Frequently asked questions

On 1 July 2019, a bunch of new reforms rolled out across the energy sector to help make energy pricing more transparent. The regulations you’re most likely to be curious about are:

The ones that can change prices

If you’ve read or heard about some kind of changes to energy pricing, you’ll probably want to know more about these two:

• Victorian Default Offer (which applies in, you guessed it, Victoria)
• Default Market Offer (which applies in New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland).

The one that may help you get a cheaper deal

Energy retailers in Victoria must now regularly give you information about their cheapest offer and how to get it. If you want to know more about this change, check out these two FAQs below:

• ‘Why is there now information on my bill about other energy plans?’
• ‘Why isn’t everyone already on your cheapest plan?’

Set by the Essential Services Commission, the Victorian Default Offer (VDO) is the price all Victorian electricity retailers must provide to residential and small business customers on standing offers.

Until the end of 2019, the VDO rates are fixed and identical for all retailers, for two specific types of standing offer:

• residential and small business customers on a flat tariff, and
• residential flat tariff customers with controlled load.

Our customers have already been moved to the Victorian Default Offer. If you’re with Momentum and in one of these two groups, you should have received a letter from us about this, which included your new rates.

In 2020, the VDO will be extended to all standing offer customers and prices may be set differently by the Essential Services Commission.

Yes, all customers are eligible for the Victorian Default Offer. We’re happy to tell you more about this offer – or move you to it – please give us a call to discuss your options.

In Victoria, retailers must now regularly tell customers about their cheapest generally available energy plans. They also have to provide information about how to access these plans and where you can go to compare offers from other retailers. All this info has to appear on your bills, and on any notices we send you about changes to your energy prices or plan benefits. 

We’ll send our customers a letter in late September 2019 letting them know about the best offer available to them. From 1 October 2019 the best offer will appear on all our customer bills.

This change only applies in Victoria, but if you’re located elsewhere we’re always happy to let you know if we have a better offer for you.

Not everyone wants the cheapest energy offer. Some people prefer to pay a little extra for benefits like a fixed price, or waiving certain fees. It depends on what best suits your needs at the time.  

We’ve always been happy to evaluate any customer’s plan and recommend suitable offers when they ask. The new regulation means we’ll now proactively provide this information to all customers.

All Victoria energy retailers now must display and quote their prices as GST-inclusive (and not use GST-exclusive prices).

Only amounts which attract GST must be expressed as GST inclusive. For example, GST is payable on our tariffs and charges, as well as the online sign up credit, so these are all shown as GST-inclusive. But it’s not payable on the Solar Feed-in-Tariff credit and some other bill amounts, so you won’t see any mention of GST on those prices.

Set by the Australian Energy Regulator, the Default Market Offer (DMO) is basically a price cap for standing offers. In New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland, retailers have to set their standing offer prices so a customer’s total annual electricity spend falls under the DMO.

Bear in mind, this doesn’t mean standing offer rates will be the same across all retailers - they just have to be lower than the price cap.

For now, the price cap only applies to two specific types of standing offers:

• residential and small business customers with a flat tariff, and
• residential flat tariff customers with controlled load.

The price cap may be extended to other standing offer customers in 2020.

If you’re a Momentum standing offer customer who’s eligible for the DMO, we’ve already adjusted your rates to below the price cap - you should have received a letter from us about this, which included your new rates.

If you’re not eligible for the DMO, we’ll continue to supply your electricity under your existing standing offer rates (subject to future price variations).

There are two different ‘reference prices’ depending on where you live.

• In Victoria, it’s the Victorian Default Offer.
• In New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland, it’s the Default Market Offer.

These reference prices help you better compare the overall cost of electricity plans between different retailers. 

In New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland, whenever electricity retailers advertise or tell you about a plan, or change the prices you’re paying, they must compare the annual estimated cost of their plan with the annual estimated cost of the DMO and show you the % difference between the two. 

In Victoria, electricity retailers must make a similar comparison (in either $ or % terms) when they advertise plans that include discounts.

It’s different to what you’re used to seeing, so it may look complicated at first, but giving you a standard benchmark can help you compare offers between different companies. (For example, if one offer is 10% less than the reference price and another is 17% less than the reference price, you can accurately gauge which is cheaper.)

A flat tariff is any electricity rate that applies all day, every day. On a flat tariff, there aren’t any peak or off-peak times with different rates. You pay the same rate 24/7.

