Code it Better Training
Handout: Case Study
The issue
Ms P is on a low fixed income. Shedecided to switch her electricity account to a new retailer after receiving a marketing phone call that offered better rates than her previous retailer. However, at the time of transferring, Ms P owed her previous retailer $800. When Ms P received the final bill she couldn’t afford to pay it all in one go and phoned the company to ask for a payment plan. Because the account was closed, the retailer would only provide a one-month payment extension. Ms P agreed to it because she felt there was no other choice.
Shortly after transferring to the new retailer, Ms P had some unexpected medical expenses and couldn’t afford to pay the $800 final bill from her previous retailer. Ms P was in and out of hospital and had to resign from her job. She had applied for Centrelink benefits but there were delays getting her application approved and she did not have the funds for basic living expenses. The $800 debt was then sold to a collection agency that pursued her for the debt.
Eleven months later, Ms P realised that she hadn’t received a bill from her new retailer so she called it to ask why the bills were delayed. The retailer said it would issue the bills as soon as possible. A couple of months later, Ms P received 13 monthly bills all in one envelope and had over $2,000 outstanding. As Ms P had inconsistent income due to her health issues and employment, she was very concerned that the bills only gave her two weeks to pay. She called the retailer and was told that the bills were correct and had to be paid by the due date.
Anxious about the large bill with her current retailer and the $800 debt that she was being pursued for by the debt collector, Ms P contacted her local financial counsellor.
Group activity
- What codes apply in this case?
- What provisions of the code/s apply and why?
- Is there anything else beyond the code/s that might be fair and reasonable to ask the retailer and debt collector for in these circumstances?