To protect ours and yours interests, and ensure providing helpful customer services, there are Terms and Conditions you should know
1. Scope of Agreement
1.1 These standard terms and conditions applies when the day you accept from us the supply of Energy and other associated services as necessary or as agreed by you and us. Together, this “agreement” with you may updated or amended from time to time.
1.2 If you ask us to supply electricity to more than one property and we agree to, these terms and conditions will apply to all those properties until we stop supplying electricity to them. If you have someone else be an authorised person on an account, each person of you shall be jointly and severally liable for all responsibilities under this agreement. Including paying all our charges for all the properties covered by this agreement.
1.3 If you move into a property at which we are already supplying electricity and we have not agreed to supply electricity to you at that property before you move in:
a. you will be required to pay for the electricity you use at that property from the time you move in;
b. these terms and conditions apply from the date you moved into the property; and
c. you will supply us with evidence to show the date you moved into the property.
2. Supply electricity to you
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2.1. We will:
a. supply electricity, gas or both, together with other associated services as agreed to you in accordance with these terms and conditions
b. Operate app, online help and call centre at as much as we reasonably can
c. Running a twenty-four (24) hour faults service to respond to any faults with, or interruption to, electricity supply to your properties.
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2.2 Arrangements with third parties in place
a. In order to supply electricity to your property through the power lines, we arrange this with the network company relevant to your electricity network.
b. To measure the electricity that we supply to you, we ensure that there is a meter installed at each of your property. This involves us arranging for a provider of metering equipment.
3. Stay safe
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3.1 All parts of the electricity supply system, including the lines and wires on your property, should be treated as live at all times. Stay safe around them
3.2 It is your responsibility to tell us if you or someone in your household is reliant on constant electrical supply for critical medical support. or disconnection of electricity supply would present a clear threat to the health or wellbeing of you or someone in your household
4. Any Interruptions of, disturbances to, electricity supply
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4.1 we are not required to carry out our responsibilities if an event has occurred which is beyond our control, and which prevent or delay us from carrying out thoseresponsibilities. Some examples like:
a. our online services or app services are unavailable
b. our arrangements with network or metering companies have been suspended or ended.
4.2 We will still continue to provide our responsibilities that are not affected by the event and we will do everything we reasonably can to make sure your electricity supply is back to normal as soon as is reasonably practicable. We are not responsible for any damage that results from electricity supply fluctuations.
4.3 When you think there is any fault in your electricity supply, you should call us on (0800 ********)
5 We assess the amount of electricity supplied
5.1 We will work out how much electricity we supply to your property by reading the meters or if we have not read the meter, we will estimate the amount of electricity supplied to that property.
5.2 When you have any unmetered supply, we will estimate the amount of electricity supplied
5.3 If you think the meter is not correctly recording, you must tell us. If we decide to test it, and we find it is not within the industry standards of accuracy, we will work out what your actual electricity usage should have been, and we will debit or credit your account with us accordingly. If you ask us to test a meter, and it is found to be accurate, you may be charged for the meter test.
6. Bonds
6.1 We may at any time require you to pay a bond or bonds as security for Energy and other associated services supplied or to be supplied. If we require you to pay a bond we will explain the reasons why this is required to you. We may use the bond or bonds to recover any amount overdue or otherwise owed to us by you.
6.2 If we require a bond or bonds, we will invoice you for the amount of the bond and you must pay the bond in accordance with the payment provisions contained in clause 7 below. Your failure to comply with this clause will constitute a material breach of this Agreement.
6.3 We will hold the bond or bonds until it is refunded to you or until it is used to pay any amount overdue or otherwise owing under this Agreement. We will refund any bond to you by crediting your Energy account, provided your invoices have been paid in full by the relevant due dates for a continuous 12 month period, or when we stop supplying Energy to you and all your outstanding invoices have been paid in full. If we keep a bond for longer than 12 months, we will explain the reasons why.
7. Pricing and Payment
7.1 We will charge you for Energy and other associated services at the rates, fees and charges detailed in your Pricing Schedule or as set out in the Special Terms or as agreed with you from time to time. You may view our current service fees on our website or request a copy from our Customer Service Representatives. We may also charge you service fees for services provided under this Agreement at our then current rate.
