A bill (H.B. No. 7155) filed in the Connecticut General Assembly would institute new requirements for electric supplier marketing.

H.B. No. 7155 provides as follows:

(1) Each electric supplier shall record the entirety of all telesales calls with a potential customer, including, but not limited to, all attempted and consummated sales, and retain such telesales call recordings for two years after the date such recording was made.

(2) Each electric supplier shall record the entirety of all face-to-face marketing interactions with a potential customer, including, but not limited to, all attempted and consummated sales, and retain such recordings for two years after the date such recording was made.

(3) Each electric supplier shall conduct criminal background checks on all door-to-door marketers prior to such marketer conducting marketing on behalf of the electric supplier. Each electric supplier shall conduct such criminal background checks at least once each year on all marketers conducting door-to-door marketing on behalf of the electric supplier.

(4) When conducting telesales calls or face-to-face marketing, each electric supplier shall begin by immediately stating:

     (A) The name of the electric supplier conducting the call;

     (B) that the electric supplier is not affiliated with any state program and no state program encourages Connecticut residents to obtain an electric supplier;

     (C) that the electric supplier is calling the customer or potential customer to market or sell electric supply service to the customer or potential customer and if the customer or potential customer assents, the telesales call or face-to-face marketing will result in the customer or potential customer immediately entering into a contract with the electric supplier;

     (D) that such electric supplier does not represent an electric distribution company and that electric distribution companies do not encourage Connecticut residents to obtain an electric supplier; and

     (E) what the standard service rate is on the date of the telesales call or face-to-face marketing and that the standard service rate is fixed, not variable.

(5) When conducting telesales calls or face-to-face marketing, no electric supplier may request the account information from a potential customer or request that a potential customer retrieve account information or the potential customer's electric distribution company bill prior to the customer or potential customer affirmatively assenting to contract with the electric supplier for a specified rate

(6) Each electric supplier shall terminate any telesales call when a customer or potential customer connects with the third-party verification as described in subsection (b) of section 16-234s of the general statutes and may not remain on the telephone line while the customer or potential customer participates in the third-party verification

(7) Each electric supplier shall process a customer's enrollment or reenrollment and submit such enrollment to the electric distribution company within five calendar days of the customer consenting to enroll. Enrollments processed and sent to the electric distribution company after five calendar days shall be considered invalid enrollments.

The bill defines "telesales call" to mean, "any communication using a telephonic device, including, but not limited to, land telephone lines and cellular telephone lines, in which the purpose of the communication is to inform a customer or potential customer about a product offering, engage a customer or potential customer in a conversation that may result in entering into a contract for services or discuss current or future contract terms with a customer or potential customer.

The bill would also authorize PURA to order restitution to customers in cases of retail supplier non-compliance

The bill further provides that, "No license may be transferred or customers assigned or transferred without the prior approval of the authority. The authority may assess additional licensing fees to pay the administrative costs of reviewing a request for such transfer."

Tags:
Connecticut  

Comment on this story


ADVERTISEMENT
NEW Jobs on RetailEnergyJobs.com
TPV-SALES-EXECUTIVE -- Back Office Provider -- Other
Sr-Market-Risk-Analyst -- Wholesale Supplier/Trader -- New York - New York City Metro
Energy-Regulatory-Specialist -- Other -- Other
More Stories on RetailEnergyX.com:
OCC: Customers On Retail Supply Paid $5 Million More Than Default Service In July
Op-ed: Why More Regulations Are Not the Right Solution to Solving Energy Utility Reliability Issues
OCC: Customers On Retail Supply Paid $1.6 Million More Than Default Service In March
OCC: Customers On Retail Supply Paid $1.3 Million More Than Default Service In February
Connecticut Utilities File Contracts For 804 MW Of Offshore Wind