Customer Services - Consumer Portal - Change Residence Function

Narrative
Steps

Narrative

An existing customer wants to close out his existing account and transfer that to his new residence, along with all applicable utility service and billing account information. This transfer is to be accomplished as an one-stop service in which the customer makes one call to the power company whose service representative handles all of the actions.

A western utility has a residential customer base of 1 million meters. The meters are installed in single-family detached housing (SFD), single-family attached housing (SFA), apartment buildings and mobile homes. The utility has a high residential turnover rate as customers come to and leave the service area more frequently than typical utilities.

The utility has demand relief requirements and has multiple demand response programs in place. It additionally supports active residential conservation programs as well as residential alternate, renewable and distributed generation.

The results of all of these efforts are reported to the Sate PUC as part of their requirements to receive credit in rate base.

On Monday morning a residential customer of utility X calls Customer Service and requests that their power be turned off because they are moving from their SFD home in the suburbs to a condo in town. They want to simplify their lives. They advise the utility that they already have the condo purchased and wondered if they could transfer their utility bill to the new address and pay on the same monthly schedule as they now have. They also ask if the electric utility can facilitate the shut-off and/or transfer of all of their utilities including gas, water, trash collection, cable TV service and telephone.

The progressive utility assures the customer that they can provide one-stop service and in fact can take care of everything. The Customer Service representative (CSR) calls up the customer’s account information and forwards the entire request, along with the information to a “relocation specialist” (RS) while the customer is still on the line. The relocation specialist opens up a regional web-hosted database and using the electric utility’s identification number, calls up all utility services that the client has signed up for. By placing in the moving data and relocation information, the database software automatically notifies all other utilities of the pending move. Each utility can then provide final billing information on the old residence and set up the services at the new residence. The residential customer receives a transaction report, much like a stock market purchase/sell order, that identifies all utilities, all accounts, dates and transitions the customer to a new residence and sets up new account information. The transition invoice lists services provided up to the transition date as cost “X” and starts new billing information (on the same monthly invoice) that delineates costs for services provided at the new residence for the remaining days of the month.

The residential customer moves to the new home and all utilities are in service and they receive a monthly invoice at the usual time that includes old house and new house billing information. The process is seamless, transparent to the customer, and of value to the utilities involved.

Steps

#	Event	Name of Process/Activity	Description of Process/Activity	Information Producer	Information Receiver	Name of Info Exchanged	IntelliGrid Architecture Environments
1.0	Customer calls utility	Request account change	Customer calls utility to request account change	Customer	CSR	Customer account information	Customer / ESP
1.1	Customer call received by CSR	Identifies Customer Account	Customer service representative (CSR) identifies customer account	Customer Information Database	CSR	Customer account information	Customer / ESP
1.2	Customer request account change	Service Request Type	CSR determine nature of service request [in this case, account change]	Customer	CSR	Service Request Type	Customer / ESP
1.3		Customer account change	Transfer call to Customer Relocation Specialist	Customer Information Database	CRS	Customer account change	Customer / ESP
2.1	Customer call to utility	Request Close out current location services	Customer Relocation Specialist determines when services to current location are to be turned off	Customer	CRS	Account close date	Customer / ESP
2.2.0	Closing service at current Customer location	Initiate Close out current location services	Customer Relocation Specialist initiates action to turn off power to current location on specified date	Customer Information Database	Customer Communication Portal	Power turn off command to current location	Customer / ESP
2.2.1	Power Turn-Off Request	Transmit final reading	Customer Relocation Specialist instructs Customer Communication Portal to transmit final reading on service turn off	Customer Information Database, Customer Communication Portal	Customer billing system	Final reading at current location	Customer / ESP
2.3	Request for Final Billing	Identify current service provider	CRS accesses regional database to identify services provided to customer at current location using the common customer id	Customer Information Database, Regional Customer Information Database	CRS	List of services and service providers to the customer at the current location	Customer / ESP
2.3.1	Customer moving out, Identified current service provider	Close out current location services	CRS instructs each of the service provider to turn service off to location on specified date	Customer Information Database, Regional Customer Information Database, CRS	Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database, Customer Communication Portal, Energy Service Provider	Service turn off command to current location	Customer / ESP
2.3.2	Customer moving out, request for final billing	Transmit final billing information	RS requests each service provider to transmit final billing information on current account	CRS, Regional Customer Information Database, Energy Service Provider	Customer Information Database, Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database	Final reading	Customer / ESP
2.4	Customer moving out of the current location, close services	Close out current location services	CRS instructs the billing system to close current location account	CRS	Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database	account information	Customer / ESP
3.1	Customer moving to a new location	Set up services at the new customer location	Customer provides new location information to RS	Customer, Customer Information Database	CRS, Customer Information Database, Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database	New location information	Customer / ESP
3.1.1	Customer moving to a new location, service begin date	Start up date at the new customer location	Customer indicates when power service is to be resumed at new location	Customer	CRS, Customer Information Database, Customer billing system	Date for turning on power at new customer location	Customer / ESP
3.1.2	Customer requests to initiate new services	Customer authorizes CRS	Customer authorizes CRS to initiate other services to the new location on the specified date	Customer, Customer Information Database, Regional Customer Information Database	Customer Information Database, Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database, Energy Service Provider	New location account information	Customer / ESP
3.2	Customer authorizes CRS to initiate services	CRS instructs system to initiate power service	CRS instructs system to initiate power service to new location on the specified date	CRS, Customer Information Database	Customer Information Database, Customer billing system, Customer Communication Portal	Turn on power to the new location on the specified date	Customer / ESP
3.2.1		CRS accesses service providers	CRS accesses regional database to transfer new location information to each of the service providers	CRS, Customer Information Database, Regional Customer Information Database	Regional Customer Information Database	New location account information	Customer / ESP
3.2.2		Transfer final billing to new account	CRS instructs billing system to transfer final billing read to the new location account	CRS, Customer Information Database	Customer billing system	Final billing read from the old customer location	Customer / ESP
3.2.3	Customer moving to a new location, need to link billing	New location to link to customer account	CRS instructs Customer Communication Portal at new location to link to customer account	CRS, Customer Information Database	Customer Communication Portal	Customer account information	Customer / ESP
3.2.4		Send out change confirmation to the customer	CRS instructs billing system to send out change confirmation to the customer	CRS, Customer Information Database, Customer billing system, Regional Customer Information Database	Customer, Customer Information Database, Regional Customer Information Database, Energy Service Provider	New location account confirmation	Customer / ESP

Customer Services - Consumer Portal - Change Residence Function

Contents

Narrative

Steps