The ‘worst energy supplier for customer service’ revealed in annual league table
The country’s largest household energy supplier has come bottom of an annual league table for customer service as UK households continue to grapple with punitive bills.
The consumer group Which? said British Gas was the worst performer overall after factoring in its own assessment of companies’ practices to complement its survey of bill-payers.
The Centrica-owned firm was followed jointly by Boost – part of Ovo Energy – and So Energy.
British Gas received an overall score of 56%.
It got two out of five stars for most categories, including accessibility – or whether a customer can engage with it effectively, value for money and accuracy of energy payments.
It received three stars – an average score – for customer service overall.
British Gas received just over half marks for customer service and just one point out of 10 for performance against its smart meter targets.
British Gas was found to have an ‘average’ score for customer service overall
It also received four out of 10 for how it handled complaints, losing points primarily for the volume of customer complaints it received per 100,000 customer accounts in the first half of 2023 in comparison to other suppliers.
Boost, Scottish Power, Ovo Energy, Shell Energy, EDF Energy and E.ON Next followed while Octopus Energy, Ecotricity and E (Gas & Electricity) achieved the highest customer scores.
Octopus Energy was the only firm to achieve a five-star rating for overall customer service.
Octopus Energy topped the survey for another year
The findings were derived from a survey of just over 9,000 household energy customers in October.
In that month, the energy watchdog Ofgem revealed that it was to further tighten, from December, its expectations for energy companies’ treatment of customers, especially those struggling to pay their bills.
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Ofgem increases energy price cap
Households are grappling with another winter of above average bills following the unprecedented surge in wholesale costs that followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
But Ofgem has, this month, allowed a number of suppliers to restart the forced installation of prepayment meters.
Which? director of policy and advocacy, Rocio Concha, said: “With energy prices still punishingly high and limited chances for consumers to save money by switching suppliers, good customer service is more important than ever.
“While Octopus Energy, Ecotricity and E were all named Which? Recommended Providers and scored highly for their customer service, others fell short of customers’ expectations.
“Which? is calling for any providers who are falling short on customer service to up their game and ensure customers are able to contact them easily and get the answers they need.”
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A British Gas spokeswoman responded: “This survey is behind the curve and is based on data that is up to a year old.
“Since that period, we’ve targeted more than £25m of investment on improving service and customers are seeing a difference – this includes hiring 700 new contact centre agents and extending our opening times.
“We continue to be focused on customer service and helping our most vulnerable customers through our sector-leading £100m customer support package.”
Sky News can reveal that the government has rowed back on a national compensation scheme for victims of child sexual abuse, despite it being promised under the previous Conservative administration.
Warning – this story contains references to sexual and physical abuse
A National Redress Scheme was one of 20 key recommendations made by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA), but a Home Office report reveals the government has scrapped it because of the cost.
Marie, who is 71, suffered alleged sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at Greenfield House Convent in St Helens, Merseyside, between 1959 and 1962, and is still fighting for compensation.
Greenfield House Convent, where Marie says she was abused
As soon as she arrived as a six-year-old, Marie says her hair was cut off, her name changed, and she experienced regular beatings from the nuns and students.
She claims a nun instigated the violence, including when Marie was held down so that her legs were “spread-eagled” as she was sexually abused with a coat hanger.
Merseyside Police investigated claims of abuse at the convent, but in 2016, a suspect died before charges could be brought.
Marie has received an apology from the Catholic body that ran the home; she tried to sue them, but her claim was rejected because it was filed too long after the alleged abuse.
Marie, 71, is still fighting for compensation for the abuse she says she suffered as a child
In February, ministers said the law would change for victims of sexual abuse trying to sue institutions for damages, which was a recommendation from the IICSA.
Previously, people had to make a civil claim before they were 21, unless the victim could prove a fair trial could proceed despite the time lapse.
Campaigners argued for the time limit to be removed as, on average, victims wait 26 years to come forward. Changes to the 1980 Limitation Act could lead to more people making claims.
Peter Garsden, President of The Association of Child Abuse Lawyers
Civil cases ‘can take three to five years’
But Peter Garsden, president of the Association of Child Abuse Lawyers, worries that when it comes to historical abuse where the defendant is dead, institutions will still argue that it is impossible to have a fair trial and will fight to have the case thrown out of court.
Mr Garsden said it takes “between three and five years” for a civil case to get to trial.
He warned that claimants “can end up losing if you go through that process. Whereas the Redress Scheme would be quicker, much more straightforward, and much more likely to give justice to the victims”.
Victim awarded £10 compensation
Jimbo, who was a victim of abuse at St Aidan’s children’s home in Cheshire, took his case to the High Court twice and the Court of Appeal three times, but, after 13 years, all he ended up with was £10 for his bus fare to court.
Despite the Lord Justice of Appeal saying he believed that the abuse had occurred, Jimbo lost his claim because of the time limit for child sexual abuse claims to be made.
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Neither Marie nor Jimbo is likely to benefit from the removal of the time limit for personal injury claims, which is why Mr Garsden is calling on the government to implement a National Redress Scheme for victims of sexual abuse, as recommended by the IICSA.
Hundreds of millions paid to victims
The governments in Scotland and Northern Ireland have set up compensation schemes and paid hundreds of millions of pounds to victims.
In 2023, the then Conservative government said a similar scheme would be organised for England and Wales.
But the Home Office admitted in its Tackling Child Sexual Abuse: Progress Update that it “is not currently taking forward any further steps on the IICSA proposal for a separate, national financial redress scheme for all survivors of child sexual abuse”.
“In the current fiscal environment, this recommendation is very difficult to take forward,” it added.
For victims, the scheme was the last chance of compensation for a lifetime blighted by abuse.
“The money is about justice and about all the other people who have had to suffer this abuse,” Marie said.
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