Utility Week

Customers UTILITY WEEK | 24TH - 30TH MAY 2019 | 25 Energy UK has revealed that 668,371 customers moved to a new supplier in April, the high- est number ever, and a 34 per cent rise on April 2018. It brings the total switches in 2019 so far to over two million, 18 per cent higher than at this point last year, and beating the March figure by 6.8 per cent. In April, 47 per cent of the switches were from larger to ELECTRICITY April sets new high for number of electricity supplier switches small and mid-tier suppliers; only 10 per cent switched in the opposite direction. This consti- tutes a net gain for small and mid-tier suppliers of 251,964, or 38 per cent of all switches. A further 21 per cent of switches came from consumers moving from one big supplier to another, and 22 per cent from customers switching between small and mid-tier suppliers. The impetus to switch could be explained by the low regard some energy suppliers are held in by customers, as detailed in a survey by Energy Switching. With switches on the rise, the Energy Ombudsman reported in April that switching had leap- frogged customer service as the second most frequent complaint. However, research for the energy switch guarantee (ESG) This week Citizens Advice urges Ofgem debt reforms Watchdog finds suppliers' aggressive approach to arrears makes customers' lives more difficult Citizens Advice has called on energy regulator Ofgem to use its forthcoming vulnerability strat- egy to better support customers who fall behind with their bills. The charity urged it to set clear targets for the sector's performance on debt and require suppliers to follow principles designed to assess a consumer's ability to pay when determining debt repayment levels. It also called on Ofgem to compel suppliers to trial different approaches to communications with customers about debt if they fail to do so voluntarily, and to work with the Department of Work and Pensions to review the guidance for deductions from benefits to pay arrears. Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: "Both Ofgem and suppliers need to take action and help people get over the barriers that stop them from seeking help and getting the right advice and support. The sup- port on offer needs to be sensitive. Aggressive collection practices and demands for unaffordable payments only serve to make people's lives more difficult." A report by Citizens Advice has found that vulnerable people's problems are made worse by an o¡en aggressive approach to debt collection taken by suppliers, and that vulnerable customers are unlikely to engage with support unless it is clearly framed as a way out of their problems. An Ofgem spokesperson said: "We have nearly eradi- cated disconnections for debt and put in place price caps for consumers on prepayment meters and on standard tariffs, which ensure most vulnerable consumers pay a fair price for their energy. We welcome Citizens Advice's important contribution to the debate, and will be consult- ing on our new strategy setting out further measures to help vulnerable customers later this summer." AJ WATER Complaints head for Ofwat action zone Regulatory action may be required to tackle the root causes of the growing number of complaints from businesses about water and sewerage ser- vices, the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) has warned. The water watchdog reported another increase in complaints from non-household custom- ers during the final quarter of 2018/19, which ran from January to March. It received 1,078 com- plaints, 95.4 per cent of which were about water retailers. Most complaints (72 per cent) were about billing and charges, well ahead of admin (12 per cent). It is the second successive year the watchdog has seen a substantial increase in non- domestic complaints. Three of the largest retailers – Water Plus, Castle Water and Wave – accounted for almost four out of five of these cases – a higher pro- portion than their market share. Mike Keil, CCWater's head of policy and research, said: "We're rapidly approaching a point where we may need Ofwat to step in and take action if there is evidence that companies have breached market codes or not met their obligations to customers." CCWater said it is handling almost five times more com- plaints from non-household customers than before the market opened, and that these are a frac- tion of the number of complaints made directly to suppliers. ENERGY Solar promise for social housing The Labour party has pledged to install solar panels on nearly two million homes in the UK. The pledge came as the party officially made its controversial promise to renationalise the energy transmission and distribu- tion networks. The party intends to fit the roo¡op panels on a million social homes as part of its retrofit and Decent Homes 2 programmes. It has also promised to incentivise the installation of solar panels on a further 750,000 UK homes through a programme of interest- free loans, grants and changes to regulations. The provision of free solar electricity could save households an average of £117 a year on their energy bills, according to Labour party calculations, with savings rising to £270 for retired house- holds, which spend more of the day at home. Any unused electricity gener- ated by the programme will be fed into the grid, which Labour is planning to take back into public ownership. Léonie Greene, director of advocacy and new markets at the Solar Trade Associa- tion, said: "We are particularly pleased to see Labour's focus on social housing, since solar can save households potentially hundreds of pounds off energy bills. Current policies deter those who need solar the most from accessing it." Regulator's vulnerability strategy targeted has found that eight in ten consumers are happy with the switching process. The ESG is a voluntary industry initiative covering around 90 per cent of the market to make the switching process quick, simple and safe for consumers. The start of April saw Ofgem's revised price cap come into effect, raising the price ceiling by £117 to £1,254.

• Cover