Extra Energy has worst complaints handling score for third quarter in a row

Citizens Advice publishes latest energy complaints league table

Extra Energy has come bottom of Citizens Advice’s latest energy complaints league table for the third consecutive quarter - with customers continuing to report billing problems.

The firm has ranked lowest in the table - which measures how well energy suppliers are handling customer complaints - since the start of 2016.  However Extra Energy has improved on its score from last quarter with a complaints ratio of 1505.7 per 100,000 customers, compared to 1791.2.

Scottish Power and npower continue to improve their performances and move up the rankings. Both firms were previously fined by Ofgem for customer service failings caused by the introduction of new billing systems. People were hit with backdated or inaccurate bills and also struggled to get through on the phone to resolve their problems.

Billing problems were a key issue Extra Energy customers reported to Citizens Advice - including cases where people didn’t get a bill for over a year. Extra Energy customers also had problems switching to another supplier - with delays getting final bills and problems with money being taken out after accounts had been shut down.

Citizens Advice’s latest complaints table of the 22 largest energy firms in Great Britain, for July to September 2016, shows:

• Both npower and Scottish Power continue to improve - with both suppliers’ complaints ratios dropping by around a third on last quarter.

• Newcomer Places for People Energy replaces SSE at the top of the table with a record score of 19.0 complaints per 100,000 customers.

• iSupply’s complaints ratio has more than doubled to 818.5 per 100,000 customers  - with the firm dropping to second from bottom in the table.

Gillian Guy, Chief Executive of Citizens Advice, said:

“People’s time and money is being wasted trying to get energy firms to sort out complaints.

“All energy suppliers should be delivering a first rate service as standard and resolving their customers’ problems quickly instead of letting them drag on.

“It’s good to see that some energy firms are starting to get to grips with billing issues that have been causing such a headache for their customers. It’s crucial that all suppliers act fast to clear up these problems sooner rather than later.”

Citizens Advice publishes the quarterly results to show customers how well energy suppliers are dealing with complaints. Suppliers’ scores are calculated based on the seriousness of the complaint against them and how long it took to resolve. Firms with lower complaints ratios are better at resolving complaints than those with high scores.

Notes to editors

1. The Citizens Advice service comprises a network of local Citizens Advice, all of which are independent charities, the Citizens Advice consumer service and national charity Citizens Advice. Together we help people resolve their money, legal and other problems by providing information and advice and by influencing policymakers. For more see the Citizens Advice website.
2. The advice provided by the Citizens Advice service is free, independent, confidential and impartial, and available to everyone regardless of race, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, age or nationality.
3. To get advice online or find your local Citizens Advice in England and Wales, visit citizensadvice.org.uk
4. You can get consumer advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 03454 04 05 06 or 03454 04 05 05 for Welsh language speakers.
5. Local Citizens Advice in England and Wales advised 2.5 million clients on 6.2 million problems in 2014/15. For full service statistics see our publication Advice trends.
6. Citizens Advice service staff are supported by more than 21,000 trained volunteers, working at over 2,500 service outlets across England and Wales.