Utility Week - authoritative, impartial and essential reading for senior people within utilities, regulators and government
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/818772
26 | 5TH - 11TH MAY 2017 | UTILITY WEEK Customers This week Single visits for smart meters shy of forecast Unexpectedly high requirement for second visits could push up the cost of the smart meter rollout Almost 87 per cent of consumers who have had smart meters installed in their homes say the installation was success- fully completed in a single visit, according to a new study con- ducted by Utility Week in part- nership with market research firm Harris Interactive. Although high, this figure falls short of the official estimate put forward by the Depart- ment for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, which believes only about 5 per cent of customers will require a second visit before installation can be completed. Campaign groups including The Big Deal have previously raised concerns that an unexpectedly high requirement for second visits to homes could push up the overall cost of the smart meter rollout. The Big Deal insists the extra cost could be as much as £1 billion. Utility Week's recent survey included responses from more than 1,000 adults from across the UK, of which 41 per cent said they have already been offered a smart meter by their supplier and 14 per cent have had a meter installed in the past six months. Of the customers who have had meters installed, 97 per cent said they found the installation process either very straightforward or fairly straightforward and 76 per cent said they were happy with the technical and service skills of the installer. Harris Interactive energy specialist Mark Brenton said the responses reflect an expected ramp up in the volume of smart meters being deployed, but that despite positive feedback on cost visibility, "a minority of consumers (circa 12 per cent) still experience billing issues". JG ENERGY Call on customers to cash in supply credit Website uSwitch.com has called on customers to claim back a total of £1.3 billion of credit sitting in energy suppliers' bank accounts. Research published by the switching website reveals nearly half (42 per cent) of all UK households are in credit with their suppliers, and could reclaim an average of £117. And 7 per cent of UK households could reclaim more than £200. But despite the large number of people in credit, the website also claimed 14 per cent are in debt following the recent winter. The website's energy expert, Claire Osborne, said the research shows the importance of regular meter readings to prevent bills from becoming inaccurate: "Consumers who are building up credit to soen the blow of price hikes should instead consider reclaiming this money and switching to a cheaper deal." ENERGY Smart surge boosts image of utilities The number of smart meters installed in UK homes has doubled since the start of 2016, at the same time as perceptions of utility company reliability and professionalism have seen a slight rise. The findings come from data collected by market research firm YouGov, which said that since January 2016, the propor- tion of UK homes with smart meters has risen from 8 per cent to 16 per cent. Meanwhile, the proportion of consumers that considered energy suppliers to be "reliable" increased from 26 to 29 per cent, and those rating them as "professional" rose from 17 to 20 per cent. YouGov noted, however, that its consumer perceptions data was collected before a recent round of energy price rises. WATER MPs call for review of bad debt portal The government has been urged to conduct a review of how water companies can be helped to track down bad debt among private tenants. In a new report on how the 2010 Flood Management and Water Act is working, the House of Commons' Environmental, Food and Rural Affairs select committee said the current Landlord Tap voluntary initiative was not "working well". Landlord Tap is a secure data portal that allows landlords to share information about their tenants with water firms. But landlords have signed up only 13,000 rental properties in England with the portal – fewer than 1 per cent of the stock. Straightforward process: experienced by 97% I am the customer Jo Causon "Automatisation will free up people for real service roles" Numerous reports have been published recently suggesting that artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics could compel gov- ernments to legislate for quotas of human workers and disrupt traditionally accepted working practices. They warn that the idea of creating differentiation between organisations, based on customers' service experi- ence, could be eroded as robot production lines and intelligent computer systems undermine the need for human activities. The apprenticeship levy does encourage people development at one level, but good employ- ers will be those exploring ways to upskill their people across the full range of today's multi- generational workforce. Automa- tisation and AI will not just affect new entrants to the labour market so employers should be deliberating how they create a workforce fit for purpose now and able to handle the future. Jo Causon, chief executive, Institute of Customer Service In my view, however, there is no denying that automatisation is a force for good where it removes activities that are purely transactional. Doing so will free up people to undertake real customer service roles and activ- ities, creating more job satisfac- tion – and therefore, engaged employees – as people can be retrained for customer-facing roles that require a greater level of interaction. With the world of work changing fast, utilities should focus on people development so that employees have the right skills, competencies, capabilities and training to be able to deliver in their roles.