Regulating for all consumers

The Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko (Authority) is progressing a number of initiatives in the coming months to help support consumer outcomes in the electricity industry.

Consumers are at the heart of everything the Authority does. Electricity is a crucial service in our everyday lives and one that is helping us innovate for future generations.

Consumers can and should have more control over their energy use, receive a standard and consistent level of care from their electricity provider, and have confidence that regulatory and policy decisions are informed by accurate and up-to-date data.

As our power system continues to evolve, the Authority wants to ensure the interests of and protections for consumers are kept at the heart of these changes – now and in the years to come.

Changing how we collect and publish retail market data

Underlying all this work is our ability to develop insights based on accurate data. Today we started a consultation about collecting more data from electricity retailers.

Collecting and publishing better data will support our monitoring and visibility of the retail market, identify and address potential issues faster, and make well-informed policy decisions that will benefit all consumers.

We are also seeking to consolidate our data collections to make it easier for retailers to provide the information we seek.

We want to hear your feedback on this consultation.

Consumer Care Guidelines

Earlier this year we consulted on the Consumer Care Guidelines (Guidelines) to understand what changes could be made to the Guidelines to help strengthen protections for consumers. We received over 1,000 submissions during the consultation period, highlighting the important role the Guidelines can play in ensuring a standard and consistent level of care is provided from electricity retailers to their customers.

All submissions are being carefully considered. We also completed the 2023 Consumer Care Guidelines alignment review. We intend to announce a decision and next steps for the Guidelines in early 2024 and will publish the alignment findings at the same time.

We also intend to consult in early 2024 on options to support consumers to compare and easily switch between electricity retailers and plans.

Electricity plan comparison and switching

Encouraging consumers to compare and switch electricity retailers, where a different plan better meets a consumers’ needs, has widespread benefits. These include strengthening retail competition, which reduces electricity prices and eases the cost of living, and encouraging retailers to develop innovative products and services.

The retail market is rapidly evolving to meet consumer demand for greater choice and flexibility, and to keep pace with advancing technology and the electrification of New Zealand’s energy needs. This means electricity plan offerings are becoming more diverse, sophisticated, and at times, complex.

Consumers need access to accurate information to compare retailers and choose the right plan for their needs. It is also important that processes to switch electricity retailers and plans are easy, and consumers are well supported to do so.

We want to understand how we can best support consumers to compare and switch electricity retailers, and look forward to engaging with stakeholders during our consultation next year.