Published On: Tuesday 17 March 2020 16:16

Following the Chief Minister’s announcement yesterday, Manx Utilities can confirm that it is taking additional precautionary measures to ensure the continued safety of our customers and staff and the delivery of our essential services.

Following the Chief Minister’s announcement yesterday, Manx Utilities can confirm that it is taking additional precautionary measures to ensure the continued safety of our customers and staff and the delivery of our essential services. 

This will include stopping visits to premises for routine activities such as meter reading and routine meter changes.  Manx Utilities has robust pandemic response plans and is increasing its testing of these plans.  During the times when tests are taking place some ‘business as usual’ services may be temporarily affected.  Activities involving continuity of supply of electricity and water, sewerage collection and addressing of safety matters will continue.

We are fortunate in having reliable and resilient infrastructure and fully expect these key supplies to be maintained despite the potentially challenging circumstances ahead. 

How can you help us to prepare:

  • Prepay electricity meter (key meter) customers to Top-Up NOW to ensure they have sufficient credit to cover a period of self-isolation (14 days).
  • Prepay electricity customers to Top-Up multiple times to ensure all pending instructions are transferred to the meter.
  • All customers should consider whether you need to visit our offices – please help protect our workforce and our community by respecting social distancing. We have various ways to contact us including email (accounts@manxutilities.im), telephone (687687), through our website at manxutilities.im, Facebook or Twitter.
  • All customers could consider how you can best utilise your electricity with energy efficiency measures. Help and advice can be found on our website.

What we are doing:

  • We are sending an instruction to prepay meters to action a temporary increase to the emergency credit from £6 to £30. However, this is YOUR Emergency Credit to cover unplanned circumstances so please protect it.  Call outs to those not respecting this support may be chargeable.
  • Vulnerable Customers can contact our team on 687675 during office hours or the 24 hour support number 687687 (for emergencies).
  • When Emergency Credit is activated, the standing charge and debt repayments will be suspended HOWEVER, they will be collected on your next Top-Up.
  • We are working with our prepay retailers to ensure accessibility for our customers to Top-Up in store.
  • Our Frequently Asked Questions for customers are regularly updated on our website and customers can also call us on 687675 during office hours or the 24 hour support number 687687 (emergencies only).
  • Prepay customers do have a ‘friendly do not disconnect’ period which is 8pm to 8am, all day Sunday and Bank Holidays. This provides continuation of electricity supplies until a Top-Up can be obtained.

 

Other Arrangements

Customers are requested to contact Manx Utilities through its website or by telephone, and avoid attending its offices, if possible, to minimise the risk of transmission of the infection.  Online services include bill payment, moving house, general enquiries and prepayment key issuing (to retailers).  Customers needing to attend Manx Utilities’ offices are requested to respect social distancing guidance. 

Staff contact with our customers will be restricted to fault operational responses only to maintain essential services.  Our changes mean that electricity meter reading is suspended for those customers with meters inside their properties.  Cards will be left for those inside meters and customers can provide a customer reading when they receive a card, or an estimated bill will be issued.

We are committed to supporting all our customers through this challenging time and appreciate that there are a number of vulnerable customers who will have some serious concerns regarding essential supplies.  We would encourage customers with concerns to contact us via our website, email accounts@manxutilities.im, or by telephone in order that we can assist.  The contact number during office hours is 687675, or out of normal office hours 687687 (emergencies only).