New Zealand: Power users 'scared' --problems cited with utility company's billing and call centers

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New Zealand: Power users 'scared' --problems cited with utility company's billing and call centers

21 SEPTEMBER 2000

An analysis of complaints by TransAlta customers in Canterbury contains few surprises, with the price issue and difficulty contacting the company scoring highly.

The survey of 75 complaints against TransAlta handled by Christchurch Central MP Tim Barnett in the last month shows that 28 per cent had difficulty contacting the company and 26 per cent struggled to pay their electricity bills. Another 16 per cent had problems with billing and 14 per cent experienced delays with changing companies or receiving accounts. Mr Barnett said the number of cases of people having problems affording electricity greatly worried him.

"This has been made worse by the difficulty people have had with TransAlta's billing systems and call centre," he said. "It is very scary for people to be in strife with a power company they cannot contact. The fear of disconnection in winter is terrifying." Although TransAlta had been sensitive to the pressure people were under and had been effective at solving the problems he had taken to them, over-all service was still poor, he said.

http://7am.com/cgi-bin/wireclicker.cgi?http://www.stuff.co.nz/inl/index/0,1008,387859a1934,FF.html

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), September 21, 2000

Answers

Interesting, Carl. Too bad Malcolm Taylor's not around to have something to say about this.

-- Rachel Gibson (rgibson@hotmail.com), September 21, 2000.

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