Have dilemma on payment?
If you are having trouble paying your electricity bills, or think you will soon, get in touch. If you’re in hardship because you genuinely don’t have enough money, we can help.
We call you a ‘vulnerable customer’ if you’re in hardship, or you would suffer harm without power. Don’t be embarrassed about letting us know. Whatever your circumstances, we want to keep your power on.
We can discuss ways to make payment easier. We can put you in touch with budget advisors and people who may be able to help, such as Work and Income. We’ll talk with you about alternatives to the standard monthly bill, to make it easier to pay for power. We’ll check whether you’re on the best plan for your needs. If you are, and you’re still having problems, here are the options we’ll discuss with you.
SPE Smooth Payment Plan
LevelPay
Payment arrangement
Another way of contacting
Better access to energy
If English isn’t your first language, you can have someone call us and speak on your behalf, or we can speak with you with the help of our Language Assist Line. We’ll work with WINZ and other social agencies to see if we can help get you connected if your credit score is an issue.
Helping you manage your bill during winter
Our free SPE app helps you understand how electricity is used in your home. You can monitor your usage, and even forecast your likely spend for the next week.
Prompt payment discounts incentivize customers to stay on top of their power bills. Our direct debit customers, and those who redirect their Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ) benefit or New Zealand Superannuation to pay their bill, automatically receive their discount every month. If you’re struggling to pay, we’ll work with you to agree a repayment plan and can put you in touch with budgeting services and WINZ to help get your debt to manageable levels.
Proactive care
Each year we send you a Price Plan Check. This shows you how much electricity you’ve used in the previous 12 months, and our price plan options, so you can decide if you’re still on the best pricing plan for your home.
We send you annual budgeting advice to help you manage your bills and stay connected. If you’re medically dependent, we’ll contact you regularly to keep our records up to date, and to ensure you have safety arrangements in place if you lose power. These customers will receive earlier, more proactive care if they get behind in their payments, so their debt doesn’t become unmanageable.
It’s the simple things that help
You can always authorize a friend, family member or a social agency representative to speak on your behalf.
If you need a bit more time to pay your bill, you can easily request a seven-day extension through SPE App or call us on
0800 SPE 888 / 0800 773 888
You won’t be charged for credit extensions, copies of your bill, credit reminders, bills sent by post or refunds.
We won’t charge you a bond to sign up with SPE.