Getting to know the future consumer
Agendas, minutes and presentations
Publication date
Industry sector
- Supply and Retail Market
- Distribution Network
What does the energy consumer of the future look like? How will they engage in the market of tomorrow? Will technological changes in the market really lead to consumers becoming active, empowered agents at the heart of the system? These are questions of real significance for us and for the wider energy sector. That is why we made the 'future consumer’ the theme of our event held 5 July 2017.
Event highlights
We wanted to examine how the landscape for domestic energy consumers is evolving in light of innovations and developments such as smart meters, time of use tariffs, battery storage, half hourly settlements, big data and new ways of purchasing energy.
We made the event as interactive as possible to give a platform for all our stakeholders to feedback on the themes covered in our Future Insights papers, and used a mix of panel and table discussions supported by live polls.
Opening
Our non-executive director, Christine Farnish, chaired the event, with our CEO, Dermot Nolan, opening with a keynote on The energy market and the consumer: now and in the future.
The key trends
Our first keynote speaker, Jo Upward, vice-president of the Institute for Customer Service, outlined 10 trends which are shaping customer experience and expectations based on what consumers are already telling us they want from the energy market. Download the slides below.
Public perceptions of the market
Antonia Dickman, Ipsos MORI’s research director of environment and energy, talked about the public’s priorities for our future energy system based on recent insights and data from their research into how the public feel about the energy market. She stressed the public’s preferences for local and sustainable energy, a desire for simpler and easier access to switching, a general distrust of energy companies, and mixed feelings about who gets to access their data as a consumer and for what purpose. Download the slides below.
Future risks and opportunities
We polled delegates to find out what they currently thought the biggest risks and opportunities may be for future energy consumers. In the main, we found while there is clearly an appetite for change, there is also a lot of uncertainty about the shape the transformation will take:
- 57% thought that the energy market will deliver a better deal for consumers in the future.
- Third Party Intermediaries, ‘prosumers’ and small suppliers were thought to be the biggest players in the future energy market.
- 62% didn’t think that policy makers and the market will keep up with innovation, and 55% thought that the current energy supplier model would not survive the next decade.
- 58% were concerned that the vulnerable will miss out on future innovations - Ofgem’s biggest regulatory challenge to ensure a fair market for all.
You can download the full poll results below.
Table discussions
We held table discussions hosted by senior Ofgem leaders to find out what attendees thought we should be doing to remove barriers to innovation. We also explored how we can ensure all consumers gain from a fast changing market. Download the note of the table discussions below.
Panel discussion
The final panel discussion session, chaired by Ofgem’s Rachel Fletcher, had representatives from an energy charity, a block chain consultancy, a global innovation organisation, a small supplier and a collective switching provider share their distinct perspectives on the challenges facing the retail sector.
- Will Hodson of The Big Deal criticised the constant switching ‘treadmill’ that tires out consumers.
- Joanna Hubbard, Co-founder & COO of Electron, said that most new business models were dependent on access to data, and getting the rules right on access to data will be fundamental to ensuring the transition happens and deciding who will benefit.
- Jenny Saunders of National Energy Action reminded attendees that some of the most vulnerable consumers on pre-pay meters are extremely engaged with their energy spending patterns, yet often don’t switch.
- Molly Webb of Energy Unlocked reiterated the central importance of decarbonisation.
- Greg Jackson of Octopus Energy made a case for small suppliers as the vanguard and laboratory of successful consumer innovation during a discussion on market competition.
Some of the questions from the audience touched on the feasibility of a brave new world beyond the ‘supplier hub model’, competition and ‘other means’ of regulation, and definitions of vulnerability.
You can download slides and summaries of the discussions as well as event speaker biographies below. We’ll host a further event in autumn 2017 focussing on other aspects of the energy transition. Details will be available soon on our events page.