Standard Terms and Conditions

1 INTRODUCTION

2 HOW DO YOU BECOME AN ENERGY ONLINE CUSTOMER?

2.1 To apply to become a customer you can:

complete the online sign up form on our website; or
email us at the email address set out above; or
call us on the relevant number set out above; or

To apply to become a customer, you must provide all of the information requested during the application process. We will respond to your application within 2 business days from receipt of your application if we require further information from you or your application to join has been declined.

2.2 An agreement between you and us is formed on these terms and conditions when in our sole discretion we accept your application to join us and the agreement will apply from the date on which you first use energy supplied by us, and you will be liable to pay our charges from that date. We may require you to provide evidence of when you first use energy supplied by us through a certificate of title or tenancy agreement. Where you apply to join us before using energy supplied by us, the supply of energy to you will commence as soon as possible following our acceptance of your application. If you have moved to premises and started using energy, you will still need to call us to become a customer. If you do not contact us to become a customer, we will disconnect the premises. We may also charge you a disconnection fee, the cost of any energy consumed, and any other costs we incur as a result of you consuming energy at the premises as specified in our price list.

2.3 What information do we need from you?

To become a customer you will need to provide us with some personal information. We may use this information for a number of purposes, as set out in our Privacy Policy. You can view our Privacy Policy here. We may also request information (including credit information) from relevant third parties such as credit reference agencies and other energy retailers prior to you becoming an Energy Online customer and at any point while you are an Energy Online customer, as part of our credit criteria. If any of your personal information changes (including your contact details) please tell us, and we will update your account information.

2.4 What do we do with your personal information?

Any personal information you give us is strictly confidential and will be kept secure and held by us in accordance with the Privacy Act 1993. You can view our privacy policy here. That policy outlines how we deal with your personal information. You can access your personal information held by us on request and correct it if it is wrong.

2.5 Can more than one person be a customer?

If more than one person is the customer at any premises, these terms will apply to each of you jointly and severally. This means that each of you may individually be responsible for paying our entire invoice, and that everyone who wishes to become a customer will have to contact us. You may nominate a person as an account authority to make decisions for you under these terms. However, you are still responsible as a customer for payment of your account and for any costs associated with decisions made by the account authority.

2.6 What if you have unpaid invoices?

As a customer you will be responsible for paying all fees and charges and for making sure the requirements of this agreement are met. We will give you reasonable notice if circumstances arise, or are likely to arise, which will mean that you will incur a fee in addition to your standard rates for energy supplied by us, including for unpaid invoices.

You agree that we may add any of your unpaid invoices with us from other premises to your next invoice for energy used at your new premises. The amount owing must be paid in accordance with the terms of your previous account, unless we agree otherwise, but a default in payment of your previous account may be treated by us as a default under this agreement. Please note that if you, or another person at your premises, have any unpaid invoices with us, we may refuse to supply energy to your premises or accept you as a customer until that invoice has been paid.

3 IS A BOND REQUIRED?

4 WHAT IF YOU’RE MOVING HOUSE?

4.1 If you move house you must:

give us at least three business days’ notice of your move and your new address so we can send you a final invoice. This requirement for you to provide us with three business days' notice of your move is consistent with applicable regulations and industry standards as at the date of these terms; and
let us complete a final meter reading at your old premises (a charge applies) or let us take a final meter reading remotely if an advanced meter has been installed at your old premises (a charge may apply) or, at our discretion, provide us with a final reading over the phone or via our website.

If the final meter reading provided by you does not match your rate of consumption we may ask for a final meter reading to be carried out by an approved meter reader, or take a final meter reading remotely if an advanced meter has been installed, and we may adjust your final invoice accordingly. If this is the case we will endeavour to contact you at the phone number you have provided us. We will only take a reading from the meter at your premises in circumstances that are consistent with applicable regulations and industry standards.
If we agree to supply energy to your new premises, these terms and conditions will apply to your new premises.

4.2 What if you’re moving out but others are staying?

If you leave your premises (e.g. if you move from a flat but your flatmates are staying on) and your name is on the energy account, it’s important to tell us that you are terminating your account with us, and if necessary make arrangements to transfer it to someone else. If you wish to transfer your account to someone else at the premises, we will need to speak to that person(s) and accept them as our customer before the account can be transferred. If you remain the account holder and energy is consumed at the premises after you leave, you will remain liable to us.

