Hydro One's new Ombudsman Fiona Crean made a brief appearance at City Hall on Monday, and says she wants to hear from any unsatisfied power consumers.
Crean, who officially began the position on March 14, is the former Ombudsman of the City of Toronto, a title she held from 2008 until November 2015.
She often had tense relationships with some Councillors during her days in Toronto, and was known for her vehement and critical reports.
Her new position is to be an impartial, independent investigator of complaints of the company's customers and affected groups.
"I deal with individual complaints, but where the value add for me, in working with Hydro One, is the the ability for me to do systemic investigations. Which is really about getting root causes of problems, so that we can remedy those problems for thousands of people as opposed to one at a time" said Crean.
"My mandate is essentially to look at complaints of unfairness about the delivery of service," she said.
Crean said her services were 'very far-ranging' but took the time to mention specifically what she doesn't deal with.
"One of them for example is the Ontario Cabinet decision to privatize part of the company. The other example is the rates, which are set by the Ontario Energy Board and the Province of Ontario. I can look at the application of rates, but I don't look at the rate themselves, and its important for people to understand that," she said.
"We will look at and treat each individual with respect, and on the basis of the merits of their own individual situations."
Crean talked about the wide amount of ways Ontario residents can get in touch with the Ombudsman's office.
"By telephone, 1-800 number, fax, they can write us letters, they can file a complaint online through our website," said Crean.
Mayor Steve Black said Crean's appearance was for public awareness, so area residents know where to send their concerns.
"Obviously increasing prices of hydro is a concern as itself, but as you say, its not an Ombudsman type of complaint for rate setting," he said.
Councillor Pat Bamford told Crean that the biggest complaint he hears is about the new Smart Meters. It led to an interesting exchange between the two.
"People are questioning the accuracy of the meter, and they point often to huge increases in energy consumption based on past history, and there doesn't seem to be anything in their residence to justify that. Is that the type of thing that you'd deal with?" asked Bamford.
"Yes absolutely. It doesn't mean I'll give the citizen the answer they want, but it is a sober, second look at an arm's length at that kind of situation, yes," replied Crean.
"But you have no authority to require Hydro One to do anything about it?" said Bamford.
"Thank you for that question. I have extensive authority to look into matters. Access to all information that the company has in its possession. At the end of the day, I only make recommendations to the company, which is what all Ombudsman do. But I want to make sure that by the time I've finished an inquiry, that my evidence is unassailable," said Crean.
Councillor Joe Campbell asked her if her position usurps the Ontario Ombudsman in dealing with hydro related matters.
Crean told him that due to the provincially instituted changes, the authority of the Ontario Auditor General and the Ontario Ombudsman was taken away, and the new position she currently holds was created under the Electricity Act.
"So they no longer have oversight of this company," she said.
Campbell said he felt a little uneasy about the transparency of the position.
"Since you're an employee of Hydro One, would you not feel pressured by Hydro One with respect to decision making? I find that almost not 'arms length' correct me if I'm wrong," he said.
"No, I don't feel threatened. Might I in the future? I don't know. I can't respond to a hypothetical," said Crean.
"Hopefully we don't need your services too often, but we're happy that you're there if we do," said Black.
For more information, or to register a complaint, visit www.hydrooneombudsman.com
