Misleading marketing

If you’re contacted by a salesperson from an energy company, they must:

• state their full name and who they work for – if a salesperson knocks on your door or approaches you in a shopping centre, they must show you a photo identity card
• tell you why they are contacting you
• make sure you understand what you are agreeing to
• let you know you can change your mind – this is called a cooling-off period
• stop visiting or calling you if you tell them to.

They must not:

• be pushy
• make promises that aren’t true
• let you sign anything if they think you don’t understand.

They also aren’t allowed to contact you whenever they want.

They can only knock on your door between:

• 9am and 6pm Monday to Friday
• 9am and 5pm Saturday.

They can only phone you between:

• 9am and 8pm Monday to Friday
• 9am and 5pm Saturday.

They must not knock on your door or phone you on:

• Sunday
• public holidays.

The law says you can tell energy providers and their sales representatives to stop contacting you. You can do this by:

• placing a ‘Do Not Knock’ sticker at your front door or gate
• telling an energy provider or salesperson to put you on its ‘no contact’ list
• getting on the Australian Government’s Do Not Call Register by registering online or calling 1300 792 958.

Energy providers are not allowed to make false or misleading claims about their service. Examples of misleading claims include:

• saying your electricity or gas will be disconnected
• asking to see your previous bills to confirm you’re getting rebates
• offering discounts for your area
• telling you there will be no exit fee for leaving your current provider
• asking you to sign a document to show they have spoken with you.

Listen carefully, take your time reading any documentation and consider any offers thoughtfully. Don’t simply rely on claims about saving money.

When speaking to a salesperson they might try to put pressure on you to sign up to an energy offer. Remember, you don’t have to sign a piece of paper to sign up to an energy offer.

You can sign up:

• over the telephone
• online
• face-to-face with a salesperson.

However, the energy provider must give you written information about the:

• price
• terms and conditions.

If you agree to an energy offer, you can change your mind and pay nothing. You have 10 business days to tell the energy provider. This is called a cooling-off period. If a salesperson from the energy provider has not done all the right things, the cooling-off period could be longer – 3 or 6 months.

Once the cooling-off period is over the contract is legally binding. You may have to pay a fee if you end your contract early. These are capped at $20. Business customers who use more than 100 megawatts of power each year will have exit fees specified in their contract.