4.3 What if you have a new connection, an altered connection or a reconnection?

For safety reasons, if you have a new or altered gas or electricity connection, or if your supply has been disconnected, we may require you to provide a certificate of compliance or certificate of verification from a certified service provider before we can supply you with energy. We may also request a copy of this certificate at any time.

5 WILL THE SUPPLY OF ENERGY BE CONTINUOUS?

5.1 Circumstances or events beyond our control (including the events specified in section 17.2 below) may cause supply to be interrupted from time to time. For example, the network company may shut down all or part of its network or the meter company may interrupt supply for maintenance or improving the reliability of supply. The network may also be affected by a storm, high winds, third party interference like a car accident or for other reasons. We cannot give warning or notice of sudden, unplanned shutdowns or outages. We are not required to honour this agreement where circumstances or events that are beyond our control prevent us from doing the things we would normally do. In these circumstances, we will carry on honouring our obligations as soon as it is reasonably practicable for us to do so.

5.2 Energy Online or the applicable network company or meter company will give you at least 4 working days’ notice of any planned shutdowns, unless the shutdown is urgently required for reasons that were not reasonably foreseeable such that 4 working days' notice is not possible. In the event of any urgent shutdown of this nature, we will give you as much notice of the shutdown as possible.
You can call us at any time for information about any planned interruption.

5.3 The time that it will take to reconnect your supply of energy following any shutdown will depend on the network company that is responsible for the supply of energy to your premises, as that network company will be the person which reconnects your supply.

5.4 You can access a list of telephone numbers to contact us if you need to report a supply interruption, or access information about a supply interruption, by clicking here. Alternatively, you can contact us at any time on 0800 083 285 and we will direct you to someone who can help. Information about a supply interruption will be updated regularly in accordance with good industry practice in New Zealand. If you have sensitive equipment or property which may be affected by an interrupted supply, we strongly recommend that you protect that equipment or property in case of an unplanned shutdown or outage. See also section 22 below on sensitive equipment.

5.5 If you have a controlled load pricing option i.e. a price plan that allows Energy Online to either directly, or via a third party, remotely control the supply of energy to some or all equipment in your premises, some of your electrical appliances (e.g. hot water cylinders and night store heaters) will be switched off or adjusted as agreed from time to time. Controlled load periods will be limited to those set out in our price list and we will respond to controlled load system faults in accordance with our normal practices, after you have advised us of the problem. In the event of a local or national energy shortage, or in circumstances of extreme wholesale prices, your energy supply may be rationed or restricted. Energy may also be rationed as part of an energy industry rationing plan.

6 METERS AND METER READINGS

6.1 We will read the meter(s) at your premises on a regular basis and, as long as we have access, we plan to read the meter(s) at least once every two months, unless we both agree otherwise. In addition to these regular meter readings, we may also read the meter(s) at your premises for any special or final meter reading. The provisions of this agreement relating to metering and the circumstances in which we will take a reading from the meter at your premises will be in accordance with applicable regulations and industry standards.

You can provide us with additional meter readings here or by calling us. We can decide whether or not to accept your readings. If we do not accept your readings, we may carry out a special meter reading within 5 days. If it turns out your reading was accurate, we will not charge you for the cost of our special meter reading. If your reading was inaccurate, we may charge you for the cost of our special meter reading.

6.2 What if you are a new customer?

If you are a new customer, we will use the previous final meter reading at the premises as your initial meter reading, unless you read the meter before using any energy and advise us of that meter reading within one business day of you moving in. If your meter reading differs from the previous final meter reading at the premises, we may arrange for the meter to be read and we will use that reading as your initial meter reading. Alternatively, if an advanced meter has been installed at your premises, we may, in our discretion, take an initial meter reading remotely and any such reading will be conclusive evidence of the initial meter reading from the date you become our customer.