7.2 We will determine which Pricing Schedule you are eligible for, based on your Energy usage and your metering information. If you are no longer eligible for the Pricing Schedule you are on, or we determine that you would be better suited to a different Pricing Plan, we may transfer you to an alternative Pricing Schedule for which you are eligible by giving you at least 30 days’ prior notice. You may choose an alternative Pricing Schedule, if you are eligible and wish to change, by notifying us of your decision. Should you be eligible for the plan chosen, we will transfer you to the alternative Pricing Schedule of your choice within 30 days of receiving the notice from you.
7.3 The date when we first supply services as you requested at any properties you have, is the Start Date for the agreement between you and OrangeEnergy under this agreement. The start date can also be the date when OrangeEnergy gains ICP from other retailers upon submitting your application, or the date when OrangeEnergy install ICP and Meter Reader upon your agreement to join us. You will therefore be liable to pay our rates and charges from the date stated above
7.4 We may include charges for network services or other services provided by the Lines Company, Network Operator or other third parties, such charges will be separately identified in our invoices. You agree to pay us all of such charges and any other charges payable by you under this Agreement. We will apply all of the charges on the basis agreed between us and the Lines Company, Network Operator or other third parties. When the charges that we recover on behalf of the Lines Company, Network Operator or other third parties change, we will notify you of the changes at least 30 days prior, unless we ourselves have not been given sufficient notice by the relevant Lines Company, Network Operator or other third party. In this case, we will give you as much notice as reasonably practicable
7.5 You agree to pay the charges (plus GST) for Energy supplied to your Connection Point and any other associated services under this Agreement. You also agree to pay any service fees we charge you for Energy, not expressly covered under your Pricing Schedule or the Special Terms, including but not limited to any government imposed taxes, fees and levies which we may pass onto you.
7.6 You must always pay us in full (that means that you cannot deduct amounts from the amount you owe us) by the date shown on your invoice. If you set up direct debit with us, make sure that the bank account you have authorised us to charge is up to date and it has sufficient clear and accessible funds to cover all payments to us at the time for payment. We may recover from you any collection costs, including but not limited to collection agency costs, all legal costs on a solicitor/client basis or other costs incurred, relating to late payment or non-payment (including dishonoured payment) of our invoices. If you have any difficulty in paying an invoice, you should contact us to make a suitable payment arrangement, otherwise the amount will be treated as being overdue, and your Electricity may be disconnected.
7.7 If you dispute the accuracy of an invoice, you must notify us of the dispute, and the amount in dispute, as soon as possible (and, in any event, before the due date for payment). The only dispute applied under this Clause is regarding an accuracy. Undisputed amounts must still be paid by the due date but you may withhold the disputed amount until the dispute is resolved in accordance with Clause 15 below. If the withheld amount is found to be payable by you, we will invoice you for that amount and payment of the amount is due within 10 days from the date of invoice. If you have paid a disputed amount and it is found that we have made an error and charged you incorrectly for a higher amount, we will refund the difference between the incorrect and correct amount, by crediting it into your Energy account.
7.8 If we make an error in calculating the amount owing and charge or have charged you an incorrect amount for any reasons:
a. If we have overcharged you the amount we should, upon identifying the error, we will promptly credit your Electricity account with the difference between the incorrect and the correct amounts.
b. If we have undercharged you the amount we should, we will advise you the difference between the incorrect and the correct amount, and you must pay us within 10 days. If the undercharging has continued for a period of three months or more, we will only recover the undercharged amounts from the last three months prior to the discovery of the error unless you have contributed to the error or could have reasonably been expected to have known of the error. In this case, we will recover the entire undercharged amounts.
c. No interest is payable on any amount overpaid or underpaid in the case of an incorrect invoice.
7.9 We may apply a prompt payment discount if payment of the full amount displayed on the invoice is received on or before the prompt payment eligibility due date.
