Annual Report 2024

New water connection after subdivision | Contribution to capital works

Beth* subdivided a large property she’d owned for 15 years and sold off half of it. She said she knew she’d need to contribute to capital works costs as part of the sub-division process. Her surveyor discovered the estimated costs, which seemed reasonable. However, when her surveyor rang the water company to double-check the costs, they were told about an outstanding fee of more than $15,000 associated with the original property. Beth believed this fee wasn’t her responsibility and should have been paid by the previous owner and developer of the acreage. She said the water company wouldn’t issue a certificate of compliance until payment was made. Unhappy about having to pay the fee, Beth contacted EWOV.

In response to our Investigation, the water company told us its property record comprises a works strategy for an area. This record includes a pricing arrangement that allows the water company to require developers to contribute to the cost of water company works in connection with a development. It said it keeps a database of properties and contributions received are recorded. At the time Beth split her property into two lots, no contributions had been received.

After discussions, the water company agreed to reimburse Beth almost $7,000 — the equivalent of contributions she'd paid for the land she'd kept — as long as she acknowledged that contributions must be paid on further subdivision of the land, or for any additional habitable structures requiring a building or planning permit to be constructed on the land. Beth agreed to this.

We conciliated a resolution and the water company agreed to pay half of the cost of an agreement with Beth and we closed the complaint.

*Names have been changed

Residential consumer | Solar metering | Estimated billing

Mitchell* had a solar system with battery installed at his property in January 2023. The system was switched on in February 2023. In May 2023, Mitchell received an electricity bill for more than $1,000. The bill was estimated and covered more than 12 months. Mitchell said he’d been unable to find out why he received such a high estimated bill when he had a solar system and a battery.

When an Assisted Referral didn’t resolve Mitchell’s concerns, he returned to EWOV, and we opened an Investigation. We found that Mitchell’s solar system was switched on while his property was still on basic metering, and before a bi-directional meter (smart meter) was installed. As a result, the general consumption meter at the property operated in reverse, leading to estimated bills. Corrected meter reads were subsequently provided to Mitchell’s retailer by the local distributor.

Mitchell’s property was also on a controlled load due to a high-energy appliance. Because his local distributor didn’t allow solar customers to have a controlled load on a solar tariff, the controlled load meter for the high-energy appliance had to be disconnected and wired into the general consumption meter, and the controlled load meter abolished.

Mitchell’s issue was further complicated by confusion between Mitchell's electrician and the local distributor's contractors around the address of Mitchell's property. As a result of incorrect solar paperwork, a meter upgrade and reconfiguration had been cancelled.

Mitchell accepted his retailer's offer of a customer service payment of $200 towards his bill, in recognition of its delay in informing Mitchell about the incorrect solar paperwork. He also accepted the local distributor's offer to call Mitchell’s electrician directly to speed up the meter upgrade process.

More than two weeks after the closure of his complaint, Mitchell let us know that there were further delays and that his smart meter installation had not taken place. We were concerned about the delay and how it would affect Mitchell's complaint. We sought clarification from Mitchell’s distributor and asked for a time frame for the meter upgrade. The distributor informed us that it had tried to contact Mitchell’s electrician multiple times about the service order and that, without a service order raised by the electrician, it could not raise the meter upgrade. The distributor contacted Mitchell and Mitchell informed the distributor that he was searching for another electrician to resolve the issue.

We were unable to assist with Mitchell's electrician or the solar installer because they are not participants of EWOV’s scheme. While we can consider complaints about electricity services, including metering and billing for solar tariffs, the installation and operation of a solar system does not fall within the type of complaints that EWOV can handle. This is because it is a commercial activity that falls outside the scope of a scheme participant’s licence to sell, supply, or distribute electricity. There is also no current requirement for electricians, solar installers, or solar retailers to be a participant of EWOV’s scheme, as there is for anyone who sells, supplies, or distributes electricity.

* Names have been changed