*Awards N1 Million As Punitive Damages
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An Ondo State High Court, sitting at Akure has ruled that the Benin Electricity Distribution Company Plc (BEDC) breached statutory and contractual obligations having failed to connect the meter of a customer despite being paid.
The case which was brought before the Ondo State High Court, suit no: AK/245/2022 between; Olutide Afolabi v. BEDC, was instituted originating summons wherein the claimant alleged that he had paid for Meter in 2017, but could not be assigned one because his house was yet completed, and that upon completion in 2018, he wrote a letter demanding that the defendants assign him the meter he had paid for. However, this was not acknowledged.
Upon issuing a third letter making the demand, the defendants asked that he pay 5,000 to claim his meter. According to the claimant, the payment receipt was pasted on his wall, but no one came to connect the meter. Subsequently, the defendants disconnected the electricity supply meant for the claimant’s house without any prior notice.
In lieu of this, the claimant instituted this case and asked the Court to determine whether the defendants where in breach of their statutory and contractual obligations, whether the defendants were liable, and whether the Claimant was entitled to the orders sought. After determination of these questions, the Claimant sought orders of court declaring that the actions of the defendants amounted to a breach of their statutory and contractual obligations, immediate installation of the Meter paid for, restraining the defendants from disconnecting electricity supply of the claimant and exemplary damages of N1million.
In arguing his case the claimant counsel, Kehinde Aladeditire Esq submitted that the defendants were in breach of relevant laws and regulations such as; Electric Power Sector Reforms Act, NERC’s Connection and Disconnection Procedures of Electricity Services, 2007, Order on Capping on Estimated Bills in the Nigeria Electricity Supply Industry 2020, issued by the NERC. He also submitted that by case laws, the claimant was entitled to the others sought, and established that the defendants had breached her statutory and contractual obligations.
The defendants or their counsel made no appearance in court, neither did they file a counter affidavit or any court processes. As such, the court relied on case laws which empowered the court to act on the uncontroverted facts contained in the affidavit supporting the originating summons. In resolving the issues before it, the Court held that by the provisions of the EPSRA, 2004 the defendant had the function of distributing electricity supplies to its customers as well as installation and maintenance of meters. The court also held that NERC’s Regulations issued in 2020 and relied on by the claimant, abrogated arbitrary billings.
“It is my candid opinion that the essence of the orders made by NERC is simply that estimated or arbitrary billings has been abrogated, as a distributed licensee such as the Defendant, is expected to bill her customers in line with schedule 1 of this order. Most importantly, the wordings of the said order presuppose that a distribution licensee as the defendants is expected to supply electricity meter to its customers free of any charge or at no extra cost to such customers”, the court held.
The court ruled that in the instant case, the defendant having failed to connect the claimant’s meter despite paying contrary to NERC’s orders, and disconnecting the claimant’s electricity supply without prior notice was a flagrant breach of its statutory and contractual obligations to the claimant.
In lieu of this, the court awarded 1million Naira as exemplary damages for the oppressive and reckless act of the defendant as well as N250,000 as to cost in favor of the claimant.
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