Powering ahead or powering off?: Which? research reveals the best and worst energy firms as fixed deals return to the market
From September to October 2024, Which? surveyed almost 12,000 energy customers for its annual customer satisfaction survey. The consumer champion also carried out an in-depth assessment of 16 energy firms’ behind-the-scenes practices and policies to find out which energy firms are falling short and which are powering ahead of the competition.
British Gas, Ovo Energy, Scottish Power and So Energy all finished at the bottom of the rankings with overall scores of less than 60 per cent. British Gas, Ovo Energy and So Energy received the lowest overall score of 58 per cent.
British Gas is one of the UK’s biggest suppliers but underperformed in Which?’s research. Its customer score of 61 per cent was below average, and it is one of only four brands that received just two stars for overall customer service in the customer satisfaction survey. It also received two stars for value for money. In Which?’s behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices, British Gas also performed poorly for the volume of customer complaints it received in the first half of 2024 and for how efficiently it resolved these complaints, for meeting its smart meter targets and for switching.
Ovo Energy is now the third-largest energy provider in the UK but also came at the bottom of Which?’s rankings. It received the lowest customer score of 56 per cent - with customers who responded to the survey awarding just two stars for its overall customer service, value for money and communications sent to customers. In Which?’s behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices, it fared poorly for its handling of customer complaints.
So Energy fared better in Which?’s customer satisfaction survey than British Gas and Ovo Energy - receiving mostly three star ratings across the board and a customer score of 63 per cent. However, in Which?’s behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices, it fared poorly for meeting its smart meter targets, switching and limited monitoring of phone lines and emails outside of working hours and the weekend.
Scottish Power scored marginally higher, with an overall score of 59 per cent but its 58 per cent customer score was the second-lowest in the survey. It only received two stars for overall customer service, ease of contact, value for money and customer communications.
On the other end of the scale, three companies scored highly enough to be crowned Which? Recommended Providers (WRPs).
With the highest overall score of 74 per cent, Octopus Energy was named a WRP for the eighth year running. Just under nine in 10 customers said they were satisfied and would recommend it to others. It scored mostly five stars across the board in the customer satisfaction survey - only dropping to four stars for value for money and customer communications. In Which?’s behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices, it scored maximum points for customer support.
Utility Warehouse and 100Green were both named WRPs for the first time. Utility Warehouse received the second-highest overall score of 73 per cent and performed well in both the customer satisfaction survey and behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices. Customers particularly appreciated its overall customer service, awarding it five stars in this area.
100Green received an overall score of 70 per cent. It received the second-highest customer score of 76 per cent and five stars for overall customer service. It also performed well in most areas of Which?’s behind-the-scenes assessment of supplier practices, especially for its handling of customer complaints.
Over the last year, energy prices have slowly stabilised and fixed deals for slightly lower than the price cap have started to return to the market. With the price cap predicted to increase slightly again in April, switching to a fixed deal could well be the best way for consumers to cut costs over the next six months.
However, as many deals hover around a similar price point, customer service will still be a major factor people use when deciding which supplier to switch to. Which?’s research clearly shows that while some firms are offering stellar customer service, others are falling wide of the mark.
Any suppliers who are not up to scratch should take this opportunity to up their game before unhappy customers vote with their feet and switch to a cheaper deal and supplier with better customer service.
Emily Seymour, Which? Energy Editor, said:
“Our research shows that while some energy firms are powering ahead of the competition, others are letting down their customers badly - and that’s unacceptable for such a vital service.
“Some big energy firms - including British Gas, Scottish Power and Ovo Energy - underperformed in our research. Any firms falling short urgently need to up their game to ensure they are providing the service and value for money that consumers rightly expect from their energy supplier.
“If people are unhappy with their provider, we’d recommend shopping around to look for a cheaper deal and switching to a supplier with better customer service.”
-ENDS-
Notes to editors
Advice for consumers looking for fixed deals
Which? would advise customers looking to fix to shop around for energy deals - the consumer champion has seen a number of tariffs on the market with rates cheaper than the new price-capped figures. Unfortunately, there's no 'one size fits all' approach when it comes to fixing an energy deal - the best option will depend on your individual circumstances.
Consumers should compare what their monthly payments would be on a fixed deal with what they'd expect them to be if they remain with the price-capped variable tariff to see what the best option is for them. As a rule of thumb, Which? would recommend looking for deals cheaper than the price cap, not longer than 12 months and without significant exit fees.
With many fixed deals hovering around a similar price point, it’s also important to consider the customer service of the firm you’re switching to and how quickly and efficiently they’ll be able to resolve any issues.
Research
The results are based on an online survey conducted in September-October 2024, of 11,984 members of the public who are jointly or individually responsible for paying energy bills and the data has been weighted to be representative of the GB population (aged 18+).
Which? Recommended Providers (WRP) must achieve 70% customer score, all survey star ratings three stars or above and score above average in the Which? Assessment to qualify.
Customer score is based on satisfaction and likelihood to recommend the brand. Customers rated other service aspects, shown as star ratings. We require 50+ responses to give a rating. The number of respondents for each firm are shown in brackets.
The Which? assessment score is based on a supplier questionnaire - as well as publicly available information and Which? research - covering five key areas: the company’s track record on receiving and resolving complaints, what support is available for customers who need it, the provider’s customer contact channels and their monitored hours, how well the company is doing against smart meter installation and maintenance targets and how the company handles the switching process. The score is weighted as; complaints performance (30%), supporting customers who need it (25%), contacting your supplier (25%), switching (10%) and smart meters (10%).
The overall score is an equal combination of customer score and Which? assessment score.
Full table of results
Rebel Energy is a relatively new supplier and could not complete the supplier questionnaire. Which? has included its customer score but has not included it in the overall rankings.
About Which?
Which? is the UK’s consumer champion, here to make life simpler, fairer and safer for everyone. Our research gets to the heart of consumer issues, our advice is impartial, and our rigorous product tests lead to expert recommendations. We’re the independent consumer voice that influences politicians and lawmakers, investigates, holds businesses to account and makes change happen. As an organisation we’re not for profit and all for making consumers more powerful.
The information in this press release is for editorial use by journalists and media outlets only. Any business seeking to reproduce information in this release should contact the Which? Endorsement Scheme team at endorsementscheme@which.co.uk.