Electricity and reticulated natural gas rebates for residential home parks and multi-unit residential premises

Owners or proprietors of residential home parks or multi-unit residences are required to advise residents that electricity and gas rebates are available and claim the rebates on behalf of eligible residents.

The rebate is available for premises where the proprietor/owner:

• is the consumer of the energy retailer
• supplies electricity and/or reticulated natural gas to each of the separately identifiable vans, flats or home units
• charges for electricity and/or reticulated natural gas used by residents based on metered consumption.

Eligibility

To be eligible, residents must have 1 of the following:

• a current Services Australia or Department of Veterans' Affairs Pensioner Concession Card
• a current Department of Veterans’ Affairs Veteran Gold Card* embossed with War Widow, War Widower or Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI) (*including Special Rate Disability Pension (SRDP) and wholly Dependent Partner Payment (WDP))
• a current Queensland Seniors Card
• a current Services Australia Health Care Card** (Electricity Rebate only)
• asylum seeker status (residents will need to provide their ImmiCard details) (Electricity Rebate only).

** This includes holders of a Low Income Health Care Card and Ex-Carer Allowance (Child) Health Care Card

Eligible residents must live alone or share the premises with (only) any of the below:

• their spouse or other eligible card holders
• other people wholly dependent on them
• other people who are social security recipients, and who do not pay rent
• other people who live with the resident to provide care and assistance, and who do not pay rent.

The proprietor/owner is responsible for submitting the application form.

Information for:

• Proprietors/owners
• Residents

Information for proprietors/owners

The proprietor/owner is responsible for completing and forwarding the application form (Form 502) to their retailer.

The Form 502 is designed for proprietors/owners of:

• residential home parks
• multi-unit residential premises
• similar residential installations whose residents do not have accounts with a retailer.

Your retailer should provide you with a direct contact for this process.

Submitting an application

The proprietor/owner must submit the Electricity Rebate Proprietor application form (form 502) when the account is paid.

The form must include:

• details of each claimant’s name
• their signature
• card type
• card number.

Claimants must sign the initial rebate form, however their signatures are not required for subsequent claims.

Residents must give permission for their details to be shared so that the energy retailer, federal and state governments can check their eligibility.

By signing the document, the proprietor/owner declares that:

• the claimants were residents at the premises for the part/whole period covered by the energy account and have been charged for electricity/reticulated natural gas used by them on the basis of individually metered consumption
• the number of people for which the rebate is claimed and the amount of the claim is correct
• the claimants’ concession cards are eligible, issued in the claimants’ names and were sighted at the time the initial claim was made
• the rebate will be passed on to the claimants by way of reduction in charges for electricity/reticulated natural gas.

Rebate amounts

Electricity Rebate

The daily amount to be applied is $0.9270 (exclusive of GST) and $1.0197 (inclusive of GST).

Reticulated Natural Gas Rebate

The daily amount to be applied is $0.2234 (exclusive of GST) and $0.2457 (inclusive of GST).

How to calculate the rebate

To calculate the rebate, multiply the daily amount by the number of days the resident was eligible for the concession in that billing period. Any changes to rebate amounts will be published in the Government Gazette in July each year and advised to retailers.

The resident’s rebate may commence on the day of application as a daily amount.

If the resident is receiving solar credits to their electricity account, the rebate must be applied after the electricity charges prior to any solar credits being applied.

Generally, if you sell electricity to a resident or tenant as a separate charge, you are prevented under legislation to charge more for the supply than the actual cost charged to you by your retailer.

Find out more about the Australian Energy Regulator Guidelines.

How the rebate will appear on the bill

The rebate will be passed on to the claimant as a reduction in their electricity/gas charges. The rebate must appear on the account with the words ‘Queensland Government Electricity Rebate’ or ‘Queensland Government Reticulated Natural Gas Rebate’.

Conditions

• The rebate is only available for electricity and/or reticulated natural gas.
• The rebate is not available to users of bottled or cylinder (LPG) gas or bulk hot water systems.
• The rebate does not apply to dormitory, motel, nursing home, ‘rooms to let’ or ward type accommodation.
• Eligible customers can only claim the rebate for 1 residence in Queensland, and that must be their principal place of residence.
• Claimants are only required to sign the initial rebate application form unless they leave the residence and return at a later date. In that case, they must sign a form for the first full billing period after their return.
• The retailer accepts no liability if an application is lost.
• The retailer may request the claimant complete the declaration when renewing an application for the rebate.
• In no instance will the rebate paid be greater than the amount billed for electricity/reticulated natural gas retail services provided to the customer in the billing period to which the rebate relates.
• The proprietor/owner may face legal action if they have knowingly submitted a fraudulent claim. Proprietors seeking more information about the Electricity /Reticulated Natural Gas Rebate Schemes should contact their energy retailer.

Information for residents

For residents seeking to apply for the electricity and/or reticulated natural gas rebate, you should contact the proprietor/owner of your premises.

The rebate amount can be applied exclusively or inclusively of GST depending on the billing systems of the retailer and the proprietor/owner.

Disagreements between residents and proprietors/owners

Information and advice for residents is available from:

• Tenants Queensland represents Queensland tenants who live in rental accommodation, including caravan parks and boarding houses. For free advice phone 1300 744 263.
• Legal Aid Queensland may be able to advise on disagreements between residents and proprietors/owners. Phone 1300 651 188.
• Association of Residents of Queensland Retirement Villages is focused on consumer protection and advocates on behalf of members in Queensland retirement villages. For more information call 0437 906 074.