So the latest Citizens Advice Energy supplier Ratings are out – for Q4 2019.
Again it shows major disconnects from the surveys which look at actual satisfaction ratings. Using their stats to make a decision on which supplier you go to could see ending up with a supplier who scores badly on satisfaction: EDF, BG, npower & SSE all top 10, whereas they’re bottom 10 in Which?’s annual satisfaction survey.
In their bottom 10, you may find yourself being put off joining OVO or Ecotricity – both top 10 with Which?.
Other disconnects include Bulb & Pure Planet – joint 3rd with Which? and 19th and 27th respectively with CA. Bristol Energy comes in 9th on satisfaction and 30th in these new ratings. Utilita (last) and Boost (38th) are bottom 3 with CA, but mid table on satisfaction (both joint 20th).
For me, the main reason for the differences in performance are that CA don’t look at how suppliers actually handle queries. One of their metrics – call wait time – does not reflect service. Find me someone who’d rather make 5 calls into a call centre answered under a minute, than 1 call that takes 10min to be answered but their query is resolved. Suppliers can also be penalised for offering innovative products: Pure Planet for instance don’t offer over the phone service, except in emergencies, so they’ll never be able to score highly. Suppliers who may offer energy or heat as a service may also suffer in these tables as they won’t fit the rigid metrics used.
Being a member of an industry code doesn’t mean much to customers. Having queries resolved and being delivered what they wanted when they signed up is what they’re after – if a customer chooses a digital supplier, that’s what they’re going to want.
Until satisfaction is included, these stats don’t carry enough weight for me.
