The energy companies that need to improve their customer service

With the cost of living putting increasing pressure on households and their hard-earned cash, it’s as important as ever that the businesses we use every day provide us with smooth and straightforward customer service when we’ve got queries and concerns. A drawn-out, unsatisfactory experience can be the final straw for frustrated customers.

Over the past six months, thousands of people have got in touch with Which? to share their experiences of shoddy customer service in sectors including energy, financial services, telecoms and travel since the end of the pandemic.

An overwhelming frustration shared in many of these stories is that companies aren't providing prompt responses and resolutions when people get in touch about a problem. All too often, this means that customers are being left on hold, stuck in never-ending chatbot loops or passed from department to department with no resolution or helpful answer to their query. 

A survey we ran in 2023 asking people to report on their recent customer service experiences found that the energy sector is currently the worst performing when it comes to this. We found that 25% of those we surveyed said they were unhappy with their most recent customer service experience with their energy provider, the highest score across the energy, financial services, retail and telecoms sectors. 

This is particularly frustrating for customers when sky-high energy bills mean that their complaints and concerns can have big impacts on their household finances.

Find out more: The six most common energy complaints and how to solve them.

Our energy company research

Our customer service analysis brings together data from three research projects. Since December 2023, we have received 2,110 reports of frustrations to our customer service tool, in which we ask people to tell us about their worst experiences over the past three years. Around a fifth (419) of complaints have been about energy suppliers.  

We also analysed data from our 2023 customer service survey of 3,372 nationally representative UK adults who had contacted a customer service team in the past year. The survey took place in June 2023 and captured experiences from a range of sectors: energy, telecoms, travel, in-store and online retail, financial services and home improvements.

Our annual energy customer survey took place in October/November 2023, and asked more than 9,000 UK energy customers about their experiences with their energy provider. 

Read more: the best energy providers for 2024.

The worst-performing energy firms for customer service

When we assessed customer satisfaction scores from our customer service survey, Scottish Power, Ovo Energy and British Gas, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power were the worst-performing energy firms for quick responses and effective solutions. 

We applied a net satisfaction score measure for each metric we assessed, to indicate the overall satisfaction level of a company's customers. We subtracted the percentage of dissatisfied respondents (very dissatisfied and fairly dissatisfied) from the percentage of satisfied respondents (very satisfied and fairly satisfied). The scale ranges from -100 to +100.

Scottish Power

Scottish Power came bottom, receiving a satisfaction score of -13 out of a possible +100 for how long it took to get in touch with a person that could help, and 3 for how long it took to get an answer to an issue or query. 

One customer told us that after being left on hold when trying to phone the supplier about a billing issue and then speaking to an agent who was unable to help, he suffered sleepless nights and anxiety over his unresolved billing problem. 

Another said he lived in fear of a visit from bailiffs after Scottish Power passed him from agent to agent and failed to fix an incorrect bill.

Scottish Power told us that: [a recent study by Citizens Advice found that] '98% of customer emails were responded to within 2 days and our average speed of answering phone enquiries is less than 110 seconds. On top of this, Scottish Power also offers a live chat facility from 7am to 11pm, 7 days a week. We’ve worked tirelessly to improve and enhance our services for all of our customers and will continue to do everything we can to help them.' 

Ovo Energy

Ovo Energy followed close behind with a satisfaction score of -7 for how long it took to get in touch with a person that could help and 7 for how long it took to get an answer to an issue or query.

One customer told us that he decided to switch provider after Ovo staff were ‘rude’ and unhelpful after he spent more than 20 minutes waiting to speak to them about a billing issue. 

Ovo said: 'The findings are unrepresentative of the typical service levels our teams work very hard to provide. Our customers reach us via phone in just over a minute and our teams respond to emails within two working days. While we recognise that we don’t always get it right, our customer data suggests that 7/10 customers are ‘very satisfied’ with the service they receive from us. We recognise that there is always more to be done and we are committed to listening to and learning from feedback.'

British Gas

British Gas fared better with a satisfaction score of 16 for how long it took to get in touch with a person that could help and 23 for how long it took to get an answer to an issue or query. 

However, one customer told us how she spent 43 hours on the phone and sent 24 emails trying to fix a billing issue for more than than a year. She said staff lacked empathy, causing her distress as she was made to repeatedly explain that her husband had passed away. Another found himself stuck at 830th in the queue for an online chat after struggling to find any phone numbers for customer service.

British Gas has recently said that it has invested in improving customer service and extended opening hours, but Which? has continued to see a steady stream of complaints about the firm in the last three months.

British Gas told us: 'We’re investing more than £50m in customer service – this includes hiring 700 more UK-based contact centre staff at the end of last year and introducing longer call centre opening times. We’re also helping our most vulnerable customers through our sector leading £140m customer support package."

The energy companies with the highest satisfaction scores

The best performer, Octopus Energy, reached a satisfaction score of 46 for how long it took to get in touch with a person that could help and 55 for how long it took to get an answer to an issue or query. Eon Next also scored relatively well, with 35 for how long it took to get in touch and 25 for how long it took to get a query answered.

We surveyed more than 9,000 energy customers in October 2023 to rate 16 suppliers and dived deep into 18 firms' behind-the-scenes practices. We found out what aggravates you the most and what companies are doing about it. 

Read more about: the common reasons energy providers wind you up and what to do about them.

Companies need to take customer service seriously

The latest findings highlight just how dramatically the quality of customer service can vary between individual firms. In an essential sector providing vital services millions rely on every day such as energy, it's completely unacceptable for customers to be left feeling unsupported.

British Gas, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power need to up their game by providing easy routes to solutions and keeping customers informed when a resolution to their problem will take a longer amount of time.

Rocio Concha, Which? director of policy and advocacy, said: 'Customer service is in a dire state in vital areas and some companies are routinely failing their customers – leaving them frustrated and stuck in endless loops trying to get help. 

'British Gas, Ovo Energy and Scottish Power all fared poorly in Which? research on which firms are best for giving quick and effective solutions when things go wrong. Failings in this area are particularly unacceptable when sky-high energy prices have left families and households struggling to make ends meet.

'While many consumers will rightly consider switching, these firms must urgently make improvements so all customers are getting the standard of service and support they need and deserve.'

Tell us about your customer service nightmares

As part of its drive to improve customer service standards across the board, we’re inviting all consumers to help shape our campaigning by sharing your stories of frustrating customer service experiences using a simple online tool.

Help us shape our research: fill out our customer service reporting tool.