6.3 What if the meter is faulty?

We may arrange to have the meter at your premises tested if we think it is faulty or if you tell us that you think it is faulty or not reflective of your actual consumption. We will remove the meter for testing within 5 business days if you ask us to. If we test a meter, we will inform you of the results of the test on request and if:

it is clear that there is an inherent fault with the meter itself, we will replace or repair the meter at our, or the metering company's, cost; or
otherwise, we may charge you our costs for testing, replacing and/or repairing the meter.\

We will inform you of any extra charge you might incur if we do test your meter prior to undertaking this work. We will also inform you prior to taking any action on your meter which may impact on your invoices or result in an extra charge. The process set out above for remedying faulty meters complies with relevant regulations and industry standards as at the date of these terms. Our obligation to inform you under this section 6.3 does not apply where:

there is a safety issue; or
you have materially breached these terms and conditions.

You must notify us immediately if you become aware that the meter or related equipment is tampered with, damaged, defective or looks unsafe.

6.4 What do we do with meter reading information?

You agree that we own all meter reading information. To the extent that any meter reading information constitutes "personal information" for the purposes of the Privacy Act 1993, we will ensure that that meter reading information is held by us in accordance with the Privacy Act 1993 and our privacy policy, a copy of which is available on our website. You consent to us:

receiving and collecting meter reading information in respect of you and your premises;
storing meter reading information in respect of you and your premises in a way that is referenced back to you individually and/or your premises;
using meter reading information in respect of you and your premises for any other purpose, including, without limitation, for the purposes outlined in section 2.4 and to invoice you accurately for your energy usage; and
disclosing meter reading information in respect of you and your premises to third parties.

You may not sell, assign or provide any meter reading information to any third party without our prior written consent, except for the purpose of comparing prices with other energy retailers.

6.5 Advanced meters We may, at any time, replace the meter at your premises with an advanced meter. You agree that you will not object to us, or prevent us from, replacing your meter with an advanced meter.

6.6 What if an advanced meter cannot be installed at your premises?

If an advanced meter cannot be installed at your premises because the wiring at your premises does not comply with any applicable laws, regulations, codes or standards, or because the advanced meter would, when installed, represent a safety hazard or where there is insufficient space on the meter board, we may require you to fix, remedy or repair the wiring or safety hazard, or install a larger meter board or otherwise address the lack of space on your meter board at your cost before an advanced meter is installed at your premises. We may also require you to provide a certificate of compliance from a certified service provider at your cost before the advanced meter is installed. We may also request a copy of this certificate at any time.

6.7 Will there be manual meter readings with advanced meters?

If an advanced meter has been installed at your premises, we may still need to read your meter manually in some situations (e.g. if the advanced meter is faulty, the mains switch is turned off or if there have been failures in the metering communications network). If the manual reading is required because you have caused a communications fault, we may pass on the cost of the manual reading to you.

6.8 What if I miss an appointment?

If we or a meter company make an appointment with you to install, connect, test, inspect, maintain, repair, replace, alter, service, clean, disconnect or remove any metering equipment or other equipment, and you miss the agreed appointment, we may pass on to you any reasonable charges we incur as a result of youmissing the appointment.

7 WHAT ACCESS DO YOU NEED TO PROVIDE?

7.1 You must:

provide to us, the meter company, the network company and/or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises, safe and unobstructed access to metering equipment, and any equipment of the network company or any other person on your premises between 8.00am and 7.00pm, Monday to Sunday, excluding public holidays;
provide to us, the meter company, the network company and/or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises, immediate access to your premises at any time for safety reasons or to prevent serious damage to property or the environment;
allow to us, the meter company, the network company and/or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises, access for installation, connection, testing, inspection, maintenance, repair, replacement, alteration, servicing, cleaning, disconnection or removal of any equipment owned by us and/or a meter company and/or a network company and/or other third parties including removal of any equipment up to 6 months after termination of supply to you;
ensure that any dog or other animal that may make entry unsafe is secured to enable safe and easy access;
keep us informed about any health and safety and/or Resource Management Act 1991 requirements or issues at your premises that could be relevant to our representatives or the representatives of a meter company or a network company or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises when they visit your premises;
keep your trees and other vegetation regularly trimmed to a safe distance from any lines, pipes, substations, meters or equipment, to comply with the Electricity (Safety) Regulations 2010 in relation to any work near lines, the network or other electrical equipment, and the Electricity (Hazards from Trees) Regulations 2003. The Electricity (Hazards from Trees) Regulations 2003 specify the distances trees and other vegetation must be kept from power lines. If vegetation grows within these minimum distances (or Zones) cutting or trimming will be necessary. You can view a summary of these regulations here.