7.10 If you hold more than one electricity account with us and you close one such account, we may transfer any balance outstanding in respect of the account being closed into any account still opened. The amount transferred must be paid by you in accordance with the accounts and payment terms and conditions
8. Access to each property
8.1 For safety and security of supply and other reasons, we and others involved (like the distribution and metering companies) in the supply of Energy to the property need clear, free (i.e. at no charge whatsoever), safe access to:
a. each property and any land over which you have an easement or right to pass Energy;
b. all metering equipment; and
c. any equipment used to supply Energy.
and the Distribution Company (and any agent or subcontractor of it) also needs reasonable use of facilities and amenities available to you and ordinarily used in association with its equipment on your premises, so that we can supply electricity to you and for associated safety purposes.
8.2 Some of your specific responsibilities must be carried:
a. provide us, the Distribution Company and meter owner (and any agent or subcontractor of any of us) with immediate access at any time to restore electricity during an interruption in your area, to ensure safety, or to protect or prevent damage to people, property or the environment.
b. during business hours (9am to 6pm Monday to Friday, 9am to 4pm Saturdays), allow us, the Distribution Company and meter owner (and any agent or subcontractor of any of us) access to each property (including to meters and other equipment that may be inside) to:
(i) read any meter on your premises
(ii) connect, suspend or disconnect your energy supply.
(iii) ensure that trees, vegetation, buildings and other obstacles are clear of energy lines or energy equipment. If you do not do this you may be charged for the cost of clearing the trees, vegetation or obstacles.
(iv) install, remove, test, inspect, work on, operate, repair or replace any equipment necessary to provide energy or that is owned by any of them.
(v) investigate or repair any damage or interference or suspected damage or interference with the distribution (including the quality of supply) or any equipment used to supply energy.
(vi) protect or prevent danger or damage to people or property
(vi) for any purpose related to the supply of energy or otherwise required under either our or your agreement with the Distribution Company.
8.3 You must also allow clear and safe access to a property if we or a network company or meter owner need to install or maintain equipment for load control.
8.4 In some circumstances, you will need to give us immediate access
to your premises, including if we need to:
a. restore electricity supply in your neighbourhood after an outage
b. prevent harm to people or property from equipment we or the
network operator are responsible for
c. protect the network, or
d. deal with any other emergency situation involving the supplyof energy.
8.5 If you do not provide clear and safe access, we or the Distribution Company may disconnect your electricity supply and you may be charged for any occurrence during the procedure.
9. Responsibilities in relation to the electricity supply equipment on the property
9.1 Things you must:
a. make sure nothing on your property interferes with or damages the distribution network;
b. ensure the safety, security and maintenance of any electricity lines and equipment used on each property;
c. ensure the safety, security and maintenance of any electricity lines and equipment past a distribution connection point to any dwelling or premises on a property;
d. keep trees, vegetation and other obstacles away from meters and the electricity lines - this includes anything overhanging from neighbouring premises;
e. make sure there is sufficient secure space at each property for metering equipment and other equipment we or the network company think is necessary to supply electricity to you;
f. make sure that other people at a property comply with your obligations under this clause 9.
9.2 You need to notify us or your network company as soon as you become aware of any damage to, or fault with, meters or equipment
9.3 You have obligations under the Electricity (Hazards from Trees) Regulations 2003 to, for example, keep trees free from power lines.
9.4 Things you, and must not permit any other person to do:
a. connect or disconnect a property to a distribution network, or interconnect two or more network connection points (these are the points at which a property connects to an isolating device on the distribution network);
b. interfere with or work on a network company's lines or equipment;
c. take a supply of electricity from anywhere along the electricity lines between a distribution connection point and the meter;
d. interfere with any meter or other equipment used to supply you electricity;
e. generate electricity or inject it into a distribution network;
f. use a distribution network to send or receive any signal or communication.
9.5 Meters, meter reading equipment, and other equipment that we, a network or metering company own, does not belong to you, but to the party responsible for supplying it. You must never:
a. interfere with or remove a meter or meter reading equipment;
b. interfere with any other equipment supplied by us or a network company;
c. allow any mortgage, security interest or other charge to be created over a meter or other equipment that we, a network or metering company own, or otherwise interfere with ownership of any of them.
