Most energy companies are not interested in their customers in the midst of an energy crisis. Their interest lies in securing supplies and trying not to go bust. In that environment, customer services standards plummet and Britain’s most complained about supplier, British Gas is no different.
According to a major new investigative survey of over 12,000 respondents by MoneySavingExpert.com, customers transferred to British Gas were least happy of all those moved to a ‘supplier of last resort’ by the energy regulator Ofgem after their own provider had gone into administration. But EDF and Shell Energy also performed poorly – confirmation indeed.
With natural gas prices in the UK soaring, there is one energy supplier that seems to have a heart. It is giving away free electric blankets to some customers in an attempt to help people stay warm.
Octopus Energy has been giving away plug-in electric blankets to customers in financial hardship, according to the company’s responses to messages on its Twitter account over the past few days.
On Friday, Britain’s energy price cap jumped 54%. It is now reported as being the worst squeeze on living standards since the 1970s. The government has pledged £9 billion of support, too little to help just as energy poverty campaigners say it’s not enough to stop the number of fuel-poor households from doubling.
The electric blankets could help people stay warm without needing to heat their entire home. One customer on Twitter said they hadn’t turned on the heating this winter because of rising prices, Bloomberg reports.
As The Economic Times reported yesterday – 23.4 million people will be unable to afford the cost of living crisis. Alarmingly, the average shortfall for those below this threshold will be £8,600 per year.
The startling figure that emerges is that whilst 34.2% of the UK population will be facing bills they can’t pay – the increased cost of living will mean that nearly half (48%) of all children in the UK will be living in households unable to provide them with an acceptable standard of living.