If you do not comply with these regulations (including any amendments to these regulations), you will be liable for the costs of carrying out any work arising as a result of your non-compliance.

7.2 You must, if requested by us, turn off the energy at your premises to enable access for the purposes referred to above.

7.3 Except in routine situations (such as reading or inspecting a meter that is located on the outside of a building) or emergency situations, before accessing your premises, either we, the meter company, network company and/or the other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises, will provide written notice to you of:

7.4 We will give you at least 10 working days notice of the intention to access your premises if the reason for requiring access relates to construction, upgrade, repair or maintenance. Where we require access to your premises for any other reason (except for routine situations or emergency situations), we will give you reasonable notice.

7.5 Where we require access to your premises, we will:

7.6 Where we are able to, we will instruct the metering company or network company to take such steps and comply with such requirements.
When accessing your property, our representatives will act in a courteous, considerate and professional manner at all times.
For more information on energy safety matters, contact the Energy Safety Service or the network company.

7.7 Any of our representatives or any representatives of a meter company or the network company or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises who are requesting access to your premises will carry identification and present their identification to you on request. If our representatives are visiting at your request and you are at your premises, they will identify themselves to you before entering your property (and we will procure that any representatives of a meter company or the network company and/or other third parties who own energy supply equipment on your premises requesting access to your premises will also identify themselves to you). In all other circumstances, you can ask the representative(s) to identify themselves at any time while they are on your property. If they are unable or unwilling to show you their identification, you should not give them access.


7.8 What if we have problems gaining access to your premises?

If you are not able to grant us access, please contact us to discuss alternative access options.

If you do not provide access to your meter or to any other meters (where you control access to those other meters) we may charge you for any callout fees where we could not gain access, and such refusal will be considered a material breach of these terms and conditions for which we may disconnect your supply.


7.9 What if we can't read the meter?

If we have been unable to obtain a reading from the meter for any reason, the amount of energy you have used may be estimated by us and you will be charged on the basis of our estimate. You can, however, provide us with a meter reading via our website or by calling us.


7.10 What if we hold keys to your premises?

If we have a key or security information to enable us to gain access to your premises, we will be responsible for its safe keeping and will use it only for the purposes described in this section 7. We will comply with any direction from you to return or destroy keys that you have given us, and/or the meter company or the network company.


7.11 What if you wish to turn off your electricity at the mains?

Switching off your energy at the mains affects our ability to read your advanced meter remotely. You should only switch off your energy at the mains for essential maintenance or in the case of an emergency situation. If you wish to turn off your energy at the mains for longer than a week, you should contact us so we can explain how to turn off the energy at the advanced meter.

when access to your premises will be required; and
the purpose for requiring access to your premises.
take reasonable steps to minimise any direct impacts on your property and any inconvenience to you; and
try to comply with any reasonable requirements that you have given us (such as closing gates etc).

8 HOW WILL WE INVOICE YOU?

8.1 We will send you an invoice for payment on a monthly basis unless we have agreed otherwise. Your invoice will be delivered to the address provided by you.
Your invoice will show:

a breakdown of the energy charges into gas and electricity (if you are supplied with both by us);
the fixed charge component (if any) of your invoice including the quantity of energy supplied (or estimated to have been supplied);
any charges for goods or services you have asked us to provide other than energy and lines services;
a clear due date; and
the identifier number of all installation control points on your property.

8.2 Any penalties or other charges that are additional to our usual fees will be separately itemised on your invoice. We cannot tell you who your network company is on your invoice. However, if you would like to know who your network company is, please call our Customer Care Team on 0800 086 400.

8.3 our charges for energy consumption will be based on either an actual meter reading or an estimate of the energy consumed. Any estimate will be based on previous consumption if available or will be determined by following generally accepted industry practices and it will normally be clearly stated on your invoice if an estimate is used.
You must pay the total amount shown on each invoice (including GST). Payment must be received by us by the due date specified on the invoice, whether the invoice is based on an actual or estimated meter reading unless we have agreed an alternative payment arrangement in writing. Without limiting any of our other rights under the agreement or at law, if you do not pay the total amount by the due date we may charge you a late payment fee as set out in our price list here. You may not deduct or set off any amount from the amount shown on the invoice.

