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There are a number of organisations that can provide assistance and advice to consumers on resolving complaints with an energy company and other energy issues:
Citizen’s Advice
The Citizens Advice consumer service provides free, confidential and impartial advice on consumer issues.
Visit www.adviceguide.org.uk or call the Citizens Advice consumer helpline on 08454 04 05 06.
Consumer Focus
Consumer Focus is the national consumer advocate and provides detailed customer-facing information and advice about energy issues, including price comparison information to help you choose an energy supplier.
Consumer Focus: price comparison tool
Energy Saving Trust
The Energy Saving Trust is an independent organisation that offers impartial advice and information about how to save energy and money.
Ombudsman Services: Energy
The Ombudsman can investigate complaints from domestic and micro-business consumers that the energy supplier or network operator cannot resolve to the customers’ satisfaction. They can normally deal with a complaint if it has been with the energy company for 8 weeks or if the company has declared the complaint deadlocked (i.e. they have said they can do no more) whichever is the earlier. The Ombudsman can ask the energy company to apologise and can direct a company to take practical action to resolve a complaint and, in some cases, make a financial award.
Ofgem Consumer Affairs
Our Consumer Affairs team manages consumer-based enquiries and referrals regarding our policies and functions. For more information visit Ofgem: contact us.
Ofgem and Consumer Complaints
Ofgem does not play a role in investigating individual consumer complaints against energy companies. However, we do regularly receive information and data from a variety of sources, including energy companies, the Ombudsman, Citizens Advice, and Consumer Focus about complaint levels, patterns in the nature of complaints and issues of concern. Where appropriate we will consider action against suppliers and network operators in line with our enforcement powers.
Following discussion with Ofgem, the largest suppliers now publish quarterly data on their complaints handling on their own websites. You can read about this and also access the data in question at Supplier data on customer complaints.