Electricity Regulation Act 1999

9M

F194[Informative billing.

9M.(1) The Commission shall, where it considers it appropriate, having regard to subsection (2), direct an energy undertaking to comply with the requirements of subsection (5), or part thereof, from such date and in such manner as it may specify in that direction.

(2) In determining whether to issue a direction under subsection (1), the Commission shall have regard to the likely costs to the undertaking concerned of complying with such a direction and the likely energy efficiency benefits to final customers of the actions required of the undertaking concerned.

(3) Before issuing a direction under subsection (1), the Commission shall undertake a public consultation process.

(4) Nothing in this section shall affect the responsibilities or duties of an energy undertaking under F195[the Data Protection Regulation or the Data Protection Act 2018].

(5) The Commission may, by direction under subsection (1), require an energy undertaking to do any or all of the following:

(a) provide bills to its final customers, based on actual energy use, at such frequency as may be specified by the Commission to enable those customers to regulate their own energy consumption in a timely manner;

(b) provide such information in or with a bill to its final customers that, in the opinion of the Commission provides a comprehensive account of the customers current energy costs;

(c) present bills to its final customers in a manner which, in the opinion of the Commission, is clear and easily understandable; or

(d) provide any or all of the following information in or with its bills, contracts, or other relevant communications, in a manner which, in the opinion of the Commission, is clear and understandable

(i) current actual prices and actual consumption of energy,

(ii) a comparison of the final customers current energy consumption with that customers consumption for the same period in the previous year, in graphic form where the Commission considers it practicable,

(iii) a comparison of the final customers energy use with the energy use of an average normalised or benchmarked final customer, or

(iv) sources of information on available energy efficiency improvement measures, comparative customer profiles or objective technical specifications for energy-using equipment, including contact information and website addresses.

(6) The Commission may request that an energy undertaking provide such information, and in such format, as the Commission considers necessary for the purposes of determining whether to issue a direction under subsection (1), or for the purposes of monitoring compliance with a direction so issued.

(7) In this section a bill includes a bill provided or made available to the final customer in electronic format.

(8) An energy undertaking that fails to comply with a direction issued by the Commission under subsection (1), or with a request under subsection (6), commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a class A fine.

(9) Where a direction under subsection (1) or a request under subsection (6) is to be issued or given to an energy undertaking, it shall be addressed to the undertaking and shall be given to the undertaking in one of the following ways

(a) by delivering it to the energy undertaking concerned,

(b) by leaving it at the address at which the energy undertaking concerned carries on business,

(c) by sending it by post in a pre-paid registered letter addressed to the energy supplier concerned at the address at which the undertaking carries on business,

(d) if an address for the service of a direction or request has been furnished by the energy undertaking concerned, by leaving it at, or sending it by pre-paid registered post addressed to the energy undertaking at, that address, or

(e) by sending it by means of electronic mail or a facsimile machine, to a device or facility for the reception of electronic mail or facsimiles located at the address at which the energy undertaking concerned carries on business or, if an address for the service of a direction or request has been furnished by the energy undertaking concerned, that address, but only if

(i) the recipients facility for the reception of electronic mail generates a message confirming a receipt of the electronic mail, or

(ii) the senders facsimile machine generates a message confirming successful delivery of the total number of pages of the direction or request,

and it is also given in one of the other ways mentioned in any of the preceding paragraphs.

(10) For the purposes of subsection (9), a company registered under the Companies Acts is deemed to be ordinarily resident at its registered office, and every other body corporate and every unincorporated body is deemed to be ordinarily resident at its principal office or place of business.]

F196[(11) In this section, "Data Protection Regulation" means Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 201622 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation).]

Annotations

Amendments:

F194

Substituted (16.04.2012) by Energy (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2012 (3/2012), s. 9(1)(a), S.I. No. 122 of 2012. A class A fine means a fine not greater than €5,000 as provided (4.01.2011) by Fines Act 2010 (8/2010), ss. 3, 3(1), S.I. No. 662 of 2010.

F195

Substituted (25.05.2018) by Data Protection Act 2018 (7/2018), s. 185(a), S.I. No. 174 of 2018.

F196

Inserted (25.05.2018) by Data Protection Act 2018 (7/2018), s. 185(b), S.I. No. 174 of 2018.

Modifications (not altering text):

C14

Application of subs. (5) restricted (29.09.2014) by European Union (Energy Efficiency) Regulations 2014 (S.I. No. 426 of 2014), reg. 19(5).

Billing - regulated energy sector

19. ...

(5) Smart metering systems installed in accordance with the Electricity Market Directive and the Natural Gas Market Directive shall enable accurate billing information based on actual consumption and final customers, notwithstanding the provisions of section 9M(5) of the Act of 1999 shall have the possibility of easy access to complementary information on historical consumption allowing detailed self- checks. Such complementary information shall include detailed data according to the time of use for any day, week, month and year. These data shall be made available to the final customer by way of the internet or the meter interface for the period of at least the previous 24 months or the period since the start of the supply contract if this is shorter.

...

C15

Application of section restricted (9.09.2011) by European Communities (Internal Market in Electricity and Gas) (Consumer Protection) Regulations of 2011 (S.I. No. 463 of 2011), reg. 9(3).

Electricity and gas consumption data

9. ...

(3) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 9M (inserted by Regulation 19 of the European Communities (Energy End-Use Efficiency and Energy Services) Regulations 2009 ( S.I. No. 542 of 2009 )) of the Act of 1999 the Commission shall put in place procedures such that final customers are properly informed of actual electricity and gas consumption and related charges frequently enough to enable them to regulate their own electricity and gas consumption.

...

Editorial Notes:

E56

Previous affecting provision: section inserted (18.12.2009) by European Communities (Energy End-use Efficiency and Energy Services) Regulations 2009 (S.I. No. 542 of 2009), reg. 19; substituted as per F-note above.