8.4 What if you have a dispute?

If you dispute any amount payable under an invoice, you must give us notice at least 3 business days prior to the due date of the invoice, identifying the amount in dispute, and giving full reasons for the dispute. We will investigate your dispute as quickly as possible.

If you dispute the amount on your invoice, or any part of your invoice, you must still pay the undisputed amount by the due date.

We will not stop supplying you with energy if there is a genuine dispute between us in relation to an invoice and you have paid us any undisputed amount by the due date. Within 10 days of resolving any dispute about your invoice, we will credit your account with any amount we owe you, or you will pay us any amount you owe us, unless agreed otherwise.

8.5 What if you don't pay?

We will try to help you in making payment arrangements with us, but if you do not pay amounts due to us, we may disconnect or limit your supply (see section 11.1 below) and you may incur fees for disconnection and debt collection. If circumstances arise, or are likely to arise, that mean you may incur a fee for disconnection or debt collection, we will provide reasonable notice to you that such a fee will be payable.

Any costs incurred in collecting money owing to us by you, including bank fees, credit agency fees and legal and court costs, are payable by you.

If you are having difficulties in paying your invoice to us because you are a low income customer or a vulnerable customer, you may arrange for payment alternatives. Please call our Customer Care Team to discuss alternative payment methods.

If you are a vulnerable customer, we will not disconnect your energy supply unless all assistance with payment has been given under section 14 of this agreement.

If you have verified your status as a medically dependent customer with us, we will not disconnect your electricity supply. In order to verify your status as a medically dependent customer, you will need to provide us with a Notice of Potential Medically Dependent Consumer Status Form. You can request this form from your primary healthcare provider. We may ask you to re-confirm your status as a medically dependent customer by providing us with a further Notice of Potential Medically Dependent Consumer Status Form no more than once every 12 months.

8.6 What if you don't receive an invoice or your invoice was late?

If you have not received an invoice, you should contact us. If we determine that you are not responsible for the lateness of an invoice and:

the invoice is sent more than two months after the end of the period to which it relates, you will have at least the length of time covered by the invoice to pay it; or
the invoice is more than three months late, we will give you a discount of 5%.

8.7 What if your invoice is based on an estimate?

If your invoice is based on our estimate of your energy consumption, your invoice will normally state clearly that an estimate has been used. You may still pay for the exact amount of energy you have used by reading your own meter and advising us of your meter reading. We will send you a new invoice based on this meter reading (unless we believe it is not correct), and you agree to pay the amount shown on that new invoice. You can contact us if you would like a simple explanation of how any estimate has been calculated.

8.8 What if your invoice is wrong?

If your invoice is incorrect, you are only liable to pay the correct amount and we will refund any amount that we have over-charged, or you will pay any amount that we have under-charged. Any refunds for amounts that we have over-charged will be made promptly. We may offset against any refund any amounts you owe us (or any debt collection agency to whom we have transferred any debt owing to us by you). Any amounts that you are required to pay because we have under-charged you will take into account whether you have contributed to the error in any way or could reasonably have been expected to know of the error.

This does not apply where your invoice is based on an estimate of your energy consumption, as an adjustment will be made automatically in the next invoice based on an actual meter reading. In any event, you will be responsible for the payment of all of the energy you use.

8.9 Is interest payable?

No interest is due on any amounts over-paid or under-paid by you or us in relation to incorrect or late invoices.

8.10 Payment if meter is faulty

If your meter is faulty, we may not be able to tell for certain how much energy has actually been used. Therefore:

subject to section 23, you will be liable, in relation to the variable rate component of your price plan, for the quantity measured by the meter, unless you contributed to the fault, or could have reasonably been expected to know about the fault. In addition, you will still be liable for the fixed daily rate component of your price plan; and
if it is apparent that your meter has measured more energy than you actually used and you have over-paid us, we will refund to you an amount we reasonably believe is a realistic estimate of the over-payment.

