“Unfortunately, this company is very disappointing. I had a very difficult time with them; they manipulated the system, made unjustified payments, and charged exorbitant prices. When I terminated my contract, they said there was one final payment due, which I paid. Now, a month later, they're saying I have to pay again. I don't understand why. Even their employees are inexperienced. I wouldn't recommend anyone contract with them.”
“If I could give 0 stars, I would. The customer support is SHOCKING. They hit me with a HUGE bill at the end of my tenancy, which I paid. They then said I overpaid so sent me a cheque for £600 which I cashed. 3 months later, I found a black mark on my credit score because they said I owed them over £1000 because they calculations were incorrect. I just want to be done with this company!!!”
“I tried OVO because it was already installed in the apartment I moved into. I set up a plan and paid for two months, but in the third month I received a notification saying I had no plan. They cancelled it without my request!!! This was the second time I had to spend time dealing with them.
They then set up a new plan for me - though apparently this was “the first time” on their end (how is this possible ha). A month later, I received a notification saying they were increasing my direct debit, which is unfair considering I had already opted for a plan above my actual usage. This option wasn’t offered to me a month earlier?! And had it been, I wouldn’t have agreed.
I had to call again. Third time in 4 months. While I always appreciate customer service teams - nothing ever gets properly resolved here. Avoid OVO at all costs if you don’t want to constantly deal with issues that are outside your responsibility.”
“Heavily in credit with OVO and asked for my money back as credit balances are no longer covered by government guarantee and I was concerned about the company's financial situation. They immediately revised my bills and from being nearly £500 in credit I went to being in debit. A whole series of different explanations followed constantly changing as each one was shown to be untrue. Now they suggest that I wait 3 months before getting my money back. They are clearly in a worse financial position than I thought and I am reluctant to leave my money with them as I don't know if I will ever get it back. If you have a credit balance with this company I would get it out quickly.”
“OVO are making me suicidal
They advise you to work with Stepchange, but ignore the communication OVO advise you to send. They ignore the budgeting sheet. They do not know how to work with vulnerable people.
They call me at 8am everyday & leave voicemails.
If I end my life I want everyone to know OVO are responsible”
“Title: Disappointing incentives and misleading promotions – think twice before joining
I have been an OVO customer since the transition from SSE a few years ago. After several years of loyalty, I feel compelled to share my experience regarding their marketing practices and customer service.
My main grievances are:
The "Power Move" Scheme: I signed up for the "Power Move" incentive, which promised rewards for shifting energy usage away from peak times. Despite participating, I was told I hadn't "signed up" properly, despite having been paid once. When I queried this, I was given shifting excuses about my usage not being low enough. This was particularly frustrating given that my property was empty at the time due to construction, meaning my usage was already at an absolute minimum.
Misleading Promotions: OVO frequently runs promotions, such as "2 free hours." However, the small print includes a strict cap of 1kWh per hour, making the actual financial benefit negligible compared to the way it is advertised. It feels less like a genuine saving and more like a marketing gimmick.
Token Incentives: They also offered a Tesco Clubcard incentive where you could "earn" 100 points per month, but this was capped at a total of 300 points. Since 100 points is worth just £1, the total value of this "incentive" was a mere £3—hardly worth the effort of managing yet another scheme.
Standing Charges vs. Usage: For a low-energy user, the high standing charges frequently outweigh the costs of the energy I actually consume. While this is a broader industry issue, the combination of high fixed costs and ineffective, "gimmicky" incentive schemes has made my experience with OVO very poor.
I am now switching providers. I would advise anyone considering OVO to look beyond the flashy marketing and read the fine print—or better yet, look for a provider that prioritizes fair, transparent pricing over these complex, confusing "challenges."”
“Been with them not even a week & the ovo energy top up app doesnt work. Ive phonwd twice already & after updating my details i still cant change my password because the app wont send a code to my email address!!! Ive tried at least seven times disgraceful!!!!”
“I have had on going issues for around 2-3 months with gas metre pay as you go no credit would go on,always had to go on the phone for a hour to 2 to top upwhen finally sorting they only offered 10 pound as compensation saying the line keeps breaking magically when it came to compensation so had to accept as already been on phone for 2 hours will be looking at changing energy supplier they’re not very helpful and will insist you are doing it wrong when it’s completely they’re fault on there end,the way they would speak to you was so unprofessional,after so much frustration of all this only to offer £10 compensation is an absolute disgrace.”
“I never applied to have energy from Ova. They have been calling everyday to ask me to go through Security questions which I said I didn't want to. One day they a customer service staff put the phone down on me. I complained, when they complaint handler explained that the Property Management company applied on my behalf on the 9th April 26 and said they will reduce the bill the cover a void period when the house I own and was managed by the company was emptied. They said they would prepare the new bill which would take 3-4 days, send it to the Property Management and I have 14 days to pay for it or they would send the bailiff and record with credit agencies. I have not seen the new bill. today 13/4/2026. I have received, however a message on text "To avoid further action, pay today". How can the government licence such a firm to supply energy? I wonder what Ofgem would say about that.”
“Over charges then justified it after many letters and phone calls admitting they owe me £195., They then sent me a dear john letter saying they had under charged me AFTER ADMITTING THEY OWED ME MONEY IN AT LEAST 3 EMAILS... NEVER AGAIN”
“I am extremely disappointed with the service from OVO Energy. I have never had an account with them, yet they continue to send bills in my name.
