Media Release by The Hon Larry Anthony MP

Centrepay Goes Electric In Tasmania

Minister for Community Services Larry Anthony today urged Tasmanian Centrelink customers to take advantage of Centrepay to pay for their electricity bills.

“The agreement signed today between Centrelink and Aurora Energy means that Tasmanian Centrelink customers will now be able to organise a fortnightly direct deduction to pay their electricity bill.

“Centrepay is available to help Centrelink customers budget their money and pay their bills through direct debiting from their income support payment. It is currently used by 26,000 Centrelink customers to pay for goods and services provided by more than 2,000 private businesses.

“Deductions are made regularly before the customer accesses their payment and it assists customers to budget for regular expenses, which they may have had difficulty meeting in the past.

“Currently Centrelink has agreements in place with six energy utilities and is negotiating with others.

“Centrepay is a great example of the way Centrelink is able to work with customers, businesses and State and Territory Governments to ensure effective delivery of services to our customers,” Mr Anthony said.