9.6 If you damage network company equipment or distribution, you may be liable for any damage you cause. If a network company suffers direct loss or damage which is caused or contributed to by your fraud, dishonesty, or wilful misconduct, you will be liable to make good that loss or damage.
10. Termination and/or suspension of Energy supply
10.1 You may terminate this contract at any time provided you have paid for all energy supplied to your properties and any other charges you owe us. You will need to contact us or a new retailer to arrange for the future supply of electricity to a property if you need it.
10.2 We may terminate this contract at any time by giving you thirty (30) days notice. You shall remain liable for payment for all electricity supplied up to the date that termination takes effect. If we do this you will need to contact a new retailer to arrange for the future supply of electricity to your properties.
10.3 You have to pay for all electricity supplied, and for all fees charged to you, to each property until:
a. the date you or we notify the other that you’ve ended the supply of electricity under these terms and conditions; or
b. the later of the following dates:
i. when you move out of that property; or
ii. when you notify us you have moved out of that property.
10.4 If you are vacating any propertly, or suspend energy supply temporarily ot permanently, you must notice us 5 business days in advance so we can prepare a final invoice(s) for that property.
10.5 Either we or a network company may disconnect your electricity supply to any property if you:
a. do not pay us for electricity that has been supplied to a property or for charges relating to the supply of electricity to a property (such as for services relating to metering or line charges)
b. breach any other term of this agreement.
c. move into a property that we supply electricity to and you do not tell us.
10.6 In accordance with our processes (including our debt collection process) we will endeavour to tell you at least 7 business days before we disconnect the supply of electricity to a property, by sending a notice to the physical address we hold for you. We will also give you a final warning at least 24 hours before we intend to disconnect supply of electricity to that property. If you miss or do not receive a notice we will still proceed.
10.7 If you are a residential customer and if you tell us that you, or someone at a property is dependent on electricity supply for critical medical support and provide sufficient proof of that when we ask, we will not disconnect electricity supply to that property for non-payment.We may however disconnect the property if there is an immediate safety risk.
10.8 we or a networkcompany may disconnect or disrupt your electricity supply for any reason set out in this agreement (such agreement being consent to disconnection by the Distribution Company for the purpose of section 105 of the Electricity Industry Act 2010) including:
a) without notice for safety reasons or where there is an emergency.
b) where there has been an occurrence or circumstances that may adversely affect the proper working of the distribution network or the transmission system.
c) where either of us are denied access to your property.
d) we are in default under our contract with the Distribution Company, that contract is terminated or a right to terminate has arisen under that contract; or
e) the Distribution Company otherwise requires the supply to be disconnected including pursuant to your agreement or our agreement with them.
11. Lines Company/Network Operator
11.1 We do not own the lines network or network of pipelines through which Energy is delivered to you. The Lines Company or Network Operator owns and is responsible for the network including monitoring and maintaining the equipment used in the provision of network services in accordance with good industry standards.
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11.2 You may have an agreement directly with the Lines Company or the Network Operator for network services. Where this is not the case,we have arrangements with the relevant Distribution Company, but you are required to comply with the obligations in this clause 11.
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11.3Part of your electricity supply may be on load control devices. If a property does have load control devices, we or the Distribution Company may control their operation as we or others choose.
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11.4 A Distribution Company may interrupt your electricity supply if:
a. the Distribution Company wishes to inspect or effect alterations, maintenance, repairs or additions to any part of the network.
b. there is an occurrence or circumstance which may endanger persons or property.
c. there is an occurrence or circumstance that may adversely affect the proper working of any electricity network or transmission system.
d. it reasonably anticipates that the supply of electricity or transmission capacity to any point of connection is or will be reduced, impaired or interrupted.
e. required to protect the network, equipment, people or property.
f. requested or required by or on behalf any relevant regulatory authority, Transpower, any other owner or operator of the distribution or transmission network, the national grid or any other person responsible for the security of supply of electricity.
g. necessary to preserve supply generally, including for emergency or load management purposes. h) interruption or reduction of supply is required for any other purpose in the Distribution Company's reasonable opinion and in accordance with good industry practice.
