Hundreds of thousands of Australian households are being charged electricity prices based on their single biggest point of usage across an entire month, fuelling claims power firms are using sneak tactics to gouge consumers.
Mr Gale says he only found out about the tariff when he noticed changes in the bill from a new retailer."It's quite a shock to suddenly see that on the bill," Mr Gale says."I can see that for a lot of users, particularly families, the peak demand occurs at a time when people are coming home, the house is hot or cold, they need to heat it or cool it, cook dinner, have showers.
The customer noted that, under the tariff, he would be required to pay a demand charge for a whole month even if he was at home for a only single day and – for whatever reason – needed to use a lot of power on that day. An analysis of records kept by the Australian Energy Regulator shows soaring numbers of households with smart meters and a corresponding jump in customers on complex tariffs.
"Every single one of them that we've spoken with doesn't understand what that tariff means, how they got migrated to it, and why."More pointedly, Mr Foxworthy says the failure to notify or support consumers means they are being set up for a fall."Our experience has been that energy consumers struggle with their bills at the best of times," he says.
Despite this, Mr Barnes says reform – changing the way we pay for the electricity system – is still required.
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