AER releases findings from Review of payment difficulty protections in the National Energy Customer Framework

The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) has published the findings from our Review of payment difficulty protections in the National Energy Customer Framework.

Following on from the commitment we made in our Towards energy equity strategy, we have considered whether there is a case for change to strengthen protections for customers experiencing payment difficulty to ensure that they are proactively identified, engaged early and supported appropriately with assistance that is tailored to their individual circumstances.

After 18 months of extensive consultation, we have concluded that the current protections for customers experiencing payment difficulty are not fit for purpose because:

• there is a persistent assistance gap that means some customers are missing out on help 
• the quality of information about assistance is inconsistent and can often fail to meet customer needs 
• assistance provided under the framework is often ineffective, places inappropriate expectations on customers and is provided in an inconsistent way across retailers
• disconnection is relied on as an engagement tool, rather than a last resort.

We have identified 13 opportunities to improve the framework by:

• making it easier to know who should be receiving assistance
• making it easier for customers to know what assistance is available
• making it easier for customers to access assistance
• making assistance more effective
• making sure disconnection is only used as a last resort
• reducing the harm caused by disconnection.

Together, the opportunities we’ve identified through our review would strengthen protections for customers, simplify regulatory compliance for retailers, increase consistency across jurisdictions and reduce the burden of debt in the energy system. They are opportunities to deliver better energy customer experiences into the future.

Most of the opportunities we’ve identified can be progressed through changes to the National Energy Retail Law, National Energy Retail Regulations or National Energy Retail Rules. We have written to Energy Ministers to seek their support for these changes, which could be progressed through the Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council’s existing work program to assess options to modernise our energy consumer protection regimes and deliver better energy customer experiences.

One opportunity we can act on directly is increasing the minimum disconnection amount. We have published a draft decision for a new amount and are seeking stakeholder feedback by Wednesday, 18 June 2025. We expect to make a final decision in mid-2025.

We appreciate the engagement and insights of every stakeholder who has participated in our review. We look forward to discussing the findings and opportunities with stakeholders, including the proposed new minimum disconnection amount. We will host a stakeholder forum to present the findings and explore the opportunities via Microsoft Teams at 12:30−1:30 pm AEST on Wednesday, 11 June 2025. Register here to attend.

If you have any questions or to make a submission in response to the minimum disconnection amount draft decision, please email us at ConsumerPolicyaer [dot] gov [dot] au (ConsumerPolicy[at]aer[dot]gov[dot]au).