Part 8ARegulation of NERL retailers

Part 8A—Regulation of NERL retailers 36A—NERL retailers to comply with code provisions and other requirements (1) For the purposes of section 59A(1) of the Act, a NERL retailer must comply with— (a) a code made by the Commission under the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 relating to gas metering; and (b) if the scheme under Part 4 of these regulations applies to the retailer, a code made by the Commission under the Essential Services Commission Act 2002 relating to energy productivity. Regulation 16 provides for the application of a scheme relating to energy efficiency to NERL retailers. (2) For the purposes of section 59A(1) of the Act, a NERL retailer must comply with the following requirements: (a) a NERL retailer must prepare, maintain, publish on its website and periodically revise a safety awareness plan in accordance with the following requirements: (i) the plan must deal with matters prescribed by subregulation (3); (ii) the retailer must obtain the approval of the Technical Regulator to the plan and any revision; (iii) the retailer must comply with the plan as approved from time to time; (iv) the retailer must audit from time to time its compliance with the plan and report the results of those audits to the Technical Regulator; (v) the retailer must, on or before 31 August in each year, lodge with the Technical Regulator a report relating to the previous financial year containing the following information: (A) the results of any audit of the retailer's compliance with its safety awareness plan; (B) details of the measures taken to implement the plan, such as information about the publication and distribution of brochures, and the number of times the plan and related material has been viewed by customers on any website operated by the retailer; (C) whether the retailer has been able to comply with all aspects of the safety awareness plan and whether the retailer considers the plan to have been operating effectively; (b) a NERL retailer must, subject to the limitation set out in paragraph (c), use its best endeavours to supply gas in accordance with the standards of quality under regulation 38 and any relevant Act or other instrument that relates to the quality of gas supply; (c) the obligation in paragraph (b) is limited to the extent that the distribution system or the quality of gas supply is adversely affected by the actions or equipment of a small customer; (d) a NERL retailer must use its best endeavours to supply gas in a manner that does not interfere with the safe operation of a distribution system; (e) a NERL retailer must use its best endeavours to provide a reliable supply of gas to a small customer in accordance with any relevant Act or other instrument that relates to the reliability of gas supply; (f) a NERL retailer must, if it carries out the work of installation, maintenance, operation, reading or replacement of a meter— (i) supply to an entity holding a licence authorising the operation of a distribution system information obtained from those meters as is reasonably required by the entity for the purposes of its operations in such format as is reasonably required by the entity and in a manner consistent with recognised practices in the gas industry; and (ii) allow the entity, at the expense of the entity, to inspect and test the meter as is reasonably required by the entity for the purpose of its operations. (3) The following are matters that must be dealt with by a safety awareness plan: (a) the establishment and maintenance of systems for— (i) communicating information to customers regarding the safety of gas infrastructure, installations and appliances; and (ii) measuring the use of such information systems by customers; (b) the provision of material with information and adequate warnings about the properties of gas relevant to safety; (c) the establishment and maintenance of systems for— (i) warning the public about the need for due care with respect to gas infrastructure, installations and appliances; and (ii) informing customers about the correct action to be taken with respect to defects or malfunctions of gas infrastructure, installations and appliances (including but not limited to gas leaks or suspected gas leaks), and the means by which customers can report those defects or malfunctions; and (iii) informing customers of approval schemes for gas appliances and the manner in which a customer can determine whether a gas appliance has been approved; and (iv) informing customers of the fact that persons who undertake gas fitting work are required to be licensed or registered under the Plumbers, Gas Fitters and Electricians Act 1995 and of the manner in which customers can determine whether a person is appropriately licensed or registered; and (v) ensuring that a point of contact for customers regarding gas supply difficulties and gas shortages is provided. relevant Act or other instrument means— (a) an Act (including any instrument made under an Act); or (b) a standard, code, guideline or other instrument issued by the AER, the Commission or the Technical Regulator, that applies to a person engaged in the retailing of gas. 36B—Sale of gas to small customers—early termination fees prohibited (1) For the purposes of section 59A(1)(g) of the Act, a NERL retailer must not offer a market retail contract to small customers if a term or condition of the contract provides for the payment of a fee or charge (however described) for early termination of the contract. (2) Nothing in subregulation (1) prevents a NERL retailer from offering to small customers a fixed term contract that provides for the payment of— (a) a fee or charge for early termination of a fixed benefit period under the contract by the small customer (whether or not the contract is terminated at the same time); or (b) a fee or charge for early termination of the contract if the fee or charge only involves the NERL retailer recovering its reasonable costs for the installation or provision of designated equipment to the small customer (and accounts for, in the event of early termination of the contract, any payments towards those costs made by the small customer before the termination). (3) However, subregulation (2) only applies if— (a) the NERL retailer provides information to the small customer before the small customer enters into the contract that clearly specifies— (i) the nature and amount of the relevant fee or charge referred to in that subregulation; and (ii) the consequences of early termination of the contract by the small customer; and (b) a fee or charge for early termination provided for under that subregulation complies with the relevant requirements applying under the National Energy Retail Rules. designated equipment means a meter or other equipment related to the provision of gas at the premises of the small customer that is fixed to the premises and intended to remain at those premises (whether or not any contract relating to the provision of electricity at the premises is terminated early); fixed benefit period means a period of a fixed term contract during which pricing is fixed; fixed term contract means a market retail contract for a fixed term that includes a fixed benefit period. (5) Unless the contrary intention appears, terms used in this regulation and in the National Energy Retail Law or the National Energy Retail Rules have the same respective meaning in this regulation as they have in the National Energy Retail Law or National Energy Retail Rules. 36C—Participation in ombudsman scheme For the purposes of section 59B(1) of the Act, the prescribed level is 10 Tj. 36D—Annual administration fee (1) For the purposes of section 59E(2) of the Act, the annual administration fee is to be calculated in accordance with the following formula: