HOW CAN WE HELP?

Medically dependent or vulnerable customers

Published 26/09/2018 10.47 AM   |    Updated 23/02/2024 02.03 PM
What happens if I am a medically dependent or vulnerable customer?
What classifies as a vulnerable customer?
If you are elderly or have young children, have a disability or a medical alarm, we could consider you a vulnerable customer.
 
Do you have medical equipment at home that depends on electricity? 
If you, or anyone in your house, depends on electricity to run critical medical equipment, we would consider you a medically dependent customer. 
 
In order to verify your medical status, we will need confirmation from your doctor or healthcare professional. You can do this by gaining written confirmation, otherwise, you can provide us with their contact details and we can gain verbal confirmation from them. 
 
Once your medical status has been confirmed, we'll make a note on your file advising that you are a medically dependent customer and that disconnection of your electricity could threaten the health and wellbeing of you or a family member. 
 
If you believe you could be classified as either a vulnerable or medically dependent customer, please let us know as soon as possible by either calling us on 0800 10 18 10, or by sending us an email to customerservice@mercury.co.nz.
 
Make sure you have a backup plan
Unfortunately, electricity and gas outages are a fact of life. We cannot control nature, and very occasionally there may be a temporary loss of electricity or gas. For these situations you need to have an emergency response plan
 
This may include having a fully-charged standby battery, a portable generator or gas cooker or relocating to a friend or family members house who has a supply of electricity. 
 
If you have Fibre Broadband, please be aware that in the event of an electricity outage your phone will not work. We recommend that you have a charged mobile phone available to keep in contact with family, friends and emergency contacts in the event of a electricity outage. If you have a medical alarm connected through your phone, this also won't work in the event of an electricity outage. 
 
Choose someone to help you out
If you would prefer, you can get someone else to talk to us on your behalf. 
 
If you're having difficulty paying your bill, and would feel more comfortable getting a relative, friend or social agency to talk to us about it, that's absolutely fine. They can act on your behalf, and may choose to help out with money to pay your bill. 
 
If we're not able to get hold of you directly, we're happy to contact the person you've nominated to act on your behalf. Before we can do so, please contact us to arrange this.
 
We offer a range of payment options to suit your needs
There are a range of different ways you can pay your bill. For a full list of payment options, please click here.