Dáil debates

Tuesday, 12 June 2012

5:00 pm

Photo of Pat RabbittePat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

I thank Deputy Ó Ríordáin for raising this issue.

The Commission for Energy Regulation, CER, is a statutorily independent body established under the Electricity Regulation Act 1999 and has responsibility for overseeing the regulation of Ireland's electricity and gas sectors. The regulator promotes competition in the electricity and natural gas markets so that customers can ultimately benefit from competitive pressures on prices. The CER also protects the interests of final customers, in particular the disadvantaged and the elderly, by ensuring that standards of services are set and codes of practice are in place to protect customers. In this regard, the CER was of the same mind in respect of my initiative that a protocol be concluded with regard to disconnections. I can confirm to Deputy Ó Ríordáin that while at the outset not all service providers wanted a disconnection protocol, the protocol put in place applies to all suppliers.

I am also well aware that, as stated by the Deputy, some consumers are having trouble meeting their electricity and gas bills owing to challenges facing the economy and the fact that gas and electricity prices are increasing as a result of a significant rise in the price of gas worldwide. As previously stated, I asked the regulator to work with all electricity and gas supply companies to implement initiatives to ensure that disconnection for non-payment of accounts will not take place where customers are experiencing genuine financial hardship and have either entered into a payment plan agreement or have agreed to the installation of a pay-as-you-go meter, as appropriate. I did not know that there is a zero disconnections policy in Northern Ireland. However, following what Deputy Ó Ríordáin has stated I will check it. I understood it applied in Northern Ireland so long as one is party to a payment plan or one has installed a meter.

In November 2010, the regulator introduced a number of initiatives on disconnections policy. These included updating the guidelines for the disconnections code of practice and reducing the cost and allocation of costs of disconnection and reconnection for domestic customers. Now, instead of the customer bearing the entire cost, these costs are shared equally by the supplier. This is an interim measure effective until December 2012.

The regulator is also working with the energy supply industry on interim prepayment solutions and has consulted on the challenges of so-called "debt-hopping" with industry and other interest groups. These groups included the Money Advice and Budgeting Service, MABS, and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. In October 2011, the regulator introduced debt flagging into the change of suppliers processes. This debt flagging will encourage customers and suppliers to address arrears in an upfront manner and hence prevent the accumulation of further debt and possible disconnection in the future.

The regulator has also proactively facilitated a pay-as-you-go metering system, also known as a prepayment meter, in both the natural gas and electricity industry to allow customers to manage their bills more effectively. The pay-as-you-go metering system is being rolled out by all suppliers throughout the country. In addition to providing a useful budgeting tool to customers, suppliers are required to offer customers facing disconnection the option of a pay-as-you-go meter, where it is suitable, instead of proceeding to disconnect the customer. In these circumstances the customer's outstanding debt is placed on the meter and repaid over time.

In late 2011, the regulator carried out an audit of the guidelines of the code of practice on disconnections to see whether suppliers were in compliance. The audit showed that all suppliers had implemented the guidelines. In the case of all examined domestic customer disconnections, the suppliers had exceed the regulator's requirements in terms of the timing of communication with customers and the numbers of attempts made to engage with customer prior to disconnection.

The regulator will continue to monitor the retail electricity and gas markets, looking specifically at the issues of customer debt and disconnections over the coming months, and from now on will report quarterly on these matters in its electricity and gas retail market reports.

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