9 WHAT FEES AND CHARGES WILL YOU PAY?

10 HOW DO YOU PAY YOUR INVOICE?

11 WHEN WILL WE DISCONNECT YOUR SUPPLY?

12 HOW DO YOU RESUME SUPPLY?

13 WHAT IF YOU WANT TO STOP YOUR SUPPLY?

13.1 If you no longer want us to supply you with energy or you want your supply disconnected, you must let us know at least 3 business days beforehand. This timeframe is consistent with applicable regulations and industry standards as at the date of these terms. If you intend to leave your present premises, you must also tell us your forwarding address. If you don’t give us 3 business days' notice you will be required to pay for any energy used at the premises while the premises remain connected to the network, even if you are no longer at the premises, until the date on which 3 business days' notice has been given. If you are not going to remain our customer after your move, our charges to you will stop on the date 3 business days after you have given us notice in accordance with this section, or if you have failed to give us notice, when we disconnect the premises, or a new customer has notified us that it has taken over the premises. Where you have given us notice in accordance with this section, disconnection of your premises will occur as soon as possible on or from the date on which your notice takes effect. Where you have instructed us that you are switching to another retailer, we will work with you to facilitate the switch and terminate your supply in accordance with applicable regulations and industry standards.

13.2 What if you want to stop receiving gas but no electricity, or vice versa?

If you have been receiving both electricity and gas from us, and no longer want us, to supply you, with one of them, you, must let us, know 3 business days beforehand. Our charges to you for the terminated supply will stop on the date we stop supplying you.

If the energy supply at your premises is disconnected (but not decommissioned), we may still charge you a daily fixed charge. However, we will not charge you a daily fixed charge for energy if the energy supply at your premises has been decommissioned.

13.3 Will a final meter reading be taken?

We will arrange for a final meter reading and we will send a final invoice to you at your forwarding address. We may ask you to pay a final meter reading fee. We will give you reasonable notice that you may incur a final meter reading fee and how you may avoid the fee if possible.

14 CONTACTING WORK AND INCOME AND NOMINATED PERSON

15 OUR PERFORMANCE COMMITMENTS

16 WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU HAVE A COMPLAINT?

Energy Online is a provider under the Utilities Disputes complaints resolution scheme and will deal with any complaints you have in relation to your energy supply in accordance with the requirements of the Scheme.

If you have a complaint, please contact our Customer Care Team. Our contact details are set out in section 1, or alternatively you can make an appointment to see us at our offices. Our free internal complaints resolution service is explained on our website.

We will try to resolve your complaint straight away. If it is complex, or involves other parties, such as your network company or meter company, our Customer Resolutions Team will investigate it for you. We may also refer it to your network company or meter company. If we do this, we will tell you.

We will acknowledge of your complaint promptly.
We will contact you regularly while we investigate your concerns.
We will endeavour to resolve your complaint within 20 working days. If we can't, we will write to you explaining why we need more time to reach a resolution.
If you complaint is more appropriately dealt with by another party such as a network company or meter company, we will notify that we have referred your complaint on and provide you with the appropriate name and contact details.
We will do our best to resolve any issues directly with you, however you can ask for your complaint to be considered by Utilities Disputes (formerly known as The Office of the Electricity and Gas Complaints Commissioner, EGCC) when :
We have not resolved your complaint within 20 working days and have not written to you explaining why we need more time to reach a resolution; or
We have taken longer than 40 working days to resolve your complaint; or
You are not happy with our proposed resolution,

you may refer your complaint to the free independent dispute resolution service provided by Utilities Disputes on 0800 22 33 40 or visit www.utilitiesdispute.co.nz. You may also refer your complaint to the Disputes Tribunal, the Court or other third party.

17 WHAT IS ENERGY ONLINE’S OR THE CUSTOMER'S LIABILITY FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE?

18 CAN WE CHANGE THIS AGREEMENT?

18.1 We may make changes to this agreement, the network requirements, your payment methods, or our price list. If we make changes to this agreement, the network requirements, your payment methods, or if we increase the energy prices set out in our price list, we will give you notice of the changes as soon as possible and not later than 30 days before the change is to take effect, together with our reasons for making the changes. We will do this by any reasonable method of communication including by:

advertising in a local daily newspaper; or
posting a notice on our website; or
writing to you; or
emailing you; or
notifying you by other electronic means,

or by a combination of these methods.

