London Hydro is Earning Every Customer
PRACTICAL SUPPORT FOR CUSTOMERS As affordability pressures continue across Ontario, making financial assistance easy to find and understand has become increasingly important. To help eligible customers access the Ontario Electricity Support Program (OESP) and the Low-income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP), London Hydro launched a targeted awareness campaign combining traditional advertising, digital outreach and community partnerships, that reached customers where they live, work, learn and gather. The approach increased OESP participation by seven per cent, helping more than 15,000 households save a combined $8.8 million on their electricity bills. More than 1,000 local families also received emergency financial assistance through LEAP, with London Hydro distributing $565,000 through the program in 2025. Making financial assistance visible,
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London Hydro CEO Ysni Semsedini discusses the utility’s campaign to raise awareness of electricity bill assistance programs on Rogers TV in April 2026.
accessible, and easy to understand helps customers access support before they reach a crisis point.
BETTER COMMUNICATION WHEN IT MATTERS MOST Power outages are often the moments that define customer trust. Customers want to know the outage has been identified, crews are responding, and restoration is underway. Over the past two years, London Hydro has shifted its approach to outage communications by providing more frequent, transparent updates throughout restoration efforts. Using social media, in addition to the traditional outage map and direct notifications, the utility keeps customers informed with regular progress updates, photos from the field, safety information, and estimated restoration times during widespread or extended outages. By giving customers timely, transparent information when they need it most, London Hydro – servicing 169,000 customers - is earning trust even before power is restored.
BUILDING TRUST BEYOND THE METER Customer relationships extend beyond billing statements, power outages and service calls. Community events give utilities opportunities to connect with customers, build trust, and demonstrate their commitment to the communities they serve. For London Hydro, community events are an extension of its customer experience strategy. Whether meeting families at the London Multicultural Festival or connecting with runners, cyclists and volunteers at the annual Dash 4 Dad, these events create opportunities THE DISTRIBUTOR
FALL 2026
PHOTO: ROGERS TV
As Ontario’s electricity sector evolves, local distribution companies (LDCs) face growing electricity demand, the need for significant grid investment, and rising customer expectations. With this changing landscape, London Hydro looked to refresh its Strategic Plan, and engage customers and community stakeholders to better understand what they want from their electricity provider, both today and in the years ahead. Affordability, grid capacity, and reliability emerged as the community’s top priorities. That feedback shaped London Hydro’s vision of Earning Every Customer, a commitment to building trust through transparent, customer-focused service. “It is our goal to put customer experience at the forefront of everything we do, from delivering reliable electricity to making it easier for customers to access support when affordability becomes a challenge,” said CEO Ysni Semsedini.