Ofgem found some prepayment customers who switched to another supplier or ended their contract did not receive their final bills within six weeks, as per rules set out by the energy regulator
Good Energy has paid out £150,000 after failing to provide final bills and refund credit balances to prepayment meter customers. It comes following an investigation by Ofgem.
The energy regulator found some prepayment customers who switched to another supplier or ended their contract did not receive their final bills within six weeks, as per rules set out by Ofgem.
The billing error is estimated to have affected 2,284 prepayment meter customer accounts between 2014 and October 2023. Good Energy has agreed to pay a total of £150,067 following the investigation. The average sum paid per affected customer was £66.
This includes £55,281 in customer compensation and refunds, and a further £94,786 to the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Fund (EIVRS) which funds projects and schemes to support energy consumers, particularly those in vulnerable situations. Of this, £64,678 was unclaimed customer compensation.
Beth Martin, director for consumer protection and competition at Ofgem, said: “At a time when so many households are facing financial difficulty, it’s unacceptable that Good Energy failed to provide refunds of money that was owed to customers, compensation they were due, and final bills they were entitled to.
“Driving up standards for consumers across the board is our top priority, and improving billing accuracy is a key part of this. We also expect suppliers to make sure they have robust systems in place to limit the risk of issues like this happening, and to proactively report problems when they arise.”
It comes after the Ofgem price cap rose to £1,849 a year for the average dual fuel household paying by direct debit. Energy analysts at Cornwall Insight are predicting it could fall to £1,683 in July.
Ofgem will announce its new energy price cap by May 27. This new rate will come into force from July 1 and will run for three months, until August 31.
Despite what its name suggests, the Ofgem price cap does not put a limit on how much you can pay for energy – instead, it sets the maximum unit price you can be charged for gas and electricity, as well as the maximum daily standing charge.
Ofgem has also announced 24/7 support will be available for any household cut off from power due to a fault with their energy meter. The new measures will come into force from August 2025.
It means energy suppliers must run round-the-clock help services so customers can report a meter fault that has interrupted their supply of electricity or gas.
The latest data from Ofgem shows over 80,000 customers seek help for meter fault issues out of hours annually – but the service currently offered by suppliers is not consistent.
