Responsibility to Customers

Utility Compliance History

PPL Electric Utilities
The last five full years for which the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission has compliance records are 2001 to 2005. The performance of PPL Electric Utilities is shown in the table below.

Compliance Measure	2001	2002	2003	2004	2005
Complaint rate	0.94	1.11	1.30	0.95	0.58
Justified complaint rate	0.23	0.15	0.24	0.16	0.09
Infraction rate	0.17	0.07	0.14	0.05	0.02
Residential termination rate	7.17	6.80	7.12	7.80	15.15

Complaint rate is the number of complaints filed with the PUC per 1,000 residential customers. Justified complaints are those in which the PUC determined that the utility did not handle the complaint properly or violated regulations.

The infraction rate represents informally verified infractions of PUC regulations per 1,000 residential customers. The termination rate represents the number of service shutoffs per 1,000 residential customers.

Shutoffs of electric service to residental customers increased in 2005 after changes to Pennsylvania state law governing the collection of overdue utility bills.

PPL Electric Utilities adheres to the provisions of the law as part of a comprehensive effort to address chronic problems in the collection of overdue bills. Shutting off electric service is a serious matter that PPL Electric Utilities considers to be a last resort when other methods to collect overdue bills are unsuccessful.

PPL Electric Utilities had had a corresponding increase in the number of customers reconnected in 2005, and had the lowest shutoff rate per 1,000 residential customers among Pennsylvania electric utilities in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

Customer Complaints in the U.K.
Utility consumers in the U.K. who are dissatisfied with the service they receive may refer the matter to energywatch, the independent electricty and natural gas watchdog organization established to protect consumer interests.

Energywatch is able to offer free independent advice and reviews complaints, but expects to let the customer and company try to sort out the issue. If the complaint is not resolved to the customer's satisfaction, the customer or energywatch may refer the matter to the Office of Electric and Gas Markets, the independent utility regulator, to request a formal determination.

Energywatch tracks consumer complaints against energy companies.

Complaints to EnergyWatch by Western Power Distribution Customers
Year	#
2000*	78
2001	4
2002	4
2003	1
2004	1
2005	1
2006	0
* PPL achieved control of WPD in 2002

Quality Service Ratings in Chile
Chile’s chief electricity regulator, the Supervision of Electricity and Combustibles, ranks companies annually based on their response to service interruptions as well as on customers’ attitudes toward the companies. The SEC’s expectations for the companies also influence the scores.

The national ranking includes major electric utilities — those serving more than 50,000 customers — as well as smaller investor-owned electricity distribution companies and local cooperatives.

Among the major electricity companies, three of Emel’s subsidiaries were ranked in the top five positions.

Ranking among large companies
Compliance Measure	2006	2005
Emelat	2 of 12	1 of 11
Emerari	1	2
Eliqsa	7	3
Emelectric	5	4
Elecda	9	7

Customer Health and Safety
In 2006, PPL Electric Utilities marked 251,317 underground electrical cables as part of the Pennsylvania One Call program to mark the location of underground electrical cables for contractors and homeowners before they do excavation work. This public safety program helps prevent dig-ins that can result in serious injuries and costly repairs.

PPL Electric Utilities has presented educational programs on electrical safety to 2,900 contractors and facility owners in the last five years. Annually, PPL Electric Utilities mails electrical safety information to more than 13,000 contractors, municipalities and trade unions to help them work safely around overhead lines and underground cables.

PPL Electric Utilities has developed a public safety Web page, which includes a section of games and information for children.

In 2006, PPL Gas Utilities responded to 36,568 requests to mark the location of gas pipelines through the Pennsylvania One Call program. PPL Gas Utilities sponsors safety training for contractors and fire companies that may be called to respond to natural gas emergencies. PPL Gas Utilities also publishes and distributes a pipeline safety brochure.

To protect public safety, PPL Gas Utilities gives highest priority to reported gas leaks. For 98.4 percent of leak reports in 2005, a service person was at the scene in less than 45 minutes. PPL Gas Utilities provides safety information for customers on its Web page.

Customer Satisfaction
PPL Electric Utilities and PPL Gas Utilities monitor and measure customer satisfaction quarterly, using a 15-minute telephone survey of 800 randomly selected electric customers and 200 randomly selected gas customers.

Results of each quarterly survey are communicated widely within the two companies, which each have developed specific metrics and performance goals related to customer satisfaction.

The survey, built from qualitative research with customers, contains five major focus groups: reliability, price and value, image, billing and customer service. Annual modeling determines which factors contribute the most to overall satisfaction and which individual attributes are the key drivers of customer satisfaction. Other research monitors customer satisfaction with specific interactions, including new service connections, tree trimming and telephone inquiries.

To benchmark performance and assess best practices, PPL Electric Utilities also uses outside studies, including J.D. Power and Associates and the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). PPL Electric Utilities has received 14 awards from J.D. Power and Associates for customer satisfaction (more than any utility in the United States). PPL Electric Utilities and PPL Gas Utilities combined have been the best in their category in each of the last seven years in the ACSI.

Power Plant Advisory Committees
Another way PPL engages with key stakeholders is through plant advisory committees at generating facilities.

Advisory committees include members from municipal governments, local emergency-response organizations, state agencies responsible for wildlife and environmental protection, local organizations and private citizens who live near the power plants.

Advisory committees are a forum for communications with key stakeholders. They openly address safety, health, environmental and community issues, perceptions and expectations related to the operation of PPL power plants.

 This page addresses the following GRI indicators: 2.18, 2.19, 2.9 (customers), PR4 and PR8