The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (England and Wales and Scotland) Regulations 2022

Establishment of consumer redress scheme E+W+S

9.—(1) For the purpose of section 19(10)(d) of the Act, Part 2 of the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007 applies to end users, subject to the following modifications.

(2) Part 2 of that Act is to be read as if—

(a) a reference to a regulated provider is a reference to an intermediary;

(b) a reference to a relevant consumer is a reference to a microbusiness end user or a domestic end user;

(c) any reference to a regulator or a relevant regulator is omitted;

(d) the Secretary of State has made an order under section 47(1)(b) of that Act requiring all intermediaries to be members of a redress scheme administered by the Secretary of State (or a person appointed by the Secretary of State) and designated by the Secretary of State as an appropriate redress scheme in relation to them;

(e) the order provides that the redress scheme is for the investigation of complaints made against an intermediary by or on behalf of a person in that person’s capacity as a microbusiness end user or a domestic end user of the intermediary (“consumer complaints”);

(f) the redress scheme is a scheme under which consumer complaints may be made to, and investigated and determined by, the Energy Ombudsman;

(g) the Energy Ombudsman may provide a microbusiness end user or a domestic end user with the following types of redress—

(i) providing an apology or explanation;

(ii) paying compensation; and

(iii) taking such other action in the interests of the end user as the Energy Ombudsman may specify;

(h) section 52 of that Act provides for enforcement by civil sanctions under Schedule 4 to the Metering and Billing Regulations (as modified by [F1 regulations 10 and 12] of these Regulations) of the requirement for an intermediary to be a member of the redress scheme;

(i) the order comes into force on the day on which these Regulations come into force.

(3) In this regulation—

[F2 “domestic end user”, in relation to an intermediary, means an end user who purchases heating or hot water for domestic use from the intermediary;]

[F3 “intermediary” means—

(a)

a heat supplier within the meaning of the Metering and Billing Regulations; or

(b)

a person who otherwise supplies and charges for the supply of heating or hot water to its end users through a heat network, where that person has been provided with a scheme benefit in accordance with regulation 3(2)(a) or (b) of these Regulations in respect of the energy used to produce the heating or hot water;]

[F4 “microbusiness end user”, in relation to an intermediary, means an end user who purchases heating or hot water from the intermediary for use in a business which employs fewer than 10 employees and has an annual turnover or balance sheet total no greater than £2 million.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in reg. 9(2)(h) substituted (7.12.2022) by The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1280), regs. 1(2), 7(1)

F2 Words in reg. 9(3) substituted (7.12.2022) by The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1280), regs. 1(2), 7(2)(a)

F3 Words in reg. 9(3) inserted (7.12.2022) by The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1280), regs. 1(2), 7(2)(b)

F4 Words in reg. 9(3) substituted (7.12.2022) by The Energy Bill Relief Scheme Pass-through Requirement (Heat Suppliers) (Amendment) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1280), regs. 1(2), 7(2)(c)

Commencement Information

I1 Reg. 9 in force at 1.11.2022, see reg. 1(2)