Credit, Collections & Insolvency News
Several small firms that were falling short in some of these crucial areas have collapsed in recent months – while those that kept their customers happy dominate the top of the rankings.
Five small suppliers topped the rankings, with only tiny margins separating first-placed Octopus Energy, Robin Hood Energy and So Energy in joint second place, and Ebico and Tonik Energy in joint fourth position.
Octopus, which supplies more than 400,000 homes, was rated as good or excellent value for money by nine in 10 customers and 96 per cent of its customers gave it the same rating for online customer service.
However, small supplier, Solarplicity, rated for the first time in the Which? survey, was the worst energy firm according to its customers, with an overall customer score of just 44 per cent (compared with Octopus’ 80 per cent).
It was the only provider to receive one-star ratings, including for customer service, both online and on the phone. Additionally, three-quarters of its customers told us that it is poor or very poor at dealing with complaints.
The Big Six energy suppliers – British Gas, EDF Energy, Eon, Npower, Scottish Power and SSE all sit in the bottom third of the table, with none of the six receiving an overall customer score higher than 58 per cent, 22 percentage points lower than Octopus.
SSE was the highest-ranked of them – and the only one to receive four-star ratings for its customer service online and on the phone. Npower and Scottish Power were joint lowest ranked of the Big Six and were the only two of them to receive two-star ratings for their complaints handling.
Which? found less than one in five (18%) Big Six customers are very satisfied with their supplier, compared with a third (33%) of customers with medium and small suppliers.
Three small firms included in the Which? survey – Spark Energy, Extra Energy and Economy Energy – have ceased trading since the survey was conducted. Spark was taken over by Ovo Energy, which has retained the Spark Energy brand. Economy Energy and Extra Energy are no longer trading so aren’t included in the Which? results.
All performed poorly in the consumer champion’s survey. Spark Energy is second from last, in 29th position. Extra Energy would have been in joint 26th position alongside British Gas, while Economy Energy would have been in 29th position.
Alex Neill, Which? Managing Director of Home Products and Services said “Our survey shows the importance of value for money and good customer service – energy suppliers delivering both to their customers tend to be thriving, while the Big Six and other poorly-ranked firms are paying the price for not giving customers what they want.”
“All energy companies should be working to give their customers competitive prices and excellent customer service. If you’re not getting a good deal, you should look to switch, as you could potentially save over a hundred pounds and get a much-improved service.”
