Vector owner Entrust offering new way to claim hundreds in dividends as tax battle continues

Entrust has paid up to $360 in dividends a year to eligible people in Auckland since 2018. Photo / NZME

Aucklanders are being offered a new option to get their Entrust dividend, which last year added up to $303.

Entrust says getting the payment is a straightforward process: eligible Aucklanders within the district simply need to double-check the payment details on Entrust’s payment preference forms.

The forms are being sent out this week by post or for those who receive an email, the trust says they can access a new secure online facility. Entrust (formerly called the Auckland Energy Consumer Trust), is a private trust that owns 75.1 per cent of Vector on behalf of its beneficiaries.

These beneficiaries are paid a cash dividend each year, usually in late September. The amount is set after Vector reports its full-year result in August. The interim dividend paid to shareholders earlier this year was the same as last year.

The update on how to claim the cash comes as Entrust continues to push for a legislative change to fix what it says is a long-standing problem with the over-taxation of the Entrust annual dividend payment. It says 70 per cent of Entrust’s 350,000 beneficiaries are being over-taxed, which it says results in the Government unfairly taking around $14 million a year from predominantly lower-income Auckland households.

“We do not think this is fair and we want to see it resolved, especially given the current economic climate,” Entrust says on its website.

“If you are one of about 250,000 lower-income people in the Entrust district earning less than $70,000, you will have been over-taxed by up to $90 on your Entrust dividends in recent years.”

For the first time this year, Aucklanders within the Entrust District of central, east and South Auckland who have provided their electricity retailer with an email address, will be able to update their payment details online. They will be sent an email from Entrust with instructions explaining how to do this.

Entrust chairman William Cairns says trustees are “excited” to launch an online option for beneficiaries to update their payment preference details this year.

“I know that it can seem like a hassle to complete the form, but it will only take a few minutes. For many, this will just involve checking over the form to ensure that their details haven’t changed from last year,” Cairns said.

If Entrust is not supplied with an email address by the electricity retailer, a payment form will be sent out in the post, and these will need to be completed and returned if there are changes.

“If you receive your payment form in the post this year but would like to do it online in the future, you need to update your email details with your electricity retailer.”

Cairns said with living costs going through the roof, this year has been incredibly tough for many Aucklanders.

“The Entrust dividend payment will hopefully provide some relief and help to cover everyday costs, such as rent, petrol or groceries, or it may be used as a power bill credit.”

Those receiving the forms via post or online get to choose whether they want the September dividend payment credited to their bank account or used as a credit on their power account.

Those who are not sure if they are eligible for this payment or have questions can send an inquiry email to www.entrustnz.co.nz.

Whether the form arrives by email or in the post, Entrust will need to receive any updated payment details by no later than Friday, August 4.

The Entrust dividend is New Zealand’s largest dividend payout, with more than $2 billion paid out to Aucklanders since 1994.

Last year, 351,000 households and businesses received $273 plus an extra $30 from Vector, injecting $95.8m into the Auckland economy. That was the same as in 2021 but below the $360 paid in 2019.

Earlier this year Vector announced an 8.25c per share dividend for the six months to December 31, the same as it paid out for the corresponding period a year before.

For the six months to December 31, Vector’s net profit fell 13 per cent on the year earlier to $100m, reflecting inflation as well as higher depreciation, interest costs and downward movement in the value of financial instruments. Underlying profit edged up $274m from $263.6m.

Grant Bradley has worked at the Herald since 1993. He is the Business Herald’s deputy editor and covers aviation and tourism.