Electricity retailers step up customer engagement

Big electricity retailers will contact more than a million customers on default offers (also known as standing offers) by Christmas to advise them they can get a better deal following a second meeting meeting today with the Prime Minister and senior ministers in Sydney.

This follows a previous commitment to contact customers whose fixed term benefits have ended to encourage them to also engage with the energy market to get a better deal.

Australian Energy Council Chief Executive, Matthew Warren, said today's meeting was constructive as the Federal Government worked through a range of options to help consumers to get on to market contracts that are the best value for their circumstances.

"Energy is a consumer good like insurance or mobile phones and it pays to engage with the market and shop around," Mr Warren said.

"We discussed a range of initiatives to help customers engage and get better clarity about how different deals compare.

"We agree it’s important for retailers to assist customers to find the best deal, especially at a time when the cost of electricity is high.

"The underlying problem remains though - we need policy certainty and new investment in generation in order to bring down energy costs in the long term.”  

About the Australian Energy Council

The Council represents 21 major electricity and downstream natural gas businesses operating in competitive wholesale and retail energy markets. These businesses collectively generate the overwhelming majority of electricity in Australia and sell gas and electricity to over 10 million homes and businesses.