Electricity consumer protection and support
The National Energy Customer Framework (NECF) is designed to provide a single, simplified, national regulatory regime intended to deliver efficiencies in terms of regulatory certainty, reduced compliance costs, and competitive benefits to consumers. The NECF does not cover technical regulation of energy suppliers.
The framework primarily deals with:
- the retailer-customer relationship and associated rights, obligations and energy specific consumer protection measures;
- distributor interactions with customers and retailers, and associated rights, obligations and consumer protection measures;
- national retailer authorisations; and
- compliance monitoring and reporting, enforcement and performance reporting.
Under the NECF, the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) has responsibility for regulating energy retailers, and also administers an energy price comparison service for contestable customers energymadeeasy.gov.au.
The Tasmanian Economic Regulator (the Regulator) was established under the Economic Regulator Act 2009. The Regulator is independent of the Tasmanian Government.
The Regulator's responsibilities in regard to energy include:
- administering the licensing system for electricity and gas entities
- monitoring and regulating technical standards
- monitoring and enforcing compliance
- issuing, maintaining, administering and enforcing the Tasmanian Electricity Code and Gas Codes
- other functions under the Act.
The Regulator is also responsible for setting regulated standing offer tariffs for residential and small business customers, however retailers can also offer unregulated market offer tariffs to customers.
The Regulator is also the Tasmanian energy security Monitor and Assessor. The Monitor and Assessor provides independent oversight and transparent public reporting on Tasmania’s energy security status.
The Regulators functions do not include electricity and gas safety matters which are the responsibilities of Workplace Standards Tasmania and the Director of Gas respectively.
For more information refer to the Tasmanian Economic Regulator's website.
The Energy Ombudsman provides a dispute resolution service for electricity and natural gas customers in Tasmania who have been unable to resolve a complaint with their energy retailer or distributor.
For further information please refer to the Energy Ombudsman Tasmania website.