FCCPC warns DisCos over estimated billing, illegal disconnections

Executive Vice Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, Tunji Bello

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has warned electricity distribution companies against estimated billing and illegal disconnections, threatening to deploy its enforcement powers against operators that fail to comply with regulatory directives.

The Executive Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the FCCPC, Tunji Bello, gave the warning at the commission’s on-the-spot electricity consumer complaints resolution town hall meeting in Ikorodu, Lagos, on Tuesday.

Bello said recurring complaints from consumers in the franchise areas of Ikeja Electric and Eko Electricity Distribution Company showed that more work needed to be done to protect electricity customers.

“Let me be candid, the volume and recurrence of complaints from your franchise areas tell us that much work remains. Estimated billing must give way to accurate metering. Regulatory directives on billing, disconnection, and reconnection must be obeyed in letter and in spirit. Customer service must move from telling consumers to wait, to telling them what has been done,” he said.

He warned that the commission would not hesitate to take enforcement action against electricity distribution companies where engagement failed to produce the desired results.

“The commission will continue to engage, but where engagement fails, we will not hesitate to deploy the full weight of our enforcement powers. Compliance is far cheaper than consequences,” Bello stated.

The FCCPC chief said the town hall was designed to address persistent complaints about estimated and arbitrary billing, delays in metering, disputed bills, disconnections without due process, delayed reconnection and poor electricity service.

He said the programme followed a formal request from the Ikorodu West community, whose residents asked the commission to explain their rights and help resolve long-standing problems with their electricity service provider.

“This programme is a direct and deliberate intervention. It follows a formal request from the Ikorodu West community, whose residents asked the commission to come to them, to explain their rights, and to help resolve long-standing issues with their service provider,” he stated.

Bello noted that electricity consumers are entitled to fair treatment, accurate information, honest billing and effective redress whenever service providers fail to meet their obligations.

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“The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, 2018 charges the FCCPC with protecting and promoting the interests and welfare of consumers across every sector of the Nigerian economy, and electricity is no exception. Every Nigerian who pays for a service is entitled to fair treatment, accurate information, honest billing, and effective redress when things go wrong,” he explained.

The FCCPC boss acknowledged the regulatory responsibilities of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission and the Lagos State Electricity Regulatory Commission, noting that the FCCPC’s intervention was intended to complement their work.

“Consumers do not care which agency’s letterhead resolves their complaint. They care that it gets resolved. Our collective duty is to make sure no complaint falls through the cracks between institutions,” he added.

The FCCPC boss urged the distribution companies to empower their representatives at the town hall’s resolution desks to take immediate decisions on complaints, including reviewing disputed bills, correcting billing errors, scheduling meter installations and reconnecting consumers who had been disconnected improperly.

“Today, we expect your teams at the resolution desks to be empowered to take decisions on the spot: to review bills, adjust where they are wrong, schedule meter installations, and reconnect where disconnection was improper. Let this Town Hall be remembered not by how many complaints were heard, but by how many were resolved,” he stated.

Bello also urged electricity consumers to understand their rights and report violations, while fulfilling their obligations by paying for electricity consumed and avoiding meter bypasses and illegal connections.

“To every consumer present, I say: know your rights, and use them. You have the right to be metered. You have the right to a bill that reflects what you actually consumed. You have the right to be informed before disconnection and to be treated with courtesy and fairness. And when your complaint is not resolved, you have the right to escalate it, and the FCCPC is one door you can always knock on.

“But rights come with responsibilities. Pay for the energy you consume. Do not bypass meters or engage in illegal connections. Protect the installations in your community, because vandalism punishes all of us.”

The FCCPC chief called on his officers to handle complaints professionally, document cases properly and ensure that every complaint received is followed through to resolution.

“Speedy resolution is not merely a performance indicator; it is a promise we make to every Nigerian who trusts us with their complaint,” he added.