OneSelect Energy named worst in the market for customer service - the best and worst

The official consumer body for energy has revealed its star ratings to help people make a more informed choice before switching. [Photo: Mirror]

Energy provider OneSelect has been named the worst supplier in the market for customer service.

In Citizens Advice’s latest star rating, which ranks the customer service levels of energy suppliers, the giant failed to satisfy households on service and wait times.

The ratings looked at a range of measures including complaints levels, call waiting times, the timeliness and accuracy of billing and whether switches take place on time. It included 34 firms (serving around 99% of the market).

The results, which cover the period July to September 2018, found OneSelect had underperformed in all categories.

The company joined the market in 2017, advertising itself as a ‘low cost’ supplier, providing gas and electricity to around 35,000 households across England and Wales.

Customers have reported problems contacting the company by phone and only around two thirds of their customers received a bill based on a meter reading over the past year.

In the results, So Energy managed to hold its place at the top of the table for the fourth successive quarter with a score of 4.7, while SSE ranked second with 4.4 stars, making it the highest placed of the ‘Big 6 suppliers.

Octopus Energy performed well, maintaining a score of 4.3, despite taking on 95,000 customers from failed supplier Iresa during the quarter.

EON has the lowest ranking of the Big 6 energy suppliers. The company has slipped from 18th to 20th place, with a current score of 2.9 out of 5.

Gillian Guy, at Citizens Advice, said: “The forthcoming price cap is going to make a real difference to consumers but it is certainly not the end of the story. It is still important to shop around for the best deals, but also to think about where you’ll get good customer service.

“These ratings show that consumers can’t afford to make assumptions about the quality of service from an energy supplier based on their size or the strength of their brand.”