Revenue assurance in utilities

In recent times utility companies have to orient to effective business due to hard market conditions. Thus, companies want to diminish business expenses and increase the revenues. Effective revenue capture is, after all, the aim of revenue assurance. Actually the revenue capture is usually not perfect and without losses. A part of revenues are always lost on the way from a service to payment, which is called revenue leakage and causes a financial loss. The revenue leakage is above all the result of bad infrastructure management, ineffective human and IT processes, ineffective billing and debt collection, frauds etc. The base of revenue correction is unified understanding of the problem and standardization of revenue assurance, which could be achieved by determination of responsibilities of revenue assurance and aspects of revenue leakage. It is important to determine the objectives and aims of leakage correction. Understanding of problem reflects in the revenue assurance maturity. The thesis explains the revenue leakage and determines the areas of revenue assurance in utility companies as well as the relations among them. Varieties of revenue leakages are determined and it is explained why and where they occur; thus solutions of problems are presented. The proposals for leakage corrections and problems which should be considered at leakage correction are presented as well. Main tasks that should be undertaken to achieve the core aims of revenue assurance are presented too. The point of view of eligibility of revenue assurance and leakage correction is emphasized.