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Retail Supplier Seeks Waiver To Allow Electronic TPV, With New Proprietary Tech, In Lieu Of Telephonic TPV

November 28, 2017

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Copyright 2010-17 EnergyChoiceMatters.com
Reporting by Paul Ring • ring@energychoicematters.com

Star Energy Partners LLC petitioned the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio for a partial waiver of certain requirements set forth in Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06 with respect to third-party verifications (TPVs) that are required for door-to-door sales, with Star Energy Partners requesting that the requirement of a telephonic TPV be waived and an electronic TPV, compliant with Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(2)(a)(i)-(v) and (vii), be used in its place.

Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(1)(h) (for purposes of this Application, the "Rule") requires the CRES provider to obtain a telephonic TPV for each residential door-to-door sale prior to submitting the enrollment to the electric utility.

"The Commission’s laudable consumer protection goals can be achieved, and even enhanced, through proprietary new technology Star is employing. It involves a slightly modified version of the TPV protocol that would continue to take place at the customer’s home -- essentially, a TPV procedure similar to that required by the Rule but delivered electronically through a web-based portal rather than via a telephone call," Star Energy Partners said

Star Energy Partners said that its proposed TPV process uses a proprietary web-based platform licensed from a third party. Star Energy Partners said that the overall enrollment and verification process consists of the following steps:

(a) After discussing Star’s products with the door-to-door sales agent and having their questions answered, customers who wish to enroll electronically do so on a mobile tablet device the door-to-door sales agent carries.

(b) The electronic enrollment process independently meets the Internet enrollment provisions of Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(3), including the electronic customer consent form required by Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(3)(g).

(c) The customer is given the option of the method by which to complete verification of the enrollment: via email, text, or phone call. If the customer chooses to receive a phone call, then the traditional TPV process ensues as required by the Rule. The variance in TPV approach proposed by this application only applies to situations in which the customer chooses to complete the verification via text or email.

(d) For confirmation via text or email, customers will receive a clickable link to a verification page that can be viewed on their own device (smart phone, computer, or tablet). The verification page lists the price, features, and terms and conditions associated with the Star product they have chosen. It also contains each of the questions to which a customer normally assents during a telephonic TPV, as set forth in Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(2)(a)(i)-(v), with check boxes marked “Yes” and “No” appearing next to each question. The customer must affirmatively check the box marked “Yes” next to each of the questions. If the “No” check box is marked for any question then the confirmation fails and the enrollment is nullified.

(e) To successfully enroll, the customer must view then consent to the terms and conditions by electronically signing the verification, which is done using a finger or mouse on the customer’s device.

(f) Star then sends an electronic copy of the terms and conditions and the electronic customer consent form to the customer’s email address at the point of sale. If the customer does not provide an email address or refuses to receive an electronic copy of the terms, then a telephonic TPV will be required according to the Rule. Star will provide a printed copy of the Terms and Conditions and signed enrollment form, and no waiver of the Rule is required.

(g) The verification portal has built-in fraud protection in the form of GPS and IP address tracking of each customer enrollment and each customer verification. The portal retains detailed records of this information. The GPS tracker identifies the agent’s location at the time of enrollment and at the time of verification. It ensures that the agent is not on the property while the customer completes the verification. A door-to-door sales agent cannot submit an enrollment if the GPS location settings on his or her tablet are turned off. Additionally, the portal tracks the IP address used to submit the enrollment and the IP address used to submit the verification. Because the agent enrolls the customer using his or her own tablet device, it has a unique IP address to the customer’s, which is used to complete the verification. If the enrollment and verification IP addresses match, the verification will not go through.

(h) Per the Rule, Star retains the electronic record of both the customer’s enrollment and verification, including confirmation number, date, time, GPS location, and IP address, until at least one year after the contract with the customer is terminated. Upon request from Commission Staff, Star can promptly provide a copy of the independent TPV record that includes the above information.

"In summary, Star’s proposed process still features verification by a third party with all the same substantive questions asked of the enrollee. The principal variance from the existing Rule is that the TPV occurs electronically on the customer’s device of choice rather than telephonically," Star Energy Partners said

"Though it remains the industry gold standard, the traditional TPV that occurs over the telephone does have its flaws. A single telephonic verification can take as long as ten minutes to complete and there is no efficient way to confirm the identity of the person on the phone," Star Energy Partners said

"The proposed process is generally more efficient and allows customers to go at their own pace to make sure each question and response is fully understood before proceeding. Further, it allows the customer to affirmatively respond to each question only after seeing it in writing and it ensures the questions cannot be phrased in a leading way by the person conducting a TPV call," Star Energy Partners said

Star Energy Partners said that its proposed mechanism also includes built-in enhanced consumer protection features which go above and beyond the consumer protections embedded in the Rule, such as:

• Double opt-in physical on-screen signature (i.e., the customer must digitally sign both the enrollment portion of the sale completed at the door and the verification portion of the sale completed after the agent has left the customer’s home.

• GPS verification of the agent’s location at the time of enrollment and at the time of the TPV, and GPS verification of the customer’s location at the time of the TPV.

• IP address verification of the device used for enrollment and the device used for verification to ensure the customer uses a different electronic device for TPV than enrollment.

• Customer’s electronic assent to all traditional TPV questions.

Star Energy Partners noted the Commission previously granted a waiver approving enrollments without the use of verifications at all, for certain types of customer enrollments via a similar mobile device procedure (by IGS Energy). By contrast, Star’s proposed process still includes a third party verification; it is merely a digital verification rather than a telephonic one.

Star Energy Partners is seeking partial waiver of the rule set forth in Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-21-06(D)(1)(h) only for electronic enrollments that follow the procedures and contain the enhanced consumer protections set forth in its application. Star is not seeking waiver of the TPV rules for traditional door-to-door enrollments requiring "wet signatures," which would continue according to the Rule.

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