Former watchdog Ron Ben-David has warned complex time-of-use prices are hurting poorer households and fuelling inequality.
big numbers of residential electricity customers were being switched to so-called time-of-use tariffs "My question to them is, 'How do you know, how have you tested your own thinking so that you know that what you're working towards is actually the right outcome?'" Dr Ben-David said. Dr Ben-David said there was little evidence to show that most people could change their behaviour and use more power during the middle of the day when prices were lower under time-of-use tariffs.He said that while some people would have the ability and the willingness to change — such as those working from home or those with batteries and solar panels — many others would not have a choice.
This was driven to a large extent by a sharp rise in the proportion of households on the tariffs in South Australia and south-east Queensland. But Ms Collyer also extolled the benefits of smart meters, saying they were allowing consumers to reduce their power bills and making the system more efficient.
A spokesman for the AER said any consumers wanting to find out whether they were on a time-of-use contract should check the bill from their retailer. According to Dr Ben-David, "there's nothing in principle wrong with time-of-use contracts", while smart meters promised to be a useful tool for better managing the grid.