RIC reaches out to utility customers

PENSIONERS should not have to pay for services they receive from TTEC, TSTT and WASA since they live on a fixed income. This was the general consensus of consumers who took part in the Regulated Industries Commission’s  (RIC) public consultations across Trinidad and Tobago. The consultations, which began in on March 17 in Tobago, provide consumers with an opportunity to have a voice in matters that affect them, particularly about the quality of service they receive from public utilities.

One of the main objectives of the RIC is to ensure that consumers are brought into the regulatory decision making process. The RIC’S Public Consultation Programme allows consumers to have a voice in the regulatory decision-making process and allows  the RIC to get comments from consumers on the Quality of Service Standards for the Water and Wastewater sector and involve consumers in the development of RIC’s Social Action Plan. The Social Action Plan provides a framework for initiatives to protect consumers, specifically low income and vulnerable groups.  It examines and makes recommendations for the treatment and care consumers should receive from the public utilities and provides guidelines  for the public utilities to treat with consumers. These include provision of priority services for vulnerable groups; procedures for dealing with customers in default; procedures for debt recovery and disconnection; procedures for retroactive billing; the range of accessibility of payment methods; and the handling of complaints.

“It is the RIC’s intention to put a human face to the public utilities and ensure that consumers are treated with care and understanding by the public utilities and not only as an account number,” said Sharon Lee Assang, RIC’s corporate communications coordinator. Lee Assang said through the consultations consumers are able to state whether the RIC guidelines will positively affect them and if not, what would better serve their needs. RIC is hoping to reach residents throughout Trinidad and Tobago to ensure they have a voice in the provision of public utilities. In addition to RIC’s Social Action Plan, the Commission is also seeking consumer input in the establishment of Quality of Service Standards for the Water and Wastewater sector.  Through the consultation, consumers state quite clearly the type of service they believe the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) should provide, the problems they receive in obtaining a safe, reliable and efficient water service from WASA, and what they believe can be done to improve the service.

There are nine Guaranteed Standards and nine Overall Standards.  WASA must meet the Guaranteed Standards or face penalties for failure and the Overall Standards establish a level of service quality the utility is expected to deliver. The RIC’s Social Action Plan and the draft Quality of Service Standards are available at the RIC’s office at Furness Building, corner of Wrightson Road and Independence Square, Port-of-Spain.