Initially, they started sending bills in my husband’s name. After he complained, they simply changed the name to the butcher's shop on the account instead of resolving the issue. It is now wrongly in my name, despite us repeatedly informing them that we do not use their services.
A debt collector was even sent to our address. After checking the meter number, it was confirmed that it does not match the account they are chasing. The debt collector also passed this information back to them, yet the harassment has continued.
I have provided proof that my energy supplier is Octopus Energy, including evidence of payments, but OVO has ignored this and continues to send letters and pursue debt recovery.
This situation is not only frustrating but has now started to affect my credit score, which is completely unacceptable given that I have no connection to this account.
Their handling of this matter has been careless, stressful, and unprofessional. I would strongly advise others to be cautious. I expect this issue to be resolved immediately and my details removed from their system.”
“Absolutely awful company! I am over £160 in credit and they have put my direct debit up by £16 a month not even knowing if I can afford it
As apparently next march might be in a minus unbelievably I could be dead by next march and would never be in a minus anyway it's more likely that I'd be even more in credit really awful company I'm definitely changing providers asap”
“Honestly the worst company in and out of energy. Real life criminals. Charged me over £9 a day on days I worked in the office because they say they can tell I had a socket switch on even though theres no plug. charged me £70 in 3 days. Its currently spring and I havent turned heating on and in a week I owe £150 just for gas. I have only been with them a year and honestly nothing good to say. Today is 01/04/26 and as of this year on the begining of the 4th month, I have already paid them over £900, imagine what I will pay by December. I have now switched today and cannot wait to leave these people. please avoid if you can. you will lose less money if you just burn all your cash with literal fire.”
“I left OVO back in December because they kept raising my direct debit based on their own (quite high) use estimates. Even after final meter readings had been sent and final charges applies to the account, OVO continued to collect my direct debit monthly.
I contacted them about this and they said they couldn't cancel the direct debit on their end. Fine, I cancelled it through my bank instead. I then contacted about getting the money they had debited refunded. Can't transfer it to my bank because I don't have an active direct debit. And because they took so much, they also can't do a digital voucher. The only option is a cheque like they're decades stuck in the past.
I am surprised OVO has managed to operate like this for so long in a regulated industry.”
“Left them back in December because they kept wildly overestimating my future bills in order to raise my direct debit. Finally decided to pay the exit fee just to be able to switch, and even after my account is closed, they didn't cancel the direct debit. I tried to do this myself on their portal and the button to manage direct debits didn't work. Tried to do it through their help chat and they ALSO couldn't do it. Ended up contacting my bank. Surprised this company has been allowed to operate like this for so long in a regulated industry.”
“Honestly wrote an email to ovo complaints ! They can’t discuss the problem because the letters they keep sending them with an account number is linked to a different email and phone no .
Yes that’s because it’s not my bill , duh .
But they have my address from somewhere and so even though it’s not my account have harassed me with letters and now debt collection
They are so stuid no one in this company can sort it out !
I spoke to debt collection ages ago and even they sent it back to ovo”
“If you want to be cold due to hardly putting the heating on and hardly use any electricity and get charged £300 a month for it, OVO is the company for you!
Just switched to octopus, I’ll be happy to see OVO go out of business.”
“Energy and gas suppliers in the UK are still receiving significant, though slightly reduced, levels of "stick" from customers in early 2026, primarily driven by high, volatile bills and, in some cases, poor service from large suppliers. While customer satisfaction has shown signs of improving from the peak of the energy crisis, with complaints hitting their lowest levels since 2022, many households are still heavily pressured.
Ofgem
Ofgem
Here is a breakdown of the criticism and issues:
Key Areas of Customer Criticism (2026):
Persistent High Costs: Although the Ofgem price cap is set to drop in April 2026, many households still feel the strain of high bills, leading to low satisfaction for some providers.
Billing and Payments: This remains the top complaint (over 50% of cases), with issues regarding inaccurate bills, disputed usage, and direct debit levels.
Customer Service Standards: The sector has faced criticism for long wait times and poor service. While some, such as Octopus Energy and E, receive high marks, others have struggled.
"Bullying" by Credit Balances: Some suppliers have faced criticism for holding high levels of customer credit, which some users described as "bullying".
The Guardian
The Guardian
The "Worst" Performers (Based on 2026 Data):
ScottishPower, EDF Energy, and British Gas were ranked at the bottom of the list for customer service in early 2026, with customer scores below 60%.
Ovo Energy also received low marks for customer service and value.
Medium-sized suppliers (e.g., Utilita, So Energy) have seen a 33% increase in complaints in the last year, performing worse than large suppliers.
The Guardian
The Guardian
Best Performers (2026):
E (Gas & Electricity), Octopus Energy, 100Green, and Sainsbury's Energy received the highest scores for customer satisfaction and service in 2026.
Octopus Energy has been highlighted for high service levels, gaining significant market share.
The Guardian
The Guardian
Industry Context:
Complaints Declining: Despite the pressure, average complaints have fallen to around 0.9 per 100 customer accounts in late 2025.
High Debt: Household debt to energy suppliers hit a record high of £4.4bn by the end of 2025.
Shift to Smaller Suppliers: Smaller suppliers often report better complaint rates, suggesting customers are finding better service away from the "Big Six".
NimbleFins
NimbleFins
In summary, while the overall number of complaints has declined from the peak of the crisis, the pressure on customers has led to continued high levels of dissatisfaction with the largest, traditional suppliers regarding billing and service.”
