A new and improved website for our customers
21 September 2023Our new website
We've revamped our website structure to make it simple and intuitive for you to find the information you need. From finding out what to do about trees growing near power lines to exploring career opportunities, we've got you covered!
One of the most exciting features is our new interactive power outages map. This will help you to stay informed during power outages by quickly locating outages in your area and tracking their progress.
Frequently asked questions
The new website features a shift from a topic-based structure to an audience/task-based design, making it easier for users to find the information they need. It includes a power outages map, plain English content, improved site structure, and enhanced user experience.
Here’s an overview of the key content changes and what sits where:
New power outages content includes:
- Frequently asked questions
- Medically dependent customers
- No hot water
- Streetlights
- How to be prepared for power outages
- Using generators in a power outage
Revamped get connected section which includes:
- A step-by-step walk through of the process for each of the new connection types
- The roles and responsibilities of each party involved in getting a new connection
- Solar and other distributed connections
New section for home & business customers including:
- Trees on your property
- Safety on your property (including working near power lines and cables, and overloading)
- Delivery charges and pricing (customers can look up their lines charges using their ICP number)
- Energy tips
- Supporting your business
A section for Approved Aurora Energy Contractors and people who work on or around the network (like electricians and surveyors) including:
- Network map
- Safety information
- Logins for approved contractors
A new section on how we manage the network which includes:
- Major projects
- How we are tracking against our CPP
- Sustainability
- Health and safety
- A new document library for disclosures
A new section on who we are that includes:
- Our story and our work
- A new careers section
- A library for news, community updates and media releases
- Community support including the Aurora Energy Otago Science & Tech Fair
- Customer commitments
Get in touch
- Contact details
- Report a fault or hazard
- Send an enquiry (form)
- Find a retailer
- Find an Approved Aurora Energy Network Contractor
- Contact your Council
- Make a complaint
- Submit an information request
Better user experience on the homepage
The homepage includes some new task-based navigation to make it easier for customers and other users to locate and perform key tasks including:
- “I want to…” task bar
- Check outages
- Apply for close approach approval
- Get connected
- Get my trees trimmed
- Locate underground cables
- Find an approved contractor
- Find out about pricing
- Apply for a job
- A new mega menu that drops down when hovering over the main menu items to show the content sits in each section
- A task-based footer that helps to surface other content
We have put redirect links in place that in most cases will redirect you to similar or the same content in its new location.
In instances where there is no redirect in place, you can use the search function (via the magnifying glass at the top of the page) to input search terms and find the information they are looking. Then bookmark the new pages!
You can now access outage information through the power outages map on our website. You can search for outages by address or ICP number (located on their power bill), view outage statuses, and access updated restoration information.
Key new functionality to note:
- There is a map view and a list view – these have different functionality specifically the filter (explained further below)
- When the map is zoomed out it shows an orange circle with the number of outages in that area
- As you zoom in the icons will change to display either a blue spanner for planned outages or a yellow explanation mark for unplanned outages
- These change to a green tick when power has been restored (and move to the restored tab)
- Restored outages stay on the website for 48 hours
- Current outages (planned and unplanned) show in the Current tab.
- Some planned outages have multiple stages within an outage. If this is the case, the main outage timeframe will be displayed at the top, with a + that can be used to expand and see the other outage windows and streets affected.
- The area impacted will be shown on the map using a polygon. If the outage affects less than 5 customers, the polygon will not be show
- For faults, the outage information is updated in near real time (maximum 10mins delay) which means Total customers and Total streets affected are shown, as well as Current customers and Current streets affected (this differs from the display of planned outages which shows Total customers affected and Total streets affected)
- If an outage has been cancelled this will be noted in red next to the outage town/city
- Planned outages can have the following statuses:
- Early start
- Late start
- In progress
- Running over
- Restored
- When viewed in the list view, there are further options to filter planned outages which include:
- Most recent
- Oldest
- Location A-Z
- Location Z-A
This helps you to look ahead more easily and determine how many planned outages are coming up for their properties.
We only display outages that affect multiple customers on the website. If there's an outage that affects just one customer, it won't be shown there.
Also, from time-to-time, we, or our contractors will directly notify customers of a small localised planned outages with less than 10 working days advanced notice and these outages may not be represented on the website.
The restoration times for planned and unplanned outages are estimates based on the experience and knowledge of our field crews in relation to the task at hand and the challenges they anticipate. Traffic management, establishing a safe worksite, conditions below ground and the weather on the day are all factors that can influence the accuracy of estimates, particularly during a fault response where jobsite preplanning cannot be undertaken.
Sometimes weather events or the complexity of a job can cause outages to overrun and in those instances, we will endeavour to update estimated restore times.
Also, when the power goes out, it may not come back on all at once. Some areas may have power restored before others but our estimated restore time on the website is the final estimated restoration time.
We value your feedback and suggestions. You can provide their input through the feedback form at the bottom of the content page, our website's contact form, or by reaching out to our customer support team. We appreciate their insights as we strive for continuous improvement.
Yes, we are committed to continuous improvement and will continue to enhance the website based on customer feedback and evolving needs. We value our customers' input and will incorporate their suggestions to make our website even better.
The new website offers enhanced outage communications, ensuring customers can access accurate and timely information during power disruptions. The improved user experience and plain English content make it easier for customers to find the information they need and interact with our services seamlessly.
Yes, the new website is designed to be mobile-friendly for the most popular device types, ensuring customers can access information and services from any device, including smartphones and tablets.