Ovo has been hit with a £2.37 million penalty for customer failures, affecting nearly 1,400 of its customers. The energy firm received the penalty from the industry watchdog for complaint handling failures. Ofgem noted that 1,395 Ovo customers experienced lengthy delays in having their complaints addressed, with some cases taking up to 18 months. There were also delays in Ovo acting on decisions made by the Energy Ombudsman.
In response to the penalty, Ovo will compensate affected customers with £378,512 and has made an additional payment of £2 million to the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme. Ofgem stated that customers will be contacted directly by Ovo regarding the compensation. Jacqui Gehrmann, deputy director of retail compliance at Ofgem, expressed that Ovo’s failure to protect and respond to their customers adequately was unacceptable.
The regulator first contacted Ovo in June last year due to concerns about the time taken to address complaints referred by Citizens Advice Scotland’s Extra Help Unit and to action decisions from the Energy Ombudsman. Since then, Ovo has taken steps to enhance its complaint handling operations, improve its complaints management system, and ensure senior staff oversee complaints.
The Energy Ombudsman emphasized the importance of resolving disputes between consumers and energy suppliers promptly and following through on decisions within the required time frame. An Ovo spokeswoman acknowledged the delays faced by a specific group of customers in 2023 and stated that they have apologized and provided compensation to them.
Overall, Ofgem’s intervention underscored the need for energy companies to address customer complaints promptly and effectively to ensure consumer protection. The penalty imposed on Ovo serves as a reminder for companies in the energy sector to maintain high standards of customer service and complaint resolution.