Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 7 November 2023
137. Deputy Kathleen Funchion asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications what options are available to customers of pre-pay energy companies to recoup the Government energy credits if they did not receive any of them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [47265/23]
View answerThe Budget package includes a new Electricity Cost Emergency Benefit Scheme through which €412.83 (exclusive of VAT) will be credited to each domestic electricity account in three payments of €137.61 (exclusive of VAT) in each of the following billing periods - December 2023, January/February 2024 and March/April 2024. The estimated cost of this scheme is €1.007 billion.
The payment will be applied to domestic electricity accounts, including those with Pay As You Go meters, which are subject to distribution use of system charges at the rate for urban domestic customers (DG1) or the rate for rural domestic customers (DG2).
While the majority of residential tenants will hold their own domestic electricity accounts, and therefore receive the credit directly, others could have tenancy agreements where tenants pay their actual share of each bill and, in those cases, will benefit from the payment because the amount of the bill will be reduced by the amount of the payment. A small proportion could have other arrangements in place whereby electricity costs are part of the rental cost. Where tenants have a dispute relating to tenancies including any terms relating to electricity payments, these can be referred to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) for dispute resolution
Following implementation of Scheme I & II, my Department became aware of a cohort that did not receive payment under Schemes I & II. This relates to properties that receive electricity through a “submeter”. This situation occurs where an existing dwelling has been divided for the purposes of accommodating additional people and provides an independent meter for this accommodation. Examples of this situation would include a secondary suite, or house being modified to contain further distinct units than for which it was initially purposed.
The Submeter Support Scheme is being introduced to ensure that €412.83 (exclusive of VAT) is credited to each such account, in three payments of €137.61 (exclusive of VAT) in each of the following billing periods - December 2023, January/February 2024 and March/April 2024. The payment will apply to supplier submeter accounts, including those with Pay As You Go meters.