18.2 If we increase the special fees or charges set out in our price list we will notify you of these changes by advertising on our website or placing a statement on your invoice. We do not need to give you notice if we decrease your energy prices or the special fees and charges set out in our price list.

18.3 If we increase a fee or service charge by more than 5% or if we increase the total invoiced price for energy we supply to you by more than 5% (and, in the case of a fee or service charge, the increase is reasonably likely to have a material effect on you), or change the frequency of billing or meter reading, we will always give you an individual written notice as soon as possible. However, we will not provide individual written notice of price increases where you have signed up to a flexible pricing plan, under which electricity prices may vary depending on the time and volume of your electricity consumption. We will not change the frequency of billing to less than approximately once a month (depending on when your meter is read) unless you have agreed otherwise, except for any one-off circumstances where it is necessary to send you a bill other than on a monthly basis. If there has been an increase in your energy prices, the notice will explain the reasons for the increase.

19 CAN YOU TRANSFER YOUR RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS?

19.1 This agreement may not be transferred or assigned by you to any other person. We may at any time transfer to someone else all or any part of our rights and/or obligations under this agreement. You are taken to have consented to any such transfer, and authorise and instruct us to provide any personal information that we hold about you to the transferee, as we consider necessary or desirable in connection with such transfer (and this consent is effective for the purposes of the Privacy Act 1993, and for all other purposes). We may also sub-contract or delegate our rights and/or obligations under this agreement to other people or companies. Where we transfer our rights and obligations under this agreement, we will advise you that the agreement is being, or has been, transferred to another company, where you can access the information you need to contact the new company and when the transfer will take, or has taken, place. If, for any reason, we have, or we are likely to have, a receiver, liquidator or other similar officer appointed to us or a material part of our assets, we will take all reasonable steps to ensure that the supply of your energy is not affected.

19.2 In addition to the above, the Electricity Authority is able to assign our rights and obligations in respect of the supply of electricity to you under these terms to another electricity retailer in the event that we commit an "event of default", as that term is defined in the Electricity Code. In the event that such an assignment occurs, the terms on which you will be supplied with electricity by the recipient retailer will be amended to the standard terms that the recipient retailer would normally have offered to you immediately before the relevant "event of default" occurred (or such other terms that are more advantageous to you than the recipient retailer's standard terms, as the recipient retailer and the Electricity Authority agree). On such an assignment, these terms may be amended to include a minimum term in respect of which you must pay an amount if you wish to cancel these terms prior to the expiry of that minimum term. We may provide information about you to the Electricity Authority (and the Electricity Authority may pass this information on to the recipient electricity retailer), if required under the Electricity Code.

19.3 The terms set out in section 19.2 are included for the benefit of the Electricity Authority for the purposes of the Contracts (Privity) Act 1982 and may not be amended without the consent of the Electricity Authority.

20 HOW WILL WE CONTACT YOU?

21 GETTING OUR ENERGY TO YOU

22 WHAT SHOULD YOU DO ABOUT SENSITIVE EQUIPMENT?

23 METERING EQUIPMENT AND NETWORK COMPANY EQUIPMENT

24 WHAT ABOUT OTHER EQUIPMENT AT YOUR PREMISES?

25 WHAT IS THE NETWORK COMPANY'S LIABILITY FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE?

25.1 If the network company causes you loss or damage, you may wish to advise us.

25.2 If the network company is not a provider under the Utilities Disputes complaints resolution scheme then you agree that the network company has no liability to you (including liability in contract or in negligence) relating to the supply of energy to your premises. However, the network company has agreed to be liable to us in certain instances.

25.3 As explained in section 21.1, we contract with the network company to deliver energy to your premises. To achieve a better quality and reliability of service from you, we encourage the network company to give service guarantees. As these guarantees are for your benefit, we will pass on to you, as a credit in your next invoice from us, any payments we receive from the network company for a failure by the network company to satisfy any guarantees they may give us in relation to their services that can be reasonably considered as compensation for the network company's failure to satisfy its guarantees. We will also pass on to you any payments we receive from other third parties who breach service guarantees that have been provided to us for your benefit. On request, we will provide you with an explanation of how the credit passed on to you was determined. Other than paying you such amount, we will have no liability to you in respect of any defaults by the network company.