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12. Information and Act
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12.1 According to The Privacy Act 1993 applies to personal information, when you become a customer, and throughout our supply of electricity under this contract, you must make sure the information you give us is correct and up to date. We will collect and hold your personal information. You and/or the guarantor/s shall have the right to request us for a copy of all the information about you and/or guarantor/s retained by us and the right to request us to correct any incorrect information about you and/or the guarantor/s held by us.
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12.2 You and any guarantor/s (if separate to the Customer) authorise us to:
a. collect, retain and use any information about you and/or the guarantor/s, for the purpose of assessing your and/or the guarantors creditworthiness, or marketing products and services to you and/or the guarantor/s; and
b. disclose information about you and/or the guarantor/s, whether collected by us from you and/or the guarantor/s directly or obtained by us from any other source, to any:
(i) other credit provider or any credit reporting agency for the purposes of providing or obtaining a credit reference, debt collection or notifying a default by you and/or the guarantor/s; or
(ii) Distribution Company, which it may use for any purpose associated with its energy distribution business. Some examples of when we may do this are if the information is to help supply electricity or to distribute money on their behalf.
Where you and/or the guarantor/s are an individual the authorities under thus clause are authorities or consents for the purposes of the Privacy Act 1993.
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12.3 We will not disclose any personal information to any person other than:
a. you agree that we may do so.
b. we reasonably believe we are required to do so by law.
c. we need to do so to supply electricity to you or it is a matter covered by this contract.
d. you are switching to another electricity retailer.
e. it is absolutely necessary to assist any third party to resolve a complaint you make about us
f. the information is being released to a person who is living at the property to which we are supplying electricity and they are named on the account for that property.
13. Liabilities
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13.1 Nothing in this agreement shall limit or reduce your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act (which applies in addition to your rights under this contract), unless you are receiving Energy and services from us or the Distribution Company for use in a business in which case the provisions contained in that Act are non-applicable.
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13.2 Unless otherwise stated in this agreement, if we damage a property by not taking reasonable care, and that damage was reasonably foreseeable we will pay the costs of repairing the damage or replacing damaged property (at our discretion) up to a maximum of ten thousand dollars ($10K) for any single event or series of closely related events. If for any reason we are found to be liable to you, our total maximum liability under this agreement is still limited to ten thousand dollars ($10K) for any single event or series of related events.
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13.3 Under this agreement, we will not be liable to you in circumstances where an event has occurred which is beyond our reasonable control and which prevents or delays us from carrying out those responsibilities. Some examples of some events that are likely to be beyond our reasonable control are that:
a. when our website is unavailable.
b. we have been unable to secure wholesale electricity to supply to a property,
c. our arrangements with a Distribution Company have been terminated; or
d. a Distribution Company cannot supply electricity to a property (for example, the network or grid they use to supply electricity to that property is unavailable).
e. any other direct loss or damage caused through:
(i) breach of contract or breach of any other obligation owed to you for any other reason, where that breach is due to any event beyond our reasonable control;
(ii) the negligence, omission, or any other act of a third party that is not one of Our Representatives; or
f. any economic loss (including lost profits), indirect or consequential loss or damage;
g. damage caused to appliances (whether as a direct orwhere this is an indirect result of our acts or omissions),
h. loss or damage in connection with any interruption or reduction in the supply of gas into the gas network, or the quality of that gas, except to the extent (if any) that we are liable under the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993 to compensate you for such loss or damage.
If any of our responsibilities under this agreement are interrupted because of an event beyond our reasonable control, we will continue to perform our responsibilities that are not affected by the event and we will do everything we reasonably can to make sure your electricity supply is returned to normal as soon as is reasonably practicable. We are not responsible for any damage that results from electricity supply fluctuations.
13.4 Where we contract on your behalf for the provision of lines or network services, we will pass on any credits or refunds received from the Lines Company or Network Operator received by us for their failure to meet any service guarantees made for your benefit. You can and only claim from us what we can recover from Lines Company or Network Operator, and that is applicable to you.
