- Laws of Fiji

Last Updated: 1 August 2017

1 Recovery of electricity charges etc

(1) Subject to subparagraph (2), a public electricity supplier may recover from a tariff customer any charge due to the public electricity supplier in respect of the supply of electricity, or in respect of the provision of any electricity meter, electric line or electrical plant.

(2) A public electricity supplier who, for the purpose of meeting the needs of a person with disabilities—

(a)alters the position of any electricity meter which has been provided by the public electricity supplier; or
(b)replaces such a meter with one which has been specially adapted,

must not make any charge for the alteration or replacement.

(3) If a tariff customer vacates any premises at which electricity has been supplied to the tariff customer by a public electricity supplier without giving notice thereof to the public electricity supplier so that it is received by the public electricity supplier at least 2 working days before the tariff customer vacates the premises, the tariff customer is liable to pay the public electricity supplier all charges in respect of the supply of electricity to the premises accruing up to whichever of the following occurs first, namely—

(a)the second working day after the tariff customer gives such notice to the public electricity supplier;
(b)the next working day on which the register of any meter falls to be ascertained; and
(c)the working day on which any subsequent occupier of the premises requires the public electricity supplier to supply electricity to the premises.

(4) Subparagraph (3), or a statement of the effect thereof, must be endorsed upon every demand note for electricity charges payable to a public electricity supplier by a tariff customer.

(5) If a tariff customer vacates any premises at which electricity has been supplied to the tariff customer by a public electricity supplier without paying all charges due from the tariff customer in respect of the supply, or the provision of any electricity meter, electric line or electrical plant for the purposes of the supply, the public electricity supplier—

(a)may refuse to furnish the tariff customer with a supply of electricity at any other premises until the tariff customer pays the amount due; but
(b)is not entitled to require payment of that amount from the next occupier of the premises.

(6) If a tariff customer has not, within the requisite period, paid all charges due from the tariff customer to a public electricity supplier in respect of the supply of electricity to any premises, or the provision of any electricity meter, electric line or electrical plant for the purposes of that supply, the public electricity supplier, after the expiration of not less than 2 working days’ notice of the public electricity supplier’s intention, may—

(a)cut off the supply to the premises, or to any other premises occupied by the tariff customer, by such means as the public electricity supplier thinks fit; and
(b)recover any expenses incurred in so doing from the tariff customer.

(7) In subparagraph (6), “requisite period” means—

(a)in the case of premises which are used wholly or mainly for domestic purposes, the period of 20 working days after the making by the public electricity supplier of a demand in writing for payment of the charges due; and
(b)in the case of any other premises, the period of 15 working days after the making of such a demand.

(8) The powers conferred by subparagraph (6) are to be exercisable in respect to any amount which is genuinely in dispute.

(9) In this paragraph, a reference to the provision of any electric line or item of electrical plant is a reference to the provision of such a line or item by the installation of a new one or by the modification of an existing one.