Anyone know about fees for disconnecting electricity when moving house? Origin wants to charge me $96.80 for the privilege. I'm not talking about a penalty for breaking contract, but a network charge that is supposedly passed on to every customer who moves.
Moving is expensive enough without this unexpected slug :-/
Guess that's why I haven't heard a ton of complaints about this fee, if it doesn't apply in typical circumstances. Trouble is I can't move my account to the new house, as I'm moving from a rental into a share situation where the electricity is already connected. But I don't see why this makes any difference with regards to the ability to have the final bill based on an estimate.
Suppose I don't request a disconnection, move out on 30 May, the next meter reading is scheduled for 27 June, with a new tenant having moved in on 13 June with my account still active. Anyone know what happens then?
what does that mean? is the electrcity not discounnected for the old place?
doesn't that mean u are paying for some else's useage?
from my experences i dont get charged to disconnect when i move out, but they charge a connection at the place i move into.
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Have you tried talking to Origin to suss out the details of how the prorata estimate works?
This is where I was told about the fee:
http://img163.imageshack.us/img163/5440/disconnectionfee.png
Sent them an online query about it Tuesday night but haven't heard back yet.
No, without a disconnection, like stalya suggests.
What happens if you decide not to pay the bill?
I don't expect them to start looking for your new address to send you the bill?
The best they can do is look for the new tenant and hope they'll pay your bill? :p
You wouldn't want to do that anyway… after 2-3 mths, they will simply refer the bill to a debt collection agency and you will need to pay extra for them… and if they cannot track you down, you will be listed in Veda and your credit rating will be affected.
But I don't see why this makes any difference with regards to the ability to have the final bill based on an estimate.
You are leaving and closing your account. They can't base it on an "estimate", because you leave them no way of billing you if the estimate is incorrect.
The charge is because you are closing your account, not because you are moving. You are therefore required to finalise your dealings with the supplier.
Almost invariably, your first and last bills are based on a pro-rated estimate. You can challenge it, in which case they will send a person down to verify the reading on the meter. Normally, if their estimate was incorrect, they will refund you the cost of the challenge. However, because of the time lags in receiving a bill and contacting them, the challenge is not worthwhile.
As an example, if your billing period is 1 April to 30 June, and you vacate the premises on 30 April, you will be charged, 1/3 of your estimated use for that quarter (based on historical usage). However, if you believe their estimate was not correct, by the time you receive the bill, challenge it etc etc, it is probably some time in June, so the new tenants would have started using electricity, and you can't verify what the reading might have been on 30 April.
The thing that wasn't clear to me from llama's take on things is, if the amount owed still hinged on the next meter reading as suggested, why would there even be an "estimate" bill?
Haven't had a response to my online enquiry to Origin as of this evening, so I'll ring them tomorrow and see what I get told over the phone - perhaps the information in the online form is misleading.
They have to bill you asap to reduce the chances of a bad debt. If they wait for the meter reading on the next cycle, it will be a couple of months since you changed addresses and you are difficult to track down (letters may no longer be forwarded or you 'skip' town etc). I have worked in debt collection, and 'final' bills have the highest rates of default (30%). So companies try to rush it in as soon as the contract is finished, even if it means using an estimate.
Called and asked the following questions:
In all three cases, I was told that a $96.80 disconnection fee applies by default as I am finalising the account. Does the information I've been given sound correct?
Probably give consumer affairs a call to find out.
But from what I've read from a few other power companies, all have the disclaimer stating that a fee might be charged to the consumer but this fee is usually charged by the meter reading companies.
The other night I went through all the records of my signup and couldn't find any reference to a disconnection fee or its amount. There's an all-encompassing "we may pass on any charges the distributor imposes on us" within the long form of the agreement, and that may be okay to cover some highly unusual circumstance, but if this is a fee that applies universally to customers who are disconnecting, I don't think it's adequate disclosure. The only place I found it mentioned is the FAQ on their website, but I don't think that forms part of the agreement.
It seems similar in nature to Netspace's network termination fee which caused a kerfuffle, except this is even more poorly disclosed. Haven't ruled out the possibility I missed something though - waiting for their response to my query about that.
Based on their FAQs on disconnection (http://www.originenergy.com.au/2426/Moving-home-FAQs), it is a disconnection visit rather than a disconnection at meter box.
"Each state has connection fees and in some cases, also disconnection (or final reading) fees. This is a charge billed to us by your Network Distributor for them attending the property to take a meter reading outside of a normal meter reading schedule. The fees differ by state and Distributor, and are passed on to you."
By their fee structure, I would argue that the cost should be $48.40 rather than $96
http://www.originenergy.com.au/files/excl_serv_retail_prices…
I don't know your time frame so this may not work, but you could always switch to another provider that does not charge a disconnection fee and then have them do the disconnection. That is assuming you are not in a contract.
If you are in Victoria, the de-energisation fee generally varies from $17 to $40 depending on the network. It shouldn't be $96. The fee is charged by the distributor, and Origin passes it through.
How did you go with this Jabba?
I've moved houses 5 times in the last 10 years and have never been charged this. That is because I have always used 'soft' changeovers. That means the address is changed over for billing purposes, and your last electricity bill will be based on an estimate rather than an actual meter reading
There is a fee if you want a hard changeover to happen. This means that they will send someone over to the address to read the meter and physically disconnect electricity to the premises. When a new occupant moves in, they have to pay a fee to get it reconnected.