Utilita’s chief executive has apologised “unreservedly” to all customers who were overcharged by the supplier and outlined how the company has rectified the underlying problem.
The challenger brand, which serves 800,000 customers, agreed to pay £500,000 after it was found by Ofgem to have overcharged almost 40,000 prepayment customers.
Utilita said it agrees with Ofgem that its failure to issue refunds in a timely manner was poor customer service, adding that its actions fell short of its own standards.
In a statement released today (29 October), the company said a temporary loss in connection with customers’ smart meters was the cause of the issue.
The energy retailer insisted it now has a more “robust process” in place to ensure a prompt refund should this problem reoccur.
A spokesperson told Utility Week: “Our process now automatically identifies when there’s any disruption to the smart meter’s digital connectivity and runs proactive checks to ensure the customer is only paying for the energy they have used.”
Utilita chief executive Bill Bullen said: “I would like to apologise unreservedly to all customers who were temporarily out of pocket. I am sorry that we did not issue prompt refunds during the period in question.
“We know we can always improve and will always take on board criticism of any legitimate failings. Ofgem made it clear that the overcollection was caused by our failure to carry out an administrative process that corrected the temporary overcollection.
“I can reassure customers that the issue was not with the tariff itself, which was confirmed to be in accordance with the cap.”