Unsure when it happened but you can no longer call Powershop, even their power outage 0800 number doesn’t work. The only opinion now is online chat and they are so slow to answer.
Does anyone have an electricity provider they would recommend? We want to move
Probably only once or twice a year realistically or anytime we move house which has been about every 2 years.
I wouldn’t usually call for a power outage but it’s the only phone number they have listed so I tried it and it didn’t work.
Online chats require a decent internet connection and ours isn’t the greatest connection so being able to call is so much easier and efficient. It took me about an hour to finally get someone on the chat feature and even then it was disconnected part way through the conversation.
I personally think it was a bad move by them as far as customer service is concerned.
Fair enough.
I would just use the online forms (definitely not the chat!) to move to a new provider, but I acknowledge that isn't the preference for everyone, and I agree that they should always give customers the option to call - silly not to, as anyone who wants to do it that way, will likely go elsewhere.
Not defending them but Powershop won't actually be able to fix a power outage. It's your local electricity lines company that own and run the power network, from a Transpower substation to your home. Best to ring them directly when you have a power outage. Your electricity supplier will just pass the info on to them anyway. You can find your lines company here https://www.ena.org.nz/your-lines-company/lines-company-map
Just out of interest, how often do you call your power provider?
In twenty years (maybe more), I can't recall ever calling ours.
If there is a power outage, I usually call a neighbour, and ask if theirs is out too, and if so, I check on Vector's website, and if nothing there, I call Vector, but never the retailer as they can't do anything except pass it on to Vector. Your lines company might be someone else, but the same principle would apply.
All our switches (that I can recall) have been done online, but perhaps many years ago I did that on the phone I guess.