The rules may only be lines on a piece of legislation, but the recent additions to the Energy Consumer Protection Act add another layer of armour to protect citizens from aggressive energy sales.
The new rules include numerous measures to stop energy retailers from pressuring residents at their doors into signing contracts they don’t want or need. The new rules are a byproduct of recommendations made to the provincial government by the Ontario Energy Board in 2015.
“Protecting Ontario’s energy consumers is the heart of what the OEB does every day,” states Rosemarie Leclair, the OEB chair and CEO, in a news release. “We believe these new rules will give consumers greater confidence that they are protected against unfair businesses practices. Now that consumers can’t be asked to sign up for contracts while an energy retailer is at their home, they can make choices about their energy supply at their own pace with better information.”
Along with banning these energy retailers from having customers put pen to paper at their front door, the new rules also limit the hours during which these retailers can knock on people’s doors, reduce the fees associated with cancelling one of these contracts, and require all contracts, even those signed online, to be verified 10 to 45 days after it has been signed to ensure the customer wishes to continue.
The revised legislation also eliminates auto-renewal for these contracts, and requires retailers to include plain-language, approved by the OEB, within their terms and conditions to ensure customers know what they’re getting into when they sign on the dotted line.
For those retailers caught breaking the rules, the OEB has a lot more than just a slap on the wrist to penalize these infractions. Certain violations or repeat offenders can lead to a $1-million penalty. The OEB also has the ability to force the cancellation of these improper contracts and require the dollars associated with them to be refunded to the consumer. The OEB can also suspend or revoke a retailer’s license.
“A core part of our role as the independent regulator that is tasked with protecting energy consumers is to make sure energy retailers follow the rules,’ Leclair states.
And the protections won’t stop there. Coming later in 2017, further protections are set to include rules that will make energy contracts more visible on the bill and more consumer friendly disclosures and price comparisons.
To learn more, visit the OEB website at www.oeb.ca/knockknock.
