Energy retailers exploit legal 'loophole' to change power prices without warning

When Dion Sternberg and his wife decided to buy their first home in Adelaide last year, power prices were, oddly enough, one of their bigger concerns.

"We were trying to counteract the electricity bill and now it's a lot higher, we've obviously had to make some changes around our budgeting." Under the rules, retailers do not have to provide advanced notification to consumers about changes to their tariffs if the underlying rates charged by the network poles-and-wires company to the retailer are altered first.

"There's nothing in the rules that says they can't do the right thing by consumers. So it's a little bit of a furphy. While about 40 per cent of Australian homes currently have a smart meter, regulators including the Australian Energy Market Commission want one installed at every property by the end of the decade.

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