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“For my father, who lives on a pension, it costs 110 yen, but 110 yen.” A woman in her 50s in the city of Sendai sent an urgent complaint to the “Special Press Room with Readers”. The trigger was “paperless” from Tohoku Electric Power. In principle, paper meter receipts and reading vouchers will be suspended starting in April and electricity usage and charges will be posted online. A monthly issuance fee of 110 yen will be charged to continue the written notification.
The woman’s father has been using Tohoku Electric Power for a long time in his 80s. The contents of the meter reading sheet are reviewed and stored in every corner. The mainstay of income is the pension. I lost my wife a few years ago. I don’t have a smartphone or a computer.
He was shocked by the charge and outraged, but said, “I have to work harder to save 110 yen,” and said that he would pay the fee and receive the document.
One woman asks for a flexible response, saying: “Electricity charges are an expense that comes with our daily lives. We want the elderly and economically vulnerable people who do not have an Internet environment to continue to do documents for free.”
According to Tohoku Electric Power, the purpose of the paperless office is to promote resource savings. The target customers are approximately 5.4 million in 6 prefectures in Tohoku and Niigata prefectures. If all subjects respond, it will produce a paper reduction equivalent to 32.28 million sheets of A4-size copy paper per year, and will have the effect of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions by about 200 tons.
Of the approximately 5.4 million covered cases, the one that really needs a fee is the “Low Voltage Free Fee Plan” contractor. “Yoriso + e Net Value” and “Electric Lamp A by time zone” are applicable.
On the other hand, no fees will be charged to customers under the “Specified Retail Supply Contract” whose plans have not changed since before the full liberalization of electricity retail in April 2016. This includes “metered B lamp” and “low voltage power”.
A person in charge of the Lifestyle Proposals Department of Tohoku Electric Power Generation and Sales Company said: “The specified retail supply contract is positioned as a transition charge until it changes to a free charge in accordance with national policy. From the point of view of consumer protection, is excluded from the charge. ” Explain.
As in the case of women, the Tohoku Electric Power call center is said to have received voices such as “I am older and cannot use a computer.” The person in charge requests the understanding: “We fully understand that there are various circumstances for our clients, but we would like many people to cooperate in making paperless offices to make sure we are addressing environmental issues.”
No paper and one after another charge
Major electric power companies are promoting paperless meter reading receipts and vouchers, and along with this, there are a number of document fees.
TEPCO Energy Partner (EP) explained: “Given the situation where many customers use computers and smartphones on a daily basis, we have decided to ask them to verify their electricity bills on the web.” Hokuriku Electric Power Co., Inc. cites the spread of remote meter reading using “smart meters” as one reason.
The document issuance fee per copy is 110 yen for TEPCO EP, Hokuriku Electric Power, Kansai Electric Power and 55 yen for Chugoku Electric Power.
Hokkaido Electric Power Company and Chubu Electric Power Miraiz do not charge fees.
