Friday 20 January 2017

New energy supplier complaint tool launches

Citizens Advice has launched a new tool to help small businesses choose an energy supplier.

The new league table, to be released quarterly, allows millions of small firms to compare how well suppliers are managing their complaints so they can make informed decisions on how best to avoid delays and extra expenses.

E.ON takes first place in its handling of business customer's complaints, with a complaints ratio of only 21.1 per 10,000 customers.

SSE came in second place with a ratio of 29/10,000.

Extra Energy came last with a 1225.4/10,000 score. Common complaints included customers not being billed for months on end and then hit with several catch-up payments and debt collectors.

The table ranks the performance of the 15 largest firms providing energy to 10,000 or more small non-domestic customers. These business customers are defined as those who have 10 or fewer staff or a turnover of under £1.7 million.

Citizens Advice Chief Executive, Gillian Guy, said: "Small business owners depend on the smooth running of essential services - such as gas and electricity - to run and grow their firms. If things go wrong with energy suppliers it can cause delays and financial stress, so it's crucial problems are sorted out swiftly and effectively.

A version of the table for household customers was released in 2012.