The Energy Ombudsman: Greater Protection for Families and Businesses
Families and small businesses will benefit from new protections in the energy market, as the government introduces stronger consumer rights.
The new protections, led by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, will make it quicker and easier for people to get redress when things go wrong, while stamping out exploitation in the broker industry.
Expanded Powers for the Energy Ombudsman
The Energy Ombudsman will be given expanded powers to help customers resolve disputes with their energy suppliers more efficiently.
- Customers will no longer have to wait eight weeks before escalating a complaint to the Ombudsman, with the waiting period cut to four weeks.
- The time the Energy Ombudsman takes to review cases will also fall from an average of six weeks to four, allowing customers to receive compensation more swiftly.
Suppliers that fail to implement the Energy Ombudsman’s rulings promptly will be forced to pay compensation, ending the widespread delays that have led to nearly one in ten decisions being enforced late or not at all.
Author's summary: New protections for energy market consumers.