Room for improvement in power companies’ compliance with consumer care rules

The Electricity Authority Te Mana Hiko's first annual report into power companies’ compliance with Consumer Care Obligations finds most are following the rules, though some gaps remain.

The Authority brought in the Obligations last year, to ensure households are treated fairly, can stay connected, and are supported to manage their power bills. The Obligations came fully into effect on 1 April 2025, three months after two key consumer protections - prohibiting power companies from disconnecting customers where a medically dependent consumer may be living and requiring any fees to be reasonable.

“All power companies must comply with the rules set out in the Obligations if they sell electricity to residential consumers,” says Airihi Mahuika, General Manager Legal, Monitoring and Compliance.

“The rules were put in place to ensure consumers get a consistent level of care regardless of which power company they choose to get their electricity from.

“While it’s encouraging that most power companies are following the rules, some are not, which demonstrates why it was necessary to make them mandatory.

“Protecting medically dependent consumers is non-negotiable. Power companies are prohibited from disconnecting customers where they know a medically dependent consumer may be living, because the risk of harm is so high.

“The Authority has already taken enforcement action where breaches of the Obligations were alleged to the Authority. Where harm is possible, we will act,” says Mahuika.

This is the first year that power companies have had to provide a compliance report and it covers the period 1 January to 30 June 2025.

“The rules are designed to make sure households are treated fairly, can stay connected, and are supported by their power company when they have difficulty paying their power bills.

“Many power companies identified, and importantly, reported fixing issues through the reporting process itself. That tells us that reporting is doing what it’s meant to do: surfacing problems early and driving improvement and it will inform our education, monitoring and enforcement approach.

“This is the beginning of ongoing oversight, and we expect to see year-on-year improvements in compliance. Power companies must tighten their systems, treat customers fairly and help them stay connected,” says Mahuika.

The Obligations are part of the Electricity Industry Participation Code. The Authority investigates alleged breaches and has a range of enforcement actions at its disposal including taking cases to the independent Rulings Panel which can impose a pecuniary penalty up to $2 million.