25.4 If the network company is a provider under the Utilities Disputes complaints resolution scheme then the network company will not be liable to you (in contract or in negligence) for any loss or damage you may suffer unless that loss or damage is physical damage to property where it can be shown that the network company has been negligent and the amount and nature of the loss was reasonably foreseeable. The network company will not have any liability to you, whether in contract or in negligence, for an event or series of closely related events relating to the network for any amount exceeding $10,000 in value. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, the network company's aggregate liability to all customers connected to its network for an event or series of closely related events relating to the network shall not exceed $10,000.

25.5 If you acquire goods or services from us or the network company for personal, domestic or household use or consumption, any rights you have under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 are not affected by this limitation of liability. However, if you acquire goods or services for the purposes of a business, the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 does not apply to the services provided by us or the network company to the maximum extent permitted by the law.

25.6 This condition, and the other conditions in this agreement which refer to the network company, are intended to be for the benefit of, and are enforceable by, the network company under the Contracts (Privity) Act 1982.

26 WHAT IS THE METER COMPANY'S LIABILITY FOR LOSS OR DAMAGE?

27 WORDS WE USE IN THIS AGREEMENT

advanced meter means a remotely read interval meter and all associated metering equipment.

decommission means the permanent disconnection of your premises and removal of your ICP so that you cannot receive the supply of energy, and will involve the permanent removal of metering equipment and may include removal of your service lines.

disconnect, disconnection and disconnected means the isolation of your premises from the network. Your premises remain connected to the network but you cannot receive supply of energy.

Electricity Code means the Electricity Industry Participation Code 2010, as amended from time to time.

emergency situation means a situation in which there is a probable danger to life or property or immediate risk to the continuity or safety of supply of distribution of energy.

energy means electricity and/or reticulated natural gas, but does not include reticulated LPG or bottled gas.

Energy Online, we, us and our means Genesis Energy Limited, its agents, successors and assignees.

lines services means the provision and maintenance of works for the conveyance of electricity and the operation of such works, including the control of voltage.

medically dependent customer means a customer who is dependent on mains electricity for critical medical support, such that loss of electricity may result in the loss of life or serious harm. Medically dependent customer status can only be granted through the provision of a Notice of Medically Dependent Consumer Status, which is available from your primary healthcare provider.

metering communications network means the equipment and systems used to convey meter reading information from a meter to us.

meter company means the company or companies that own the meter situated on your premises and/or are responsible for installing, maintaining, repairing and reading meters.

metering equipment and meter means the metering and other equipment which is used to measure and/or provide information about your consumption (and, if appropriate, demand) of energy, including any covering or housing for such equipment, and meters, loggers, communication devices, relays, current transformers, voltage transformers and any other equipment required to measure energy usage, and includes an advanced meter and the metering communications network.

meter reading information means all information and data collected, measured or stored by any metering equipment.

network means the electricity and/or reticulated natural gas (as the case may be) distribution network to which your point of supply is connected including the network of overhead lines, underground cables and pipelines, substations and other equipment used to distribute gas or electricity.

network company means the company or organisation that owns the network, and its agents.

network requirements means the rights and responsibilities relating to the network company summarised in these terms and conditions.

point of supply means the point at which we or the network company determine that the network ends and your lines, cables or pipes and fittings and equipment begin. For your information, the point of supply for electricity is generally the point on the boundary of a property where the electricity supply enters. The point of supply for gas is usually the outlet of the gas meter that supplies gas to you. If you are not sure where your point of supply is, please contact your network company. If you are not sure who your network company is, please call us on one of the numbers listed in section 1 above, and we will refer you to the appropriate network company.

premises means the property supplied with energy under this agreement.

price list means Energy Online's energy prices relating to energy consumption, and special fees and charges for other services. Your current relevant price lists are available by calling our Customer Care Team.

vulnerable customer means a customer who has told us, or about whom it appears to us, that disconnection of energy at the customer's premises presents a clear threat to the health or well-being of the customer or a member of the customer's household, or who has mains powered equipment for critical medical support. This could be because of age, health or disability. A vulnerable customer may also be a customer who cannot genuinely pay his or her bill because of severe financial difficulty, whether temporary or permanent.

you/your means you, the customer.

Standard Terms & Conditions