On 18 December 2024, the Federal Court ordered that Origin Energy Electricity Limited, Origin Energy Retail Limited and Origin Energy LPG Limited (collectively, Origin) pay penalties totalling $12 million for breaches of its life support obligations under the National Energy Retail Rules (the Retail Rules).
In proceedings brought by the Australian Energy Regulator (AER), Origin admitted that it breached the Retail Rules on more than 5,000 occasions. The breaches involved:
- Failing to register customers after being informed by either the customer or the relevant distributor that a person at the customer’s premises required life support equipment.
- Failing to notify the relevant distributor that a person at the premises of certain customers required life support equipment.
- Failing to provide customers with information packs notifying them of relevant protections and assistance.
- Improperly deregistering the premises of customers with a person requiring life support equipment without following all the steps required to check whether life support equipment was required. In some cases, Origin disconnected the customer’s energy supply.
The Federal Court made declarations that Origin contravened rules 124(1)(a)-(c), 124(3)(a), 124B(1)(c) of the Retail Rules, and section 273(1) of the National Energy Retail Law, as well as an order that Origin pay a contribution towards the AER’s costs of $175,000.
In addition to bringing these proceedings, the AER has accepted a court-enforceable undertaking from Origin in which Origin admitted to an additional 1,973 breaches of the requirement to provide information packs to life support customers.
Origin has also undertaken to make a $1 million community-based contribution to organisations which assist sections of the community who rely on life support equipment.