EDF Really Useless

janninew

jalexa wrote: »

That's easy to infer from the telephone wait times and the failure to respond to emails within their own not very challenging 10 working day target.

What are you implying?

I'm not 'implying' anything! I think the person who said there were 'overwhelming problems for many EDF' customers were the one doing the implying.
We can only go off our own experiences and mine have been fine, no waits on the phone or not receiving responses via e-mail, sorry if that doesn't suit some on here, but its my experience over the last 2 years.

jalexa

janninew wrote: »

We can only go off our own experiences

We can also go on recently released Consumer Focus complaints data.

janninew

jalexa wrote: »

We can also go on recently released Consumer Focus complaints data.

Had a quick Google but can't find this, have you a link please?

jalexa

janninew wrote: »

Had a quick Google but can't find this, have you a link please?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2011/sep/02/edf-tops-complaints-league-table-energy-companies

MillicentBystander

I really don't know what to think of it all. It seems many of the 'recent' customers (me included) seem to have experienced a totally unacceptable level of CS but the ones who have been with them longer seem to be happy. And I totally respect janninew's impartiality, btw. So what the heck is happening? I'm certainly not imagining these problems. Could it be that new customers by necessity need to make more calls to EDF than those who have been there a while and established a stable payment plan? I really don't know what to make of it all, to be honest. But it's clear that we unhappy customers aren't making it up either as EDF themselves have acknowledged the problems - very much backed up by the Consumer Focus findings. I DO know one thing - when your company gets beaten by npower in the CS dissatisfaction stakes then serious questions need asking.

janninew

MillicentBystander wrote: »

I really don't know what to think of it all. It seems many of the 'recent' customers (me included) seem to have experienced a totally unacceptable level of CS but the ones who have been with them longer seem to be happy. And I totally respect janninew's impartiality, btw. So what the heck is happening? I'm certainly not imagining these problems. Could it be that new customers by necessity need to make more calls to EDF than those who have been there a while and established a stable payment plan? I really don't know what to make of it all, to be honest. But it's clear that we unhappy customers aren't making it up either as EDF themselves have acknowledged the problems - very much backed up by the Consumer Focus findings. I DO know one thing - when your company gets beaten by npower in the CS dissatisfaction stakes then serious questions need asking.

Didn't problems start for some over the last winter when EDF were offering the cash back to new customers and also didn't raise prices over winter? They obviously gained a lot of new customers and maybe they couldn't handle the numbers! I joined EDF in November 2009 before the surge of new customers.

It may make people more cautious in future of just switching based on price alone and not looking at other factors. I do agree that coming below npower is not good though!! :rotfl:

DirectDebacle

I think this sentence from the Guardian,

"Its poor performance is likely to be due, in large part, to the implementation of a new billing system,"

pin points the differing experiences.

I joined across the months of March/April this year. A/C Nos. start with 67 for gas and elec. I did not sign up to online billing or emails. Retaining paper billing denies me access to the bulk of My Account features but I can input meter readings, which I do at the end of each month. This generates a statement and so far they have been accurate in all respects. I think this shows an IT problem affecting only A/C that are managed online.
Or maybe not and I have just been lucky so far.

Either way an IT problem should be resolved with relative ease. If EDF can do this then npower will rapidly slip back to their rightful spot in the table. My experience is that their problems are more to do with a philosophy driven by greed than computers.

However if EDF have been aware of this problem for around a year and still not sorted it, is poor.

backfoot

EDf's performance has been overwhelmingly bad. I have posted the official complaints data in previous threads. I have also liaised with EDF over a number of customer related policies and their ongoing and unnaceptable standards of service.

The Senior Managers fully recognise these shortcomings which have affected many new customers during the botched migration to a new Customer Service platform.

I have invited those Managers to put a bona fide Rep on this site and they have constantly refused preferring the astonishing choice of socail media contact via Twitter. It says it all imho.

I expect a Supplier in a mature market, controlled by established players to have exemplary standards of service. There is nothing complicated about the Supply and billing of Energy other than that self made by those Suppliers.

EDF have marketed some price leading products to entice new customers at the same time as this system migration. It has been disaterous. Many customers have opted for Fixed price products involving exit fees for moving away.

I complain here and to them formally because it raises the profile of this poor performance. I hope it will help to focus their attention and that of other posters to warn them of what is happening.

Eventually, someone in the Regulatory field may appreciate something needs to be done. In my view they should have been banned from acquiring new customers until they had 'fit for purpose' systems.

I personally have suffered problem after problem which EDF have recognised and paid compensation for. I've also tried to seek solutions for the benefit of other customers through my contact with EDF.

Please write what you like positive or negative about EDF. Bear in mind though,that ignoring the volume of evidence on this forum and all over the web may well make you look a little out of touch when you big them up.

MillicentBystander

backfoot wrote: »

EDf's performance has been overwhelmingly bad. I have posted the official complaints data in previous threads. I have also liaised with EDF over a number of customer related policies and their ongoing and unnaceptable standards of service.

The Senior Managers fully recognise these shortcomings which have affected many new customers during the botched migration to a new Customer Service platform.

I have invited those Managers to put a bona fide Rep on this site and they have constantly refused preferring the astonishing choice of socail media contact via Twitter. It says it all imho.

I expect a Supplier in a mature market, controlled by established players to have exemplary standards of service. There is nothing complicated about the Supply and billing of Energy other than that self made by those Suppliers.

EDF have marketed some price leading products to entice new customers at the same time as this system migration. It has been disaterous. Many customers have opted for Fixed price products involving exit fees for moving away.

I complain here and to them formally because it raises the profile of this poor performance. I hope it will help to focus their attention and that of other posters to warn them of what is happening.

Eventually, someone in the Regulatory field may appreciate something needs to be done. In my view they should have been banned from acquiring new customers until they had 'fit for purpose' systems.

I personally have suffered problem after problem which EDF have recognised and paid compensation for. I've also tried to seek solutions for the benefit of other customers through my contact with EDF.

Please write what you like positive or negative about EDF. Bear in mind though,that ignoring the volume of evidence on this forum and all over the web may well make you look a little out of touch when you big them up.

I completely agree with this. I'm sure a 'proper' regulator would have taken this stance.

daveboy

I've been with EDF since moving from British Gas - I moved when they were advertising the 12 month fixed tariff, just after British Gas put their prices up.

I can enter a gas meter reading online, but not electricity. I've phoned once and emailed once, the email only last week. My accounts went live in the middle of August.

Yet I have had no bills at all.

I've said to them in an email that they can effectively whistle for the huge bill that is inevitably coming at some point. Apparently according to them there is a known issue with the electricity. When I phoned I was told it was down to British Gas not agreeing a closing meter reading.

Whatever it is, I can't do any more than prompt them on it. I can't move as I'm tied in for a year (unless I want to waste £70 to get out).

I will just sit it out and wait for them to ask me for £300+ in one go and tell them that as I have had to wait, now, they can wait.