Some energy retailers seem to forget there are rules in place when it comes to looking after customers.
It’s pretty straightforward really. Under Victoria’s Payment Difficulty Framework, energy retailers have a statutory duty to provide payment plans to customers having trouble paying their bills on time.
In states and territories under the jurisdiction of the Australian Energy Regulator (ACT, NSW, Qld, SA and Tas), energy retailers are also legally required to allow customers in financial difficulty to stretch out their payments.
Some retailers honour these hardship support obligations, while others have a record of ignoring them.
It’s a serious matter. At the moment, an estimated 460,000 households across Australia are at risk of falling into energy debt.
In the 2025 Rank the Energy Retailer report produced by Financial Counselling Victoria (FCVic) and Financial Counselling Australia (FCA), Engie Energy was ranked dead last among 18 energy retailers by financial counsellors for its handling of hardship cases.
Perhaps it’s no coincidence that, as of June 2024, Engie had the fourth-highest percentage of electricity customers disconnected (0.34%) among retailers regulated by the AER.
Or that the retailer had the highest number of complaints to the Victorian energy ombudsman between April 2024 and March 2025.
Now Victoria’s Essential Services Commission (ESC), which regulates the energy sector in the state, has launched a court case against Engie for running roughshod over the hardship requirements outlined in the Victorian Energy Rules.
The ESC has charged Engie with failing to assist customers experiencing financial difficulties, failing to provide family violence protections, failing to follow rules designed to prevent bill shock, and collecting debts from customers who were receiving financial difficulty assistance. The common thread is that customers in these situations who reached out to Engie for help between January and November 2024 got none.
These customers are often doing everything they can to keep their head above water, so when support fails them the effects can be outsized and ongoing
ESC chairperson and commissioner, Gerard Brody
Leading up to the legal action, the ESC had set up a task force to investigate Engie, after the ombudsman tipped the regulator off about the string of complaints. The task force is still operating and is ready to take further enforcement measures if warranted, the ESC says.
Chairperson and commissioner, Gerard Brody, says Engie doesn’t seem to have learned from previous mistakes.
“This is the third enforcement action the commission has taken against Engie in the past 18 months. We fined them $1.7 million in September 2024, $1.2 million last November, and we believe these latest allegations warrant the court’s attention,” Brody says.
“Energy retailers in Victoria have a responsibility to assist customers struggling to pay their bills. These customers are often doing everything they can to keep their head above water, so when support fails them the effects can be outsized and ongoing.”
Engie has 180,000 residential electricity and 155,000 residential gas customers in Victoria.
The ESC is seeking financial penalties as well as a range of other court orders.
Andy Kollmorgen is the Investigations Editor at CHOICE. He reports on a wide range of issues in the consumer marketplace, with a focus on financial harm to vulnerable people at the hands of corporations and businesses. Prior to CHOICE, Andy worked at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and at the Australian Financial Review along with a number of other news organisations. Andy is a former member of the NSW Fair Trading Advisory Council. He has a Bachelor of Arts in English from New York University. LinkedIn
Andy Kollmorgen is the Investigations Editor at CHOICE. He reports on a wide range of issues in the consumer marketplace, with a focus on financial harm to vulnerable people at the hands of corporations and businesses. Prior to CHOICE, Andy worked at the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) and at the Australian Financial Review along with a number of other news organisations. Andy is a former member of the NSW Fair Trading Advisory Council. He has a Bachelor of Arts in English from New York University. LinkedIn
For more than 60 years, we've been making a difference for Australian consumers. In that time, we've never taken ads or sponsorship.
Instead we're funded by members who value expert reviews and independent product testing.
With no self-interest behind our advice, you don't just buy smarter, you get the answers that you need.
You know without hesitation what's safe for you and your family. And our recent sunscreens test showed just how important it is to keep business claims in check.
So you'll never be alone when something goes wrong or a business treats you unfairly.
