May 21, 2020
Sent via email Letter L-29-20
To: Independent Licensed Gas Marketers
Re: COVID-19 – Direction from the British Columbia Utilities Commission
On March 18, 2020, the British Columbia Utilities Commission (BCUC) issued letter L-10-20 which suspended door to door sales of gas marketing contracts in BC due to the global COVID-19 pandemic and the state of emergency declared in BC. While the suspension of door to door sales remains in place at this time and it is uncertain when it will be lifted, the BCUC notes that the COVID-19 pandemic will have a challenging and lasting impact on human interactions for the foreseeable future.
As such, to address these new complexities, Gas Marketers wishing to resume door to door sales will need to develop protocols to ensure the safety and well-being of the public and its sale personnel. Therefore, Gas Marketers in BC may wish to start developing protocols for how door to door sales may be resumed at a future date. These protocols should include, but are not limited to, the following considerations:
• Maintaining appropriate social distancing between sales personnel, potential customers and other members of the public;
• Protection of sales personnel, potential customers and members of the public including the use of personal protective equipment and sanitization procedures;
• Considering how sales personnel might identify and treat high risk or vulnerable members of the public that may be at a greater risk of contracting COVID-19;
• Ensuring sales materials, contracts and other tools utilized in door to door sales do not pose a risk of virus transmission;
• Communication techniques to ensure that potential customers and members of the public are not fearful, uncomfortable or surprised by sales personnel;
• Appropriate screening, testing and monitoring techniques to oversee the health of sales personnel for potential COVID-19 symptoms, including obtaining written declarations;
• Policies for managing sales personnel who are in contact with a COVID-19 infected person, are symptomatic, who have elevated risks or who have recently traveled;
• Adequate tracking of those in contact with sales personnel to trace a potential COVID-19 outbreak;
• An oversight function to ensure these protocols are adhered to without exception and an appropriate mechanism to swiftly address any public concerns or negative feedback related to door to door sales or the failure of sales personnel to follow protocols;
• Confirmation that the Gas Marketer is aware of, monitoring and adhering to all health measures and requirements of Canadian and BC Government bodies related to COVID-19; and
• Reporting to the BCUC of the effectiveness of these protocols, COVID-19 cases associated with sales personnel, feedback received from the public related to door to door sales, breaches of protocols and any other substantive matters that arise.
All Gas Marketers in BC will be required to submit these protocols for review by the BCUC before resuming door to door sales. When the BCUC considers it appropriate to prepare for lifting the general suspension on door to door sales, the BCUC will invite Gas Marketers to file such protocols.
If the BCUC is satisfied that the Gas Marketer’s protocols are sufficient and appropriate, a letter will be issued to the Gas Marketer confirming that they may resume door to door sales as long as the Gas Marketer maintains compliance with its approved door to door sales protocols. If protocols are considered insufficient or if the protocols are not fully maintained, Gas Marketers will not be permitted to conduct door to door sales until the BCUC is satisfied that the matter has been resolved by way of a letter from the BCUC.
If you have any questions, please contact us at commission.secretary@bcuc.com, 604-660-4700 or BC Toll Free: 1-800-663-1385.
Sincerely,
Original signed by:
Patrick Wruck
Commission Secretary
KB/ae
cc: Mr. Doug Slater
Director, Regulatory Affairs
FortisBC Energy Inc.
gas.regulatory.affairs@fortisbc.com