Complaints Against Energy Companies Surge

 

 

 

 

 

Complaints about the 'big six' energy firms rose by 26% over the summer as hostility against the sector continued to mount, a consumer watchdog has said.

Just one firm - ScottishPower - saw complaints drop on the previous quarter, while Consumer Focus said EDF Energy had seen a near-75% leap in customer grievances between July and September.

EDF (Paris: FR0010242511 - news) issued an apology to customers after admitting the introduction of new billing systems had affected its performance.

The industry-wide surge in complaints follows a period when all the major firms announced bill hikes for the winter and as the regulator Ofgem stepped up its pressure on firms to address issues such as overly complex tariffs.

Consumer Focus, which collated the figures, described them as "disappointing, but perhaps not surprising".

:: Mortgage lending fell again in October, according to the Council of Mortgage Lenders (CML).

The CML said there was an 8% drop in both the number and total value of house purchase loans approved in October, compared to the month before.

In total, 44,500 buyers borrowed a combined £6.5bn over the month.

The CML said that despite mortgages being at their most affordable for eight years, the size of deposits demanded from first-time buyers was still having a negative effect on the market.

:: The gap between the value of goods the UK imports and exports has narrowed, after the value of outgoing items hit a record high.

The trade deficit with the rest of the world was just over £7.6bn in October, down from a record £10.1bn in September - the biggest monthly fall on record.

Exports were up by £2bn to over £26bn.

:: The rate of increase in the price manufacturers pay for fuel and raw materials has slowed.

November (Stuttgart: A0Z24E - news) input prices were up 13.4% on the same time last year, compared with 14.3% in October.

Output price rises also slowed from 5.7% to 5.4%. Sky News