65-407-815 Me. Code R. § 13
Utilities whose customers must make a toll call to reach them must provide a toll free line for customers to call to resolve billing and service disputes.
A utility shall have an adequate number of properly trained employees available during business hours to respond to questions from applicants and customers, resolve disputes, and address requests for service. Customers calling the utility must be provided the opportunity to talk to a live customer representative without spending an unreasonable amount of time on hold and without being forced to navigate through an unreasonable number of menu levels in an automated phone answer system. If a customer call is not automatically forwarded to a live person once a menu option is selected, the option to speak to a live representative must be provided as a menu choice. A utility with fewer than five full-time employees or fewer than 300 customers is not required to have an informed employee available at all times during business hours. If such a utility achieves contact with a customer before disconnection, the utility must not disconnect the customer until it has offered the customer the opportunity to resolve a dispute or to avoid disconnection by contact with the employee who is authorized to resolve disputes and enter into payment arrangements.
A utility may not threaten disconnection or disconnect the service of a customer if the customer has informed the utility that the customer disputes liability for the bill, a utility's deposit request, or the terms of a payment arrangement required by a utility to avoid disconnection, until the dispute is resolved pursuant to subsection D below. When a customer disputes only a portion of the bill, the utility may require payment of that portion not in dispute to prevent disconnection.
When a utility becomes aware of a dispute by an applicant or customer, whether or not disconnection is pending, the utility shall:
Investigate the dispute, preserving a record of the substance and results of the investigation;
Report the results of its investigation to the applicant or customer based on the record; and
Attempt in good faith to resolve the dispute.
All utilities must preserve records of disputes for a period of ten years from the date the dispute was resolved and those records must be available for examination by the Commission. The dispute records must include:
If a utility cannot resolve a dispute with an applicant or customer after the procedures set forth above have been completed, the utility shall orally inform the applicant or customer of the right to file a complaint with the CASD and of the toll-free telephone number of the CASD. If the complaint concerns a pending disconnection of service, the utility shall orally inform the customer that the complaint must be filed before the disconnection date or within two business days of the oral notice, whichever is later. During that time, the utility may not disconnect the customer's service. If the two day extension exceeds the disconnection date of the notice, the effective period of the notice can be extended to accommodate the two day extension period.
A utility may not threaten disconnection or disconnect service to a customer who disputes liability for the bill, a utility's deposit request, or the terms of a payment arrangement required by a utility to avoid disconnection and has filed a complaint with the CASD until the complaint is resolved pursuant to Section 13(H) and (I) below. Non-residential customers must pay their monthly charges that accrue after a complaint involving a disputed payment arrangement is filed with CASD until the complaint is resolved, including the outcome of any appeal before the Commission.
If a customer files a complaint after service has been disconnected, the customer is entitled to reconnection pending resolution of the complaint only if the Director of the CASD finds reasonable grounds to believe that the utility has failed to follow the disconnection provisions of this Rule (Section 10 ) or has failed to notify the customer of the right to file a complaint with the CASD as required by Section 13(F) above. If the CASD orders the utility to reconnect service on this basis, the utility shall reconnect the customer's service without reconnection charges or deposit.
The CASD will not accept a complaint from a customer if the customer has not first attempted to resolve the dispute with the utility, pursuant to Section 13(D) above. The CASD may also reject, without investigation, a complaint that is outside its jurisdiction or is without merit. A complaint may be considered to be "without merit" if, among other things, the CASD has previously issued a decision regarding the same issue that is the basis for the complaint. If the CASD accepts a complaint, the CASD shall investigate the complaint pursuant to paragraph 2 below.
The CASD will inform a utility that a complaint has been filed and the date of the filing by whatever means is acceptable to both the CASD and the utility, e.g., in writing, by telephone, by e-mail, or by fax. The CASD will conduct an informal investigation of the complaint that may include:
A utility shall provide information requested by the CASD within 10 business days of its receipt of the request. This information may include, but is not limited to, billing and payment information, notice of disconnection information, the written record of the utility's investigation of the customer's dispute, or any other information in the utility's possession or that is readily available to the utility that the CASD deems necessary to investigate the customer's complaint. If the utility cannot provide the requested information within the 10-day time period, it may request an extension from the Director of the CASD or the Director's designee. The extension request may be made orally or in writing and it may be granted or denied orally or in writing.
In CASD complaint proceedings, the utility has the burden to demonstrate compliance with all applicable Commission rules, once the CASD has determined that a valid question is raised about whether a utility's actions are compliant with a rule(s).
The CASD will complete its investigation and issue a written decision within 30 days of its receipt of information from the utility that is deemed necessary by CASD staff to resolve the complaint. The decision by the CASD shall impose any just and reasonable requirements necessary to resolve the complaint, including, but not limited to:
When a decision is rendered, the CASD shall inform the customer and the utility of the right to appeal the decision to the Commission and of the rights of both parties while an appeal to the Commission is pending.
The customer or the utility may appeal a CASD decision to the Commission by filing a notice of appeal with the Administrative Director of the Commission within 10 calendar days after the date of the decision. Notwithstanding Section 6(C) of the Maine Rules of Civil Procedure and Section 305 of the Commission's Rules of Practice and Procedure (Chapter 110), no additional time is allowed for mailing. During the 10 day appeal period, the utility may not disconnect service to a customer.
If an appeal is filed with the Commission, a utility may not disconnect or terminate the customer's service until the appeal is decided. This prohibition stands, even if the CASD's decision allows the disconnection. If an appeal is filed with the Commission involving a disputed payment arrangement, a non-residential customer must pay its monthly charges that accrue until the appeal is decided.
The Commission shall review the decision to determine if it complies with applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, is based on sound facts, and does not represent an abuse of discretion by the CASD.
The Commission shall issue an order affirming the CASD's decision or, if the decision is not affirmed, the Commission shall:
65-407 C.M.R. ch. 815, § 13