The Authority has been monitoring perceptions of electricity providers and switching behaviour in New Zealand for a number of years.

Initial research was undertaken to find comparable data across other countries so that New Zealand indicators could be benchmarked internationally, but there was no data available in countries that would provide complementary comparisons.

The Authority commissioned UMR to undertake research across multiple countries on perceptions of electricity providers and switching behaviour.

Key findings from the survey were:

  • New Zealand consumers are the most likely to be approached by electricity retailers about switching providers. 69% of New Zealanders had been approached about switching in the last two years compared to Australia (36%), Alberta (47%) and Texas (42%).
  • New Zealand consumers are the least likely to proactively approach retailers to switch. 35% of New Zealanders had approached retailers compared to Australia (45%), Alberta (36%) and Texas (51%).
  • 92% of New Zealanders say it is easy to switch retailers, compared to Australia (71%), Alberta (76%) and Texas (75%).