Results released today (Tuesday, October 15) show a drop from 90 to 76 cases in 2018-2019, reflecting 5.5 Ombudsman referrals per 1000 people.
Benalla Rural City ranked third out of 79 Local Government areas in Victoria for disconnection cases, and collection cases, per capita.
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The results also highlight that:
The EWOV puts the reduction in cases down to two major initiatives, which focused attention on access and fairness for Victorian energy customers.
Benalla saw more of an improvement than the state average with overall cases in Victoria referred to the EWOV down by 10 per cent.
In the past year:
In the 2019 Annual Report, Ombudsman Cynthia Gebert discusses EWOV's experience of two major regulatory initiatives that have strengthened the customer protection framework in Victoria during the past year.
Since July 2018, EWOV has been able to accept complaints from customers whose electricity arrangements are part of an embedded network.
Learn more about the Hume Renewable Energy Roadmap
In 2018-19, the scheme registered 423 embedded network cases, just over one per cent of all EWOV cases.
“(More than) 96 000 more electricity customers now have EWOV access, with around 21 000 more customers to be afforded access over the next year,'' Ms Gebert said.
On January 1, 2019, a new regulatory Payment Difficulty Framework introduced important protections for customers needing help to pay their electricity and gas bills.
“This is one of the most significant regulatory changes we've seen,'' Ms Gebert said.
“With credit cases down 25 per cent from 2017-18, we're optimistic the new framework is starting to deliver positive outcomes for customers.”
● The online version of EWOV’s 2019 Annual Report is available at ewov.com.au
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