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industry & Government news

BIG ENERGY FIRMS FALL BEHIND

ON SERVICE, SAYS WHICH?

THE ‘BIG SIX’ ALL FINISHED IN THE BOTTOM THIRD OF THE TABLE
SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED energy Which?’s Natalie Hitchins said: A third of British Gas customers, three
firms have topped the table when it “Consumers have dozens of energy Scottish Power customers in 10 and
comes to customer service, leaving the suppliers to choose from - and it is clear around a quarter of EDF Energy, Eon,
major players trailing in their wakes, that some newer challenger providers Npower and SSE customers said they had
reports The Mirror. are better than their larger counterparts experienced problems in the past year.
For the second year in a row, Octopus at keeping customers happy and By contrast, just one Octopus Energy
Energy topped the table after consumer delivering a better service. customer in nine reported a problem.
association Which? asked people what “Customers shell out hundreds, The highest-scoring big firms were
they thought of their supplier. sometimes thousands, of pounds a year SSE (now part of Ovo) and Eon.
But it wasn’t the only smaller on their gas and electricity bills so it is However, it was not all good news
company winning big approval from right that they expect good service from for smaller players, with Robin Hood
its customers, with Ebico, Bulb Energy, their energy supplier.” Energy dropping from second place
Pure Planet, People’s Energy and Which? surveyed more than 8,000 last year to a mid-table ranking.
Powershop following it at the top. people across the UK on what they Together Energy also fell – from
By contrast, the traditional ‘big six’ thought of their energy supplier, asking mid-table to dead last – scoring just
all finished in the bottom third of the them to rate companies on things like two stars from customers for billing
table, with Scottish Power ranked value for money, customer service, bill accuracy, clarity, customer service
lowest of them. accuracy and digital tools. and value for money.

BRITISH GAS LAUNCHES ‘GREEN FUTURE’ TARIFF

BRITISH GAS HAS debuted a use offset through a partnership with Verified Carbon Standard.
new ‘Green Future’ tariff, which it ClimateCare, reports BusinessGreen. As “Customers who choose this tariff
claims offers consumers “one of the such, the tariff will support the growth will have peace of mind that they are
greenest tariffs in the market” at a of up to 10 trees per household every making a positive contribution towards
competitive cost. year, British Gas said. tackling climate change,” said Dave
The tariff offers customers 100 per cent In addition, customers can also help Kirwan, Managing Director of UK Home
renewable electricity and 10 per cent to protect a hectare of rainforest in at Centrica, owner of British Gas.
green gas, with the carbon emissions the Amazon each year, under a forest “We want to offer our customers
that result from the remaining gas protection project certified by the different types of tariffs that suit their

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