Northern Ireland's Utility Regulator has issued a statement on Tuesday afternoon, March 14th, instructing energy suppliers to 'address failings in customer service levels'.
The independent government body who is responsible for regulating Northern Ireland's electricity, gas, water and sewerage industries, and for promoting the short and long-term interests of consumers, highlighted the issue saying 'customers are entitled to an effective standard of customer service when dealing with their energy supplier'.
A spokesperson for the Utility Regulator said:
"We are aware that, in recent months, domestic customers have been experiencing a range of concerning customer service issues which fall significantly short of the standards expected from suppliers. We recognise that suppliers have faced unprecedented levels of customer contacts and the energy sector has seen significant volatility.
"However, concerns around customer service have been ongoing for many months with some suppliers in particular and this is not tenable going forward.
"We are publishing a letter that was sent today to all NI domestic energy suppliers further highlighting our concerns and need for immediate remedy. This follows a period of monitoring, engagement with suppliers, and consumer feedback.
"We are convening an urgent meeting with all domestic suppliers and consumer representative bodies to discuss issues and seek resolution. In addition, we are working to ensure that consumers are further protected by a robust and transparent framework relating to customer service levels. This includes both contact centre performance and suppliers’ processes for setting customers direct debits.
"We will be publishing options for consultation on this work in the coming weeks".
