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Customers at major energy firm to get £270 compensation over complaint failures – are you owed cash?
Find out below what to do if you're an impacted customer
CUSTOMERS of a major energy company will receive compensation worth around £270 each following issues getting their complaints resolved.
OVO Energy has been told by energy regulator Ofgem to pay out £378,512 to 1,395 customers over the historic failings.
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That means each affected customer will receive around £271 on average.
Ofgem found OVO took too long to address the almost 1,400 customer complaints, in some cases taking up to 18 months.
It also delayed actioning Energy Ombudsman decisions when complaints were upheld, Ofgem said.
The 1,395 customers set for compensation don't have to do anything and will be contacted directly by OVO.
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On top of the compensation to customers, OVO has already paid £2million to the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme for the failings.
OVO has also now improved its complaint handling process so that senior colleagues have oversight of any issues flagged by customers.
Jacqui Gehrmann, deputy director of retail compliance at Ofgem, said: “In this case, OVO failed to adequately protect and respond to their customers when it was needed most. This is not acceptable.
“Consumers deserve a clear and timely response when they make a complaint, and that’s why we stepped in quickly when we identified that OVO’s performance was falling below acceptable standards.
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"We are committed to driving up standards for consumers across the board, and this action serves as a reminder to all energy companies that we will not hesitate to take swift and definitive action when they fail to comply with the rules."
Ofgem first contacted OVO last June following concerns over the time taken to address complaints, which were flagged by Citizens Advice Scotland’s Extra Help Unit.
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The energy firm was also found to have not been implementing decisions from the Energy Ombudsman - a free and independent body which handles energy customer complaints.
Ofgem identified key areas of improvement for the energy firm going forward, including upgrading its complaint handling system and addressing "resourcing issues".
The regulator then asked OVO to provide a plan on how it would action this.
Natasha Gilmour, head of operational support at Citizens Advice Scotland, said: “While it’s rare for a compliance case to be necessary to resolve such issues, it is reassuring to see how OVO has responded to the investigation by Ofgem, and we are satisfied that the new practices implemented are ensuring good and timely outcomes for our clients.
“We’ve worked closely with energy suppliers since 2008 and we’re hopeful these relationships will continue to grow as we work together to improve outcomes for consumers needing our support.”
An OVO Energy spokesperson said: "At OVO we want to make sure we give our customers the best experience we can at every turn.
"We’re now third in the Citizen Advice energy supplier rankings for service.
"However, we recognise that a particular group of our customers in 2023 waited longer than we’d like for a resolution and were overdue a response from us, so we’ve sent them a letter of apology and compensation to help."
Other energy firm failings
Ofgem has collected more than £400million in payments since 2020 through its compliance and enforcement activities which has been used to help households struggling with their bills.
In 2023, Ofgem recovered a total of £77.2million in fines, customer refunds, compensation and alternative action payments, up from £50.5million compared to the year before.
The latest compensation handout to OVO customers comes after E.ON Next was ordered by Ofgem last June to pay £5million to customers who suffered poor customer service.
The regulator said a review of the firm's customer service standards and complaints-handling across the sector uncovered "severe weaknesses", with customers facing long call waiting times and a high level of unanswered calls.
More than 500,000 customers were potentially affected, according to Ofgem.
The month before, Ofgem ordered Good Energy and OVO to pay out £2.7million to thousands of customers who were overcharged.
Good Energy was found to have overcharged nearly 7,000 customers a total of £391,650 between January 2019 and October 2022.
This was after the provider failed to adjust tariffs after customers changed their payment method.
Meanwhile, almost 11,000 OVO Energy customers were overcharged £1,492,917 between October 2022 and March 2023.
Affected customers were told that they'd be automatically refunded.
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Good Energy customers were told they would receive £109 on average, while for OVO customers the figure was £181.
What energy bill help is available?
THERE'S a number of different ways to get help paying your energy bills if you're struggling to get by.
If you fall into debt, you can always approach your supplier to see if they can put you on a repayment plan before putting you on a prepayment meter.
This involves paying off what you owe in instalments over a set period.
If your supplier offers you a repayment plan you don't think you can afford, speak to them again to see if you can negotiate a better deal.
Several energy firms have grant schemes available to customers struggling to cover their bills.
But eligibility criteria varies depending on the supplier and the amount you can get depends on your financial circumstances.
For example, British Gas or Scottish Gas customers struggling to pay their energy bills can get grants worth up to £2,000.
British Gas also offers help via its British Gas Energy Trust and Individuals Family Fund.
You don't need to be a British Gas customer to apply for the second fund.
EDF, E.ON, Octopus Energy and Scottish Power all offer grants to struggling customers too.
Thousands of vulnerable households are missing out on extra help and protections by not signing up to the Priority Services Register (PSR).
The service helps support vulnerable households, such as those who are elderly or ill, and some of the perks include being given advance warning of blackouts, free gas safety checks and extra support if you're struggling.
Get in touch with your energy firm to see if you can apply.
Do you have a money problem that needs sorting? Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
Plus, you can join our Facebook group to share your tips and stories
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