Summer 2009 | EWOV Connect | Energy and Water Ombudsman (Victoria)

Energy and water issues making news EWOV Essentials EWOV in the Community From our 2009 Annual Report Recent Changes to Energy Retail Code Same Customer Raising the Same Issue Update on the Smart Meter Rollout Wrongful Disconnection Payment Review	Subsidies planned for home turbines The State Government is to give subsidies to households that install wind turbines, its first move to support more than just solar panels for renewable energy in homes. Read the full story on The Age Smart meters: Pay now, pay later Victorians will pay at least double—and in some cases triple—the price for new electricity meters from next year, even before many customers have them installed. Read the full story on The Age Solar panel users hit with higher power bills Having solar panels has cost some Victorian households more on their power bills after they lost entitlements to cheaper rates because an electricity company has installed different meters without notice. Read the full story on The Age Service fees drain best water-saving efforts Rising service charges are soaking up any savings Victorians are making by reducing their water use—and welfare workers say some struggling families are forgoing other essentials to cover the costs. Read the full story on The Age New meter to crank up power bills A study by the St Vincent de Paul Society says that with smart meters changing billing from a flat rate to one based on the time of use, average bills will rise by 35 %, or about $263 a year. For pensioners, the increase will be even bigger —42%, or an extra $254 a year. Read the full story on The Age Power companies told to clarify green claims Electricity companies have been told to change the language they use to sell renewable energy because of concerns it may mislead customers. Read the full story on ABC News Latest UK complaint handling research The UK energy regulator, Ofgem, recently released a report called Consumer First—Complaints Handling Research. The summary report is linked for you. Among other things, the research found that fewer than one in four UK energy customers were satisfied with how their company dealt with their complaint. They were particularly unhappy with how many times they had to contact the company, with companies whose staff promised to call back but didn’t, with the attitude of some staff, and with the fact that companies often viewed the problem as resolved when in the customer's eyes it wasn’t. Customers rated highly the ease of registering their complaint and the professionalism and attitude of company staff—but were much less satisfied with their ability to take ownership of a complaint and proactively find a resolution. Return to the Message from the Ombudsman.		Helping you keep an eye on energy and water customer issues being raised in the news

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