TIS

Si vous ne parlez pas anglais et avez besoin d’aide avec ce document, veuillez appeler le service de traduction et d’interprétation TIS (Translating and Interpreting Service) au 13 14 50 pour bénéficier des services d’un interprète.

यदि आप अंग्रेज़ी नहीं बोलते हैं और आपको इस दस्तावेज़ के साथ सहायता की ज़रूरत है, तो दुभाषिए द्वारा मदद दिए जाने के लिए अनुवाद एवं दुभाषिया सेवा (Translating and Interpreting Service - TIS) को 13 14 50 पर फ़ोन करें।

Jika Anda tidak bisa berbahasa Inggris dan butuh bantuan membaca dokumen ini, telepon layanan Terjemahan dan Juru bahasa (TIS) di 13 14 50 untuk mendapatkan bantuan jurubahasa.

Se non parli inglese e hai bisogno di aiuto con questo documento, chiama il Servizio traduttori e interpreti (TIS) al numero 131 450 per avere l’assistenza di un interprete.

あなたが英語話者でなく、この文書の読解について支援を必要とする場合は、翻訳・通訳サービス TIS（電話番号 13 14 50）までお電話のうえ、通訳者による支援をお求めください。

영어 비사용자로 이 서류를 읽는 데 도움이 필요하신 분은 번역통역서비스 13 14 50번으로 전화하여 통역사의 도움을 받으시기 바랍니다.

Se não fala inglês e precisa de ajuda com este documento, ligue para o Serviço de Tradutores e Intérpretes (Translating and Interpreting Service – TIS) no 13 14 50 para obter ajuda de um intérprete.

如果你不会英语，需要别人帮你了解本文件内容，拨打翻译服务处（TIS）的电话13 14 50请翻译帮忙。

Se não fala inglês e precisa de ajuda com este documento, ligue para o Serviço de Tradutores e Intérpretes (Translating and Interpreting Service – TIS) no 13 14 50 para obter ajuda de um intérprete.

如果您不會說英文並且需要幫助了解本文件，請致電13 14 50 TIS翻譯和口譯服務，以獲得口譯員的幫助。

What we will do

There are different payment options available to hardship customers, including :

• Payment plans
• Centrepay

When you are in our hardship program, we will offer you flexible payment options to suit your individual situation.

To make your payment plan, we will consider :

• How much you can pay
• How much you owe
• How much energy we expect you will use in the next 12 months

This will help us figure out a payment plan that is right for you.

We will offer a payment plan to suit your situation. This will include payments to cover:

• What you owe
• An amount to cover your energy use

Once we agree to a payment plan, we will send you information including:

• Who you can contact for more help
• How long the payment plan will go for
• The amount you will pay each time
• How many payments you need to make
• When you need to make your payments (this is also called the frequency of the payments)
• How we worked out your payments

You can choose to use Centrepay, if you are eligible.

Centrepay is a voluntary bill-paying service which is free for Centrelink customers. Use Centrepay to arrange regular deductions from your Centrelink payment.

We will see if another energy plan may be better for you. If you agree, we can transfer you to a better energy plan for free.

Depending on the rules in our hardship policy, we may be able to remove some debt, fees or charges you owe.

If you miss a payment, we will contact you to see if you need help. We will contact you by SMS, phone and/or letter on at least two occasions in order to allow you to respond. These contacts will be

• Two days after the payment due date
• Seven days after first contact attempt

What you must do

Tell us if your situation changes and you can no longer make the payments in your plan. We can then review your payment arrangements.

Tell us if your contact details change.

We may stop helping you if you:

• Stop making payments under your plan
• Do not tell us when your contact details change

If you have had two payment plans cancelled in the last 12 months because you did not follow your plan.

• We do not have to offer you another plan
• We might disconnect your energy

Depending on the state or territory you live in, there are other support to help you pay your energy bills.

What we will do

We will tell you about other ways you can get help to pay your energy bill, such as:

• Government relief schemes
• Energy rebates
• Concession programs
• Financial counselling services

What we will do

If you find out you are eligible for these programs, let us know as soon as possible so we can help you

As a hardship customer, you can access a range of programs and services to help you:

• Advice or referrals to other support agencies who can provide a range of additional family services to help support household costs including possible faulty appliance replacements (No Interest Loan programs (NILS))
• Fair and reasonable payment plans at fair and reasonable instalment intervals; and
• Where high consumption is evident, advice on energy saving tips and how to obtain energy audits

What we will do

We will consider your individual situation to find the right programs (e.g., concession programs) or services that meet your needs.

Early response to hardship indicators

Our customer hardship team specialists are trained to identify customers who are vulnerable or may be about to experience hardship. This will be carried out whenever a customer:

• Makes contact for payment arrangements
• Makes a direct request for assistance, or
• Responds to our contact regarding a late or missed payment

Additionally, staff will review your payment history including late payments, requests for payment extensions, broken payment plans or if customers are receiving government grants and/or concessions.

All bills, reminder notices and disconnection or restriction warnings contain information advising customers to let us know if they are experiencing difficulties and that options are available to assist them with payments.

This includes clear information about key dates and any next steps, such as dates by which you need to make a payment or contact us.