Time to consider?  No problem. You're entitled to a Cooling-off Period of 10 business days from – and including the day after – you've accepted our offer. You won't incur an exit fee if you do choose to cancel your contract within the Cooling-off Period.

Sit back and relax; we're sorting it all out for you behind the scenes. After the expiry of your Cooling-off Period, we'll make arrangements to transfer you over to us. This usually happens when your meter is next read by your local network distribution company (This is unless you have requested an alternative date and agreed to a special meter read fee).

If you have a basic meter, and haven't requested a special meter read, it may take up to three months for your energy supply to transfer to us. Regardless of your circumstances, we'll notify you once your transfer has been completed.

If we can't transfer you – due to circumstances beyond our control – we'll let you know. The most common reason customers aren't transferred as expected is because their network distribution company isn't able to gain access to read their meter. You can help by ensuring easy access to your meter either side of your next scheduled read date: this should be shown on a previous bill from your current supplier.

No, that's all fine; we'll take care of this for you.

You'll receive:

• A final bill from your current retailer after your next scheduled read date, or the special read date you've agreed to with us.
• You'll receive your first bill from us in accordance with the billing cycle detailed in your Contract. This could be monthly or quarterly for electricity and is usually bi-monthly for gas.

In a nutshell, it's a type of offer all energy retailers are legally obliged to make available to customers. It's usually more expensive than a market offer. 

Read more about standing offers vs market offers.

Power of Choice is the name given to a government-led program designed to help Australians make informed choices about the way they use electricity products and services. 

Read more about Power of Choice and Smart Meters.

The key terms of your agreement are summarised in the Welcome Pack we provided to you (typically a few days after you accepted our offer).  A summary of generic information, which may assist you in interpreting your Contract, is provided in the Product Disclosure Statement.

You can register for My Account, which provides secure password-protected access to your account online. My Account allows you to view your account balance and previous invoices, set up eBilling and direct debit from a Credit Card, and update your contact details.

• To setup My Account, you just need your electricity or gas account number and date of birth (or your ABN/ACN if you're a business customer). You'll find your account number on your bill, or call us on 1300 662 778 to get it.

We've just launched a great new account management tool called My Account.

This replaces Toolbox, which you've used in the past, and includes some handy improvements. Ready to try it out? Learn how here.

Yep. We've teamed up with Giftpax to give eligible Victorian residential customers a housewarming gift.

In 2015 Momentum expanded our energy offer – we now also provide natural gas to Victorian homes and businesses (with the exception of Gippsland and the Grampians regions). You can sign up for natural gas either as a stand-alone product, or as well as having a Momentum electricity account. If you're eligible, you can open a gas account online or by calling us on 1800 794 824.

If you're a customer,  you can request a copy of your meter data and a summary report (containing data for up to the last two years).  You can either use this helpful guide to assist you in interpreting your meter data (if you're a business, please go here instead), or call our Customer Care team on 1300 662 778.

If you're a third-party who's been authorised by a Momentum Energy customer to access their meter data, you'll need to follow some additional steps.

Whether you're a residential or business customer, these sample electricity and gas invoices explain the different components of your bill. If you still need a hand once you've had a read of these, our Australian-based Customer Care team will happily explain anything requiring more detail. You can call them on 1300 662 778, weekdays between 8am and 6pm (AEST).

We offer a range of payment options including; Electronic Funds Transfer, BPay, Direct Debit, Credit Card, Mail or in person. Further details including processes and billing codes are on the bottom of the back page of your invoice. To find out more about how to pay your bills, click on the following for residential or business.

Call our Customer Care team on 1300 662 778. They'll help you obtain a final reading at your current premises and set up an account for your new address. Providing us with at least three business days' notice will enable a smooth transition when moving home or relocating your business/office.

It's easy. Call our Customer Care team on 1300 662 778 and they'll update your account concession details. It's worth noting that your concession eligibility relates to specific criteria. It also varies from state to state.

Read more about energy concessions in your state.

To report or check your area's power outages please call your local network distribution company.

In an emergency, where there's a risk to life or property, call 000.

Victorian electricity distributors are introducing demand charges as part of pricing reforms within the National Electricity Market (NEM).

Find out what these new demand charges are and what they will mean for your business from 1 January 2017 on our Network Tariff Reform - Demand Charges page.

Our blog, Habitat is full of inspiration and tips to help you get started or further improve your energy savings at home.