their bills.

One of the nation’s largest energy retailers, Origin Energy, recorded an increase of about 10,000 people signing up to the their Power On hardship program in the 2016/17 financial year.

The retailer has more than 30,000 customers seeking assistance to manage either electricity or gas expenses or both.

An Origin spokesman said the time in the hardship program can range anywhere from seven to eight months or up to two years.

“The program provides personalised case management support, matched incentive payments, tailored payment, free energy audits and energy efficiency appliance upgrades,’’ he said.

He said customers are also given “referrals to financial counselling services” and are directed to other local government support programs.

Energy Australia has more than 13,000 customers in its hardship program and after graduating almost a quarter of these customers end up returning for further help.

Statistics for retailer AGL found, in March this year, it had about 19,800 electricity customers and 7500 gas customers in NSW, Qld and SA using their financial hardship program. In Victoria, latest statistics show in June 2016 AGL had 11,300 electricity and gas customers within their hardship program.

Financial Counselling Australia’s chief executive officer Fiona Guthrie said one of the biggest problems struggling consumers faced was people who should access these programs do not.

“The fact these programs are growing and more people are in them is symptomatic of the difficulties people are having with their utility bills,’’ she said. “This is only going to get worse with power prices going up ... electricity prices have pretty much doubled in the past five years.”