Ovo-backed supplier had 40 minutes average call waiting time

By Adam John

*The full list of average call wait times is at the bottom of this article

Ovo-backed power supplier Boost Energy took almost 41 minutes on average before answering calls to its customer service line, research by Which? has found.

The consumer group conducted a mystery shop investigation during which it made 384 calls to 32 energy providers in September and October to reveal how long it took for customer service teams to answer.

Which? called each provider 12 times at different times of the day and days of the week and worked out the average call waiting times.

Boost was created in 2017 out of Ovo Energy’s pay-as-you-go (PAYG) offering. Last year it took on PAYG customers from failed supplier Economy Energy and now has 350,000 customers.

With an average of 40 minutes and 58 seconds pay-as-you-go supplier Boost was the worst of those surveyed. One caller was left waiting for 2 hours and 39 minutes before the Boost customer service team answered.

On four other occasions, Boost took more than an hour to answer phone calls to its customer service team.

Responding to the investigation, a spokesperson for Boost said: “With our waiting times during the last quarter averaging 8 minutes, we’re disappointed not to meet our usual high standards for our customers. During this period, we had a higher number of customers contacting us to ask for support.

“We’re always looking for ways to improve and have planned for additional resources over winter. We also offer a call-back service that allows customers to receive a call from one of our team, rather than having to wait. To support those who can’t pay their energy bills because of the effects of Coronavirus we also launched a hardship scheme.”

British Gas was the second slowest provider to answer calls in Which?’s snapshot investigation, taking 23 minutes and 32 seconds pick up calls. The company said it faced challenges with staff working at home, such as broadband and connectivity issues, and power cuts. It said it is recruiting more staff and supplying home workers with new tech.

Around a third of energy firms kept callers waiting for more than 10 minutes before their calls were answered. On average, Npower took 21 minutes and 46 seconds to answer calls, while Eon only picked up calls after 19 minutes and 40 seconds. EDF Energy took 13 minutes and 26 seconds before answering calls.

A spokesperson for Eon said the company’s own data shows its average call wait times are “significantly lower” than the figures stated by the consumer group and said the company had worked hard in recent months to ensure customers are aware of other contact methods.

Meanwhile an Npower spokesperson said: “We experienced an increase in calls in September compared to the previous month due to a slight delay in correspondence going out to our customers. This had a cumulative effect on call waiting times towards the end of the month. Our own data shows an average wait of around seven minutes and although over half of all calls were answered within 60 seconds the week Which? have stated, it is unfortunate that they had a longer wait than average.”

So Energy is one supplier which is consistently rated highly for its customer service and was the fastest company last year, answering calls in 38 seconds on average. However this year it slipped to the slowest 10 after it left callers waiting for 16 minutes and 52 seconds.

Simon Oscroft, co-founder and chief executive of So Energy, told Utility Week: “As a Which? Recommended Provider and the current number one ranked supplier in the Citizens Advice rankings, we take pride in providing the best possible customer experience, which includes having low call waiting times.

“This blip was caused by challenges associated with onboarding new customers at a time when we were also onboarding a significant number of new staff, which naturally takes a little longer when we’re not all in the office together.”

According to the retailer, So Energy’s call waiting times in November were around 30 per cent better than from the time Which? conducted its survey.

Together Energy, which recently acquired council-backed Bristol Energy, was the fastest retailer to pick up calls, taking just 51 seconds to answer.

Octopus Energy was the fastest of the energy firms with the largest market share and only left callers waiting for two minutes and four seconds.

Of the 10 energy companies with the largest market share, Scottish Power was the second best and answered calls in two minutes and 28 seconds which is a major improvement from last year when it was the worst provider for answering calls at 21 minutes and 24 seconds.

Live chat

In addition to call waiting times, Which? also contacted the 18 energy suppliers that offered a live chat function for customers and found Shell Energy was the worst when it came to responding, taking 33 minutes and 39 seconds to respond to queries.

Outfox the Market was the fastest energy company on live chat and only left those that contacted them through this channel waiting for 10 seconds on average.

Natalie Hitchins, head of home products and services at Which?, said: “We know the pandemic has made things difficult for call centres, but it is unacceptable that some firms are still wasting customers’ time with such long waits, especially at a time when consumers may need additional support from their provider.”

*The following scores are median averages from the Which? snapshot investigation: