“Big gap” in standards of customer service from energy companies says Citizens Advice

25 Sep 2019 01:31 PM

The latest energy star rating table from Citizens Advice, the official consumer watchdog for energy, shows a big gap between the best and worst firms.

Among the common problems faced by customers of suppliers at the bottom of the rankings were:

• Billing issues - incorrect and late final bills, not receiving any bills, inaccurate bills
• Debt and disconnection issues, including aggressive debt collection practices
• Problems with prepayment meters, including credit refunds
• Metering issues - faulty meters, incorrect numbers registered to property

Citizens Advice is urging people to shop around carefully when looking for an energy supplier. The charity recommends comparing companies’ customer service performance as well as prices. 

Thirteen domestic energy supply companies have gone out of business since November 2018. Six suppliers have failed so far this year - affecting more than 300,000 people.

Star rating data:

The Citizens Advice star rating table assesses a wide range of customer service indicators, including accuracy of bills, call waiting times, and complaint handling.

The results (for the period April to June 2019) include 39 suppliers with 99% market coverage.

Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, yesterday said:

“There is still a big gap between those firms who provide an excellent service to consumers, and those who are letting people down.

“Attention-grabbing low tariffs can be a good deal, but we recommend looking deeper than just the headline price when shopping around for the best energy deals. 

“We’ve seen six energy suppliers go bust this year. In our experience, when a company is struggling, customer service is often the first thing to suffer.“

Click here for the full press release