13.5 If you damage any of our property or equipment or any meters or associated equipment we may require you to pay the cost of repair or replacement of them.
13.6 If you damage Lines Company or Network Operator equipment, you may be liable for any damage you cause. If a Lines Company or Network Operator suffers direct loss or damage which is caused or contributed to by your fraud, dishonesty, or wilful misconduct, you will be liable to make good that loss or damage.
13.7 The Electricity Authority may, by notice to you, assign or transfer our rights or obligations under this Agreement to another Energy retailer for your Energy services to continue be supplied if we commit an Event of Default.
14. Miscellaneous
14.1 No waiver of any breach, or failure to enforce any provision of this Agreement by us shall affect, limit, or waive our right to enforce and compel strict compliance with the provisions of this Agreement.
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14.2 On the termination of this Agreement, the clauses 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14.2 shall remain in effect until their purpose is served.
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14.3 We have rights to make any change to this contract at any time by providing you at least 30 days notice in advance by emailing and by adverting on our website. The change applies from when we update our website. If, for any reason, you do not receive notice of any change, our contract with you will still change.
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14.4 You agree that you will immediately notify us of any change in your personal or contact details (i.e. name, address, fax number, email address etc) including, where you are a business Customer, any proposed change of ownership, business name or business practice. You shall be liable for any loss incurred by us as a direct result of your failure to comply with this clause.
14.5 If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid, unlawful, or unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed to be modified only to the extent necessary to remedy that result and the remainder of this Agreement shall remain in force.
15. Dispute Resolution
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15.1 If you have a complaint, Our Customer Service Team always be the first place to help. As every single case is different, there might be some cases which needs to be escalated or investigated at upper level. If you believe that you are in that situation, you can lodge a compalint via following contact methods.
Phone:
Email: help@smartorange.co.nz
Post:
PO Box 90699
Victoria Street West
Auckland 1010
Our complaint & dispute resolution process is free of charge. We will send you an acknowledgement within 4 working days to let you know that we are seriously reviewing your complaint or dispute and we will make every endeavour to resolve your case.
If we have not resolved your complaint within 20 working days, or forty working days where we have advised you of the reasons for a longer timeframe, then you have the option of contacting Utilities Disputes.
Utilities Disputes is a free and independent disputes service and can be contacted at:
Phone 0800 22 33 40
Website www.utilitiesdisputes.co.nz
Email info@utilitiesdisputes.co.nz
Post Utilities Disputes Ltd
Freepost 192682
PO Box 5875
Lambton Quay
Wellington 6145
15.2 Unless otherwise agreed with a Lines Company, all complaints relating to lines, pipelines network or Connection Points under this Agreement will be referred by us to the relevant Lines Company to manage and resolve pursuant to their dispute resolution process.
15.3 Where there is a dispute/complaint regarding your account you must immediately notify us in writing in order that we shall have an opportunity to resolve the same. You shall not be entitled to withhold payment merely because of the dispute/complaint and shall pay the account in accordance with the terms of this agreement. Where it is agreed that an error has been made and that we owe you any monies then we shall reimburse you within seven (7) days of resolving the dispute/complaint.
16. Definitions and Interpretation
For the purposes of this agreement the following definitions shall apply:
“us, we, our, OrangeEnergy” means Orange Services Limited
“you, your, Customer” means the person or persons who enter into this agreement
“Business Day” means a day, other than a Saturday or Sunday, on which New Zealand registered banks are open for business in Auckland.
“Code” means the Electricity Industry Participation Code 2010 as amended, varied or replaced from time to time.
“Lines Company” means the company that operates the electricity distribution network by which electricity is supplied to your Connection Point(s).
“Network Operator” means the company or organisation that owns and operates your local natural gas pipeline network.
“energy” means electricity and/or gas.
“equipment” means any fittings or other equipment that form part of the system that supply energy to you.
“network owner” means the person that owns or operates the network to which your premises are connected.
“person” includes a corporation.
“vulnerable customer” means a customer who has told us, or about whom it appears to us, that disconnection of energy at their premises presents a clear threat to their health or well-being or of a member of their household, or who has mains powered equipment for critical medical support.