Remember, it is critical that you keep us informed if your circumstances change, or you think you might have difficulties making your agreed payments.

Steps when entering our hardship program

When you enter the hardship program you can expect to go through the following steps, which are designed to help you navigate the program and get back on track with your energy costs.

• Assessment – First we will assess whether you are eligible for assistance under the hardship program
• Assistance – In this step we will ask you questions regarding what you can afford to pay and whether you are entitled to any concessions that may help reduce the costs immediately. This information helps us to determine what assistance may be best suited in your circumstances. We will also provide you with a range of information upfront including what we expect of you and what you can expect of us and when you can expect to receive information
• Payment plans – In this step we will work with you to develop an affordable payment plan.
• Monitoring – We will monitor payments and usage to gauge whether they are likely to get you back on track with your energy payments. We will contact you if we feel that we need to reassess or if there are other forms of assistance available that will help
• Energy efficiency advice and energy audits – throughout the process we will try to understand your energy usage and consider different ways in which we may help you reduce your energy costs. Please note that this is an option to assist you and that entry into the Hardship program is not dependent on you agreeing to have an energy audit.

As part of our approach to Hardship we will continue to work with our customers and monitor energy consumption during their participation in a Hardship program. Our dedicated support staff we review each customer enrolled in a Hardship program every three months to ensure that:

• The customer is able to meet its obligations under the Hardship program
• The Hardship program is meeting the needs and expectations of the customer
• The tariff applied is appropriate for the circumstances
• Any changes to the customers circumstances

Eligibility

You will be eligibility for entry into our Customer Hardship Program, if:

• You are a residential customers of GEE Energy; and
• You find it hard to pay your energy bills due to hardship

Our process for assessing the eligibility of a customer who seeks entry into (or re-entry) into our Customer Hardship Program is briefly described as follows.

Our customer hardship team specialist will, on a case-by-case basis and having regard to your individual circumstances :

• Establish open communication with you
• Discuss your individual circumstances and needs and whether any indicators of possible hardship, including but not limited to the following, are present
• Customers who let us know they are in financial hardship and are unable to pay their bill by the due date
• Customers advising of recent events that place them in a vulnerable financial position such as job loss, illness, death in the family, family violence, or a sudden change in living circumstances
• Customers receiving assistance from a Financial Counsellor or other advocates
• Customers with limited or no English skills
• Low literacy or numeracy
• Customers that have a history of late payments or failed payment plans
• Temporary loss of income or variable income
• History of broken payment plans
• An unexpected essential cost of living expense
• Receiving several bills at once
• A high bill
• Assess whether you are a residential customer of GEE Energy

If you do not meet the above criteria you may be ineligible for assistance under this policy. If we consider you ineligible for assistance under this policy we will inform you at the time of this and tell you why you are ineligible, including any options or other forms of assistance that may be available to you. We may provide other options for you at our discretion.

What we will do

When you join our hardship program, we will talk to you about your energy use and whether you are on the right plan.

If we think there is a better energy plan for you, we will:

• Explain why the plan is better
• Ask if you would like to transfer to the new plan for free

We will only talk to you about energy plans we can offer.

Using less energy can save you money.

What we will do

When you join our hardship program, we can give you tips to use less energy. This can be different depending on the state or territory you live in

If you have joined our hardship program, we will not :

• Charge late payment fees
• Require a security deposit
• Make changes to your plan without your agreement. For example, we will not put you on a shortened collection cycle unless you agree first

GEE Energy always takes feedback and complaints seriously. If you wish to submit feedback or lodge a complaint this can be done by using the contact details at the end of this policy.

Upon receipt of your complaint, we will follow these steps:

• We will acknowledge your complaint (immediately if made in person or within two working days if via email, phone message or post)
• We will attempt to resolve your complaint at first contact if possible
• If a resolution is not possible on first contact, we will outline the timeframe for resolving the complaint
• If we have to investigate your complaint, we will do so within 10 working days and advise you of the outcome
• If there are delays, we will contact you and advise of the delay, the reason for the delay, and will outline a new timetable for resolution

For full information on GEE Energy’s complaint handling process visit https://gee.com.au/complaints-feedback

If you are unsatisfied with how we have handled your complaint then you have the right to contact the Energy Ombudsman Scheme in your state, they may be able to assist with your complaint. However, GEE Energy would prefer that you contact us first.

Energy & Water Ombudsman New South Wales

• Freecall: 1800 246 545
• Interpreter: 131 450
• NRS: 133 677
• In writing to Reply Paid 86550, Sydney South NSW 1234

Energy & Water Ombudsman Victoria

• Freecall: 1800 500 509
• Interpreter: 131 450
• NRS: 133 677
• Email: [email protected]
• In writing to Reply Paid 469, Melbourne VIC 8060

Hardship Customer Care Contact Details

• Phone: 1300 70 70 42
• Email: [email protected]
• Online: www.gee.com.au
• Postal: GEE Energy, PO Box 3122, Newstead QLD 4006
• Contact Hours: 8.30am – 5pm Mon-Fri EST

This policy has been based on the AER Customer Hardship Policy Guideline Version 1 March 2019.