THE Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has issued new customer service standards for Guyana Power & Light (GPL).
At a press conference in its Lot 298 Church Street, Queenstown, Georgetown office, the Chairman, retired Justice of Appeal Prem Persaud said the issuance was under the new Electricity Sector Reform Amendment Act, 2010.
He said the legislation states all penalties for failure to attend to consumer complaints must be met within a specific timeframe and, for 2010, the credit secured for consumers amounted to $7.5M.
PUC Secretary Vidiahar Persaud said a hotline and website were established to receive consumers’ complaints and responses will be offered in a prompt manner.
PUC Complaints Manager Raymond Cummings said, when a customer makes a complaint to GPL, the complainant must request and obtain a reference number for future purposes.
He said the number will be used to inform when the report was made and what action was taken on it.
Cummings said, in relation to electricity theft, customers will have to pay 24 months of retroactive charges because it is difficult to ascertain the amount of stolen current that was consumed.
Under the new dispensation, the timeframe for any billing complaint is a maximum of 120 days, but other complaints that are not so technical could be resolved in a shorter time, possibly in two days.
A PUC press release said, consequent upon President Bharrat Jagdeo assenting to the Electricity Sector Reform (Amendment) Act 2010, a new schedule, outlining the Customer Service Standard for GPL was developed by the utility in consultation with the regulatory body.

Penalties
Prime Minister Samuel Hinds, who is responsible for the electricity sector, approved the schedule and on February 18, 2011 spelt out penalties to be applied to GPL, through credits to consumers’ accounts, that must be paid if and when the supplier is found in breach of the timeframes.
The PUC said that connection of a new service, where primary and or secondary network, such as poles, transformers and other installations are required to be installed, it must be done in a maximum of 70 days for commercial customers and 84 days for residential customers.  In exceptional cases, where a service line and meter are to be installed, 14 days is the maximum time allowed.
If the company exceeds the allotted time for a new service where a primary and or a secondary network is needed for commercial consumers, a fine of $400 per day will be instituted up to a maximum of $40,000 and, for residential consumers, $2,000 per day to a maximum of $20,000.
Where the service line and meter are to be installed, the penalties for exceeding the 14 days allotted will be $2,000 per day for commercial customers, to a maximum of $20,000 and $1,000 to a maximum of $10,000 for residential consumers.
In cases where the meter and service line were removed upon disconnection, a maximum of seven days is allowed. Penalties for exceeding that time will be $2000 for the first day for commercial entities and $3,000 for the third day after a maximum of $8,000 and, for residential services, $1,000 for the first day and, per day for each succeeding day to a maximum of $5,000.
The time allowed for the GPL to respond to repair calls for commercial entities will be one day maximum with a  one-off fine of $15,000 and one and a half days for residential consumers with a one-off fine of $3,000. The report will be considered made at the time it was registered with the company’s customer service representative and a reference number provided.
Careful note should be taken to ensure that a reference number is provided, complainants are advised.
The PUC also advises that careful note should be taken to ensure that the correct address and accurate direction/description of the fault are provided by the complainant when giving the report and GPL is required to act in good faith when responding to repair calls to ensure faults are corrected expeditiously.
Customers who have queries in relation to their bills, service quality and other issues about their accounts and lodge complaints with the company by telephone, correspondence, or over the counter, which do not involve investigations outside the office, are expected to receive an acknowledgement within five days of its submission and a response within 10 days after.

Investigations
Where investigations are required at the consumer’s premises, a maximum of $3,000 will be imposed on the company for breaches. At least 90 per cent of all such inquiries shall be responded to within 21 days of notice and 100 per cent within 40 days of notice.
Consumers who have reason to suspect that the meter on their premises is improperly registering, causing them to be billed for more or less than they consume, must notify the company in writing, stating their concerns.
GPL is required to respond to them in writing within seven days and complete testing the meter for its accuracy within 30 days. If the meter is found to be defective after the test, it must be replaced within 60 days of the test, provided that the customer has rewired the meter interface, where necessary, to the current standard and has obtained an inspection certificate.
The company shall be penalized $500 a day, to a maximum of $3,000, for failure to respond, in writing, within seven days of notification from a consumer that a meter may be defective. If the test is not completed 30 days after, a fine of $1,000 per day, for a maximum of $5,000 and $500 per day to a maximum of $2,500 shall be applied if the defective meter is not replaced within the 60-day limit.
The institution of the new service standards, which became effective immediately, will be closely monitored by the PUC and consumers who have found the company in breach of them are asked to contact the PUC on telephone number 226-7042 or visit its Church Street office or its website at www.puc.org.gy.