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Last updated: 09 Mar 2023

Automatic transfer to a new energy company

On rare occasions, your electricity or gas company may stop operating due to financial or compliance problems and you’ ll be automatically transferred to a new company.

Private sector companies sometimes stop operating when they are unable to continue doing business. The energy market in Victoria is a competitive market made up of many companies. It’s rare for these companies to close or exit the market but it can happen.

If your company stops operating, your account will be automatically transferred to a new company.

The Essential Services Commission (ESC) is responsible for regulating the electricity and gas markets in Victoria. It makes some of the bigger private companies responsible for selling electricity or gas to customers in the event that another company stops operating.

If your company stops operating for any reason, one of these nominated companies must take you on as a customer. Which company you transfer to will depend on where you live in Victoria.

Once the transfer has taken place, you are free to choose another retailer of your preference.

No. You don’t need to do anything to be transferred to the new company. The process is automatic and there will be no interruption in the supply of your electricity or gas. You will receive a final bill from the original company up to the period of transfer.

The new company will receive some information about you, including your name and contact details, in order to transfer you. The new company must contact you to explain the change to your energy or gas account. After you transfer to the new company, your bills for energy or gas usage will come from the new company. There will be no overlap in the accounts, so you won’t be charged twice for energy or gas usage.

The company must take you on as a customer for three months. You don’t have to stay with the new company for the entire three months. You’re free to sign up to a new offer with another energy or gas company. The new company has no obligation after three months have passed, so make sure you enter into a contract with the company or another company of your choice before the end of the three-month period.

No. The new company will transfer you onto base offers for electricity and gas in Victoria. For electricity, the Victorian Default Offer (VDO) will apply. For gas, the standing offer will apply. The rates in the VDO and standing offers are likely to be different to the ones you received on your previous plan.

The new company can charge you a fee to cover the administrative costs of transferring you to their systems. The fees are $36 for a gas account and $65 for an electricity account.

If you were in the process of transferring to the company that is no longer operating, you will remain with your previous company.

If you were in the process of transferring away from the company that is no longer operating, you will still be transferred to the new company of your choice.

If you have an outstanding balance or debt with your original company, an administrator or another organisation responsible for handling the company’s finances may contact you to repay the debt. If that occurs, any protections you had under the Payment Difficulty Framework (PDF) will no longer apply. That includes any payment plans you may have negotiated with the original company.

It’s likely that the process of being automatically transferred to a new company will happen without any issues. However, with any process involving a considerable amount of information, errors can happen. These errors could be about bills, fees charged or other issues.

We can help resolve most disputes between you and energy companies in Victoria. Unfortunately, while we can’t help resolve disputes between you and an energy company that has stopped operating, we may be able to refer you to a more appropriate company to deal with your dispute. For more information, visit ewov.com.au or call us on 1800 500 509.