Moves to stop power users paying over the odds

Power companies will be discouraged by the Electricity Authority from charging some customers more than others for the same service from July.

They will also be asked to jump more hoops before disconnecting customers who are behind on their bills.

But Consumer NZ research director Jessica Wilson said the ‘‘consumer care’’ guidelines issued by the authority yesterday did not go far enough, and should be mandatory.

‘‘The Electricity Price Review estimated millions of dollars extra were being paid by customers as a result of them not being on the right plan,’’ she said.

Stuff reported in November that Meridian Energy was charging some customers 11 per cent more for electricity than it was quoting other customers for power through price comparison site Switchme.

Fellow majority state-owned ‘gentailer’ Genesis Energy was also offering a ‘‘special’’ 10 per cent discount to some customers through its call centre and at least one price comparison website, at the time.

Consumer NZ argues that unadvertised discounts make it harder for consumers to quickly shop around and make sure they are getting the best price for electricity.

Power retailers that agree to abide by the Electricity Authority’s new guidelines – which include Genesis and Meridian – would appear to need to make every effort to ensure customers were on their best available plans from July.

Signatories should provide their customers with ‘‘every opportunity to be on the best pricing plan’’ to meet their needs, the authority’s guidelines state.

Specifically, power companies should tell a customer if they had a plan that would provide a lower price than the one they were on, based on the customer’s average consumption over the previous year while taking into consideration their individual circumstances.

More than that, if a customer asks about changing a plan, the guidelines recommend their retailer makes them aware of ‘‘any options generally available in the market’’ they are aware of that might suit the customer better than the plans they themselves offer, before making any change.

Electricity Retailers Association chief executive Cameron Burrows said it had concerns when a requirement along those lines was first drafted by the authority, but it now understood the obligation to provide information about other options was more general in nature.