So many communities on the east coast have been badly impacted by the heavy rains and flooding. I have seen some of this first hand in my own electorate.
Many areas remain under threat, while other regions are beginning the hard road to recovery.
While tens of thousands of customers have had their electricity restored, there are still around 19,500 customers across Queensland and New South Wales without power.
Electricity network crews remain hard at work, reconnecting households and businesses as soon as it is safe to do so. Several of these network businesses have also put in place customer assistance, fee waiver and rebate schemes, which is great to see.
It is important that the whole electricity sector comes together to support their customers. This is why I have written to the Australian Energy Regulator, asking it to re-initiate the Statement of Expectations.
The Statement of Expectations is a series of increased consumer protections first initiated by this Government to support households and small businesses impacted by COVID. These protections are equally applicable now, and I encourage all energy companies – networks and retailers – to come together to support their customers.
The expectations include:
- offering all flood-affected residential and small business customers who indicate they may be in financial stress a payment plan or hardship arrangement;
- not disconnecting affected residential or small business customers – other than for safety or at their request;
- waiving any disconnection, reconnection and/or contract break fees for small businesses that have ceased operation, along with daily supply charges to retailers, during any period of disconnection;
- deferring referrals to debt collection agencies for recovery actions or credit default listing; and
- prioritising the safety of customers who require life support equipment and continue to meet responsibilities to new life support customers.
Customers should contact their electricity network service provider for up to date information regarding restoration timeframes and customer assistance, while anyone experiencing financial stress should contact their electricity retailer to discuss a payment plan.
