Residential customers will be able to switch to the company in a record time of just two and a half weeks, down 50 per cent from the current average switching time of about five weeks.
This includes a 14 day cooling off period that fits the “14 +3 model” called for by energy secretary Ed Davey.
The first stage of Eon’s transformation will be completed early next month, with the second to follow in early 2015.
Eon’s residential and customer operations director David Bird said: “The first phase will ensure our processing systems can adjust to quicker movements in gas and electricity accounts and we will complete that step in early November.
“Then from January we will have in place the steps needed to help customers join quicker, meaning their Eon accounts will be started in around half the time, when compared with the previous system.”
Davey challenged energy suppliers to this reduction back in October 2013 as part of the government’s work to help energy customers get the benefits of increased competition.
Speaking in April 2014, when suppliers committed to halve switching times, he said: “Delivering this by the end of this year is a challenge in itself but with the technical code changes with Ofgem for final approval, firms now have the time to change their IT systems and I’m reassured they can manage the remaining practical issues.”
The reduction by Eon is still far short of Davey’s ambitious long term goal of achieving 24 hour switching which he hopes to achieve through the implementation of 53 million smart meters by the end of the decade.