The energy regulator Ofgem has ordered eleven of the UK's biggest energy suppliers to improve the way they handle complaints after more than half of customers criticised the way theirs had been handled.
British Gas, Npower, EDF and SSE are just
some of the suppliers who have been asked to present better plans to Ofgem. The regulator has
also started working with First Utility, Ovo Energy and Utilita to improve
their handling of complaints - with the prospect of tougher action if things do
not improve . The regulator is also widening its work with Scottish Power, a company
that was recently featured on this blog.
This new development follows a survey
of over 3,000 people who had complained to their energy provider. Ofgem found
that 57% of people that complained were dissatisfied with the results, with
only 32% saying they were satisfied. Many customers said that complaints took
too long to resolve and they were not kept up-to-date with progress regarding
their complaint.
The Ofgem Chief Executive Dermot Nolan
said: “Although the level of satisfaction about complaint handling has
increased over the past two years, it is still unacceptably low. Some suppliers
need to be doing considerably more to get the basics right and provide a service
their customers deserve.”
But it was not all bad news for
customers. Ofgem reported that complaints received by all energy suppliers had
almost halved over the past four years.
Click here for advice on how to effectively handle customer complaints
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Click here for advice on how to effectively handle customer complaints
To see hundreds more articles visit our archive by clicking here