OVO to pay £2.37 million for customer complaint failures

As reported in Ofgem's press release, the regulator found that over 1,300 customers faced lengthy delays in resolving issues, with some waiting up to 18 months for action, including delays in implementing Energy Ombudsman decisions.

The settlement includes £378,512 in compensation for affected customers and a £2 million payment to the Energy Industry Voluntary Redress Scheme. Customers impacted will be contacted directly by OVO.

As part of the resolution, OVO has increased staffing for complaint handling, upgraded its management systems, and improved oversight to prevent similar issues in the future.

Ofgem says that over £400 million has been collected since 2020 through fines, customer refunds, and other measures aimed at addressing failures by energy companies.

The Energy Ombudsman and Citizens Advice Scotland noted that the changes implemented by OVO should improve outcomes for customers, but highlighted the need for energy suppliers to respond more effectively to complaints and regulatory decisions in the first place.

Jacqui Gehrmann, deputy director of retail compliance at Ofgem is quoted as saying:

“Consumers deserve a clear and timely response when they make a complaint, and that’s why we stepped in quickly when we identified that OVO’s performance was falling below acceptable standards."

Based on this, we assume that Ofgem will now be turning their full attention towards the similar issues that British Gas customers have been facing.