“Hi
Fact is that EDF has given me a faulty gas meter and have done nothing to remedy the situation for over 2 years. So the Ombudsman's award of £50 is paltry. Also EDF have made several appointments to check the electricity meter which showed I owed them over £600 for an empty property and then cancelled them. They expected me to spend 3 hours waiting in a cold property for an engineer to call but the engineer cannot ring me 30 minutes before hand. The Ombudsman thinks their action is OK.
I am copying and pasting the Energy Ombudsman's decision against
EDF Energy:
'Conclusion
After reviewing your complaint, whilst I am satisfied that the billing of your account (based on the current evidence to hand) is valid, I do acknowledge that you have experienced a poor level of customer service as the company has failed to respond or provide you with assistance in regards to your gas meter concerns.
I appreciate your request for a financial award based on the time and trouble the matters have caused you. However, Ombudsman Services do not base awards on the number of hours which a complainant has spent dealing with a complaint. There are a number of reasons for this. It is not possible for me to determine the number of hours invested in a complaint – or which of those hours it was necessary to invest. Nor is it reasonable for me to differentiate between complainants based on how they value their time. Accordingly, our office make an approximate assessment of the time and trouble experienced by a complainant caused by the shortfalls of the participating company. Where we see fit, we can propose an award to acknowledge this.
After reviewing your complaint, I will require the company to apply a £50 credit to your account EDF account as a gesture of goodwill. This is because I consider this goodwill award to be proportionate to acknowledge your experience with the company and the poor customer service provided. I am satisfied that the supporting evidence highlights that the company has not provided you with the appropriate level of care whilst handling your gas meter concerns, which I would have expected. I acknowledge the frustration which EDF’s failure to respond or provide assistance may have caused you.
Lastly, I will require the company to provide you with a written apology to acknowledge the inconvenience and shortfalls in customer service, which I identified.
Outcome: Upheld
Remedy 1
Remedy: Action
Comment:
• contact you to discuss and diagnose any potential issue affecting your gas meter
Remedy 2
Remedy: Action
Comment:
• provide you with a written apology to acknowledge the inconvenience and shortfalls in customer service
Remedy 3
Remedy: Goodwill
Value £: 50.00
Comment:
• apply a £50 credit to your EDF account as a gesture of goodwill
Decided by Paul Darlington (os-investigative-officer) on 22 Aug 2019 at 11:38
You can download this decision as a PDF letter here'”
