How we’re doing with your energy complaints
We strive to give you excellent service which is why we take every complaint seriously. We use feedback from complaints to improve the level of service that we can provide and prevent issues from occurring in the first place.
Our latest report is from 1st October to 31st December 2019 (fourth quarter).
The complaints we’ve included are from our residential energy customers, as well as the customers we had through our partnership brand, Sainsbury’s Energy.[1]
How we're doing
| Reporting period | Complaints received | Received per 100k customer accounts | Complaints resolved | Resolved per 100k customer accounts | % resolved same or next working day | % resolved within 8 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q4 2018 | 188,605 | 1,560 | 188,069 | 1,556 | 57.9% | 92.4% |
| Q1 2019 | 181,622 | 1,524 | 174,047 | 1,460 | 54.7% | 91.2% |
| Q2 2019 | 162,609 | 1,366 | 157,159 | 1,320 | 48.9% | 90.4% |
| Q3 2019 | 145,310 | 1,228 | 137,660 | 1,163 | 41.9% | 88.9% |
| Q4 2019 | 128,980 | 1,092 | 124,024 | 1,050 | 38.1% | 87.7% |
Reporting period
Q4 2018
Complaints received
188,605
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,560
Complaints resolved
188,069
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,556
% resolved same or next working day
57.9%
% resolved within 8 weeks
92.4%
Reporting period
Q1 2019
Complaints received
181,622
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,524
Complaints resolved
174,047
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,460
% resolved same or next working day
54.7%
% resolved within 8 weeks
91.2%
Reporting period
Q2 2019
Complaints received
162,609
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,366
Complaints resolved
157,159
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,320
% resolved same or next working day
48.9%
% resolved within 8 weeks
90.4%
Reporting period
Q3 2019
Complaints received
145,310
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,228
Complaints resolved
137,660
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,163
% resolved same or next working day
41.9%
% resolved within 8 weeks
88.9%
Reporting period
Q4 2019
Complaints received
128,980
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,092
Complaints resolved
124,024
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,050
% resolved same or next working day
38.1%
% resolved within 8 weeks
87.7%
What happened in Q4 2019?
- We resolved a total of 124,024 complaints in Q4 which is 1,050 complaints per 100k customer accounts.
- We saw a decrease in the proportion of complaints resolved on the same or next working day and a decrease within eight weeks compared to last quarter. Resolving complaints quickly remains a key priority for us, and we are introducing new ways of working to ensure we do this. Our continued investment in customer service includes providing further training for our people, as well as improving our processes and systems.
- We’re working hard to reduce the number of complaints referred to the Ombudsman Service. It is our intention to always resolve complaints quickly, without the need for our customers to escalate issues. We received 1,717 Ombudsman complaints in Quarter 4, which is just 12.9% of the total complaints taken on by the Ombudsman across all suppliers.
What does the Ombudsman do?
They take on complaints if we haven’t resolved them within eight weeks or if we’ve sent you a final position letter, you may choose to escalate this to the Ombudsman for them to take a look.
We work closely with the Ombudsman to help us understand why customers escalate their complaints to them. This helps us to improve our internal policies and procedures to reduce the need for escalation to the Ombudsman or other organisation.
Top five complaint reasons
| As a percentage of the total complaints received | Q4 2018 | Q1 2019 | Q2 2019 | Q3 2019 | Q4 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Billing | 18% | 20% | 21% | 22% | 21% |
| Payments | 25% | 21% | 22% | 22% | 21% |
| Metering | 14% | 14% | 13% | 12% | 15% |
| Customer Service | 15% | 16% | 16% | 13% | 13% |
| Communication | 6% | 6% | 6% | 8% | 7% |
As a percentage of the total complaints received
Q4 2018
18%
Q1 2019
20%
Q2 2019
21%
Q3 2019
22%
Q4 2019
21%
As a percentage of the total complaints received
Q4 2018
25%
Q1 2019
21%
Q2 2019
22%
Q3 2019
22%
Q4 2019
21%
As a percentage of the total complaints received
Q4 2018
14%
Q1 2019
14%
Q2 2019
13%
Q3 2019
12%
Q4 2019
15%
As a percentage of the total complaints received
Q4 2018
15%
Q1 2019
16%
Q2 2019
16%
Q3 2019
13%
Q4 2019
13%
As a percentage of the total complaints received
Q4 2018
6%
Q1 2019
6%
Q2 2019
6%
Q3 2019
8%
Q4 2019
7%
Previously reported complaints performance
| Reporting period | Complaints received | Received per 100k customer accounts | Complaints resolved | Resolved per 100k customer accounts | % resolved same or next working day | % resolved within 8 weeks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2017 | 192,399 | 1,393 | 193,147 | 1,399 | 50.4% | 89.8% |
| Q3 2017 | 173,350 | 1,304 | 176,437 | 1,327 | 51.3% | 89.3% |
| Q4 2017 | 135,230 | 1,050 | 140,418 | 1,091 | 48.0% | 89.6% |
| Q1 2018 | 112,208 | 883 | 108,427 | 853 | 51.3% | 90.3% |
| Q2 2018 | 152,385 | 1,221 | 150,271 | 1,204 | 53.3% | 91.6% |
| Q3 2018 | 180,778 | 1,486 | 176,395 | 1,450 | 59.9% | 92.3% |
Reporting period
Q2 2017
Complaints received
192,399
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,393
Complaints resolved
193,147
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,399
% resolved same or next working day
50.4%
% resolved within 8 weeks
89.8%
Reporting period
Q3 2017
Complaints received
173,350
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,304
Complaints resolved
176,437
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,327
% resolved same or next working day
51.3%
% resolved within 8 weeks
89.3%
Reporting period
Q4 2017
Complaints received
135,230
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,050
Complaints resolved
140,418
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,091
% resolved same or next working day
48.0%
% resolved within 8 weeks
89.6%
Reporting period
Q1 2018
Complaints received
112,208
Received per 100k customer accounts
883
Complaints resolved
108,427
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
853
% resolved same or next working day
51.3%
% resolved within 8 weeks
90.3%
Reporting period
Q2 2018
Complaints received
152,385
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,221
Complaints resolved
150,271
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,204
% resolved same or next working day
53.3%
% resolved within 8 weeks
91.6%
Reporting period
Q3 2018
Complaints received
180,778
Received per 100k customer accounts
1,486
Complaints resolved
176,395
Resolved per 100k customer accounts
1,450
% resolved same or next working day
59.9%
% resolved within 8 weeks
92.3%
Annual Consumer Complaint Report
View our Annual Consumer Complaint Report, which details how we’ve performed in relation to the number of complaints we weren’t able to resolve on the same, or next working day.
For the reporting period 1st October 2018 to 30th September 2019 this figure was 337,180.
If you would like information on making a complaint, please refer to Complaints.
[1] Sainsbury's Energy was supplied in partnership with British Gas (part of British Gas Trading Limited) until April 2019.