Add your feedback on energy supplier Sainsbury’s Energy

randomshopper

I have been with British Gas for years, but compared this year and although Sainsburys are backed by BG, found that their tariffs were cheaper and I could make a good saving. I completed the form on line on 18th Feb (Sainsbury site) and received an acknowledgement email saying it takes approx. 2 1/2 weeks to switch. On 10th March, I emailed to say I haven't received any further info and what was the status of the switch. Again, I received an acknowledgement email saying a representative would get back to me within 5 working days. Today (24th March) after still not receiving any further communication, I spent over 25 mins on the phone, passed around 3 people only to be told that they are just answering emails dated 1st March! and that they couldn't find the order on the system!!! - Customer service is total rubbish. I am awaiting further contact from them to find out what has happened - I won't be holding my breath but will be looking around for another supplier! Be warned

seacaitch

davidsuffolk wrote: »

I totally agree. While I don't argue that their appalling "customer service" issues of abysmal phone answering times and inability to reply to emails might have been caused by larger than expected numbers why would that cause meter readings to not be accepted and automatically sent letters to also be wrong. Doesn't ring true and there must be deeper problems. I thought Scottish Power were poor but compared to this lot they are paragons.

Maybe one of the MSE team or BG might care to find out / answer why basic things like meter readings are going wrong when surely unconnected to customer numbers.

As you rightly point out, these errors cannot be related to the number of customers. I think there is no other reasonable conclusion than that their systems are unfit for purpose. They cannot even send the most basic and fundamental customer communications (requesting opening meter readings) without making multiple errors and containing multiple inconsistencies, and follow-up communications they send serve to add further confusion instead of resolving the issue.

Bear in mind that Sainsbury's Energy is simply a billing system. The fact they apparently cannot get the basic aspects of this right is a pretty damning indictment IMO.

MSE_Dan_L

dadsgoneshopping wrote: »

can i have an email address to contact someone please?

If you email msecollectiveswitch@sainsburysenergy.com someone at Sainsbury's Energy should get back to you.

For full info and support, you might be interested to take a look at the help page for this switch.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cheapenergyclub/helpquestions/

I hope this helps.

davidsuffolk

MSE_Dan_L wrote: »

I hope this helps.

In truth Dan, no it doesn't.

Saying call when it is quieter may be sensible but you will still wait and nothing has been said about why SE/BG cannot even get meter reads sorted (which as has been pointed out already should not be influenced by customer numbers. I have given mine FOUR times now yet still not appearing on my online account).

Can someone at MSE Towers please find out and report so at least there is a genuine explanation rather than just repeating "the hope it helps" post?

bowlesbargain

My daughter switched on my recommendation, she tried twice to submit her gas and elec reading this failed due to Sainsbury systems not working. She waited 40 mins on the phone to give a reading only to be told that they had estimated the reading and sent it off. The old supplier has now billed her for £200 more than it should be and we have had to contact Sainsbury again to send the correct reading to the old supplier to get a correct final bill. I feel very bad about recommending Sainsbury.

zexpe

This just gets weirder. Still no final bill from my old supplier, OVO, but mysteriously they have decided to refund me my credit (I had cancelled by direct debit so I'm not paying both companies this month, so clearly the advice to keep the direct debit open so they can refund your credit is a myth). Then I get an e-mail from OVO this evening saying: "Thanks for staying with us! For all the info on your new plan just have a look at the letter we’ve attached.". The contents of which are even weirder (see i.imgur.com/4SBaDJT.png, essentially it's a blank letter with no plan name and no account details!).

I appear to be dealing with two very incompetent utility companies!

seacaitch

Log into Sainsbury's Energy account, then in the left hand menu click first on Meter Readings and then on View readings history. Here's what I get:

Sorry, there has been a problem
Unexpected error occured.

Those errors seems to nicely sum up my experience to date of transferring supplier to Sainsbury's Energy (SE). NB They can't even spell "occurred" correctly...

Here's my situation:

1. I've had a closing bill from my old supplier EDF, which uses meter readings that SE invented (SE ignored my actual readings).

2. These meter readings are still not visible online within my SE account, despite it being SE who invented these readings.

3. My online account with SE shows both an "Energy" account (comprising Gas & Electricity) and a separate "Electricity" account. 10 days ago I was told by a SE rep that the separate "Electricity" account was just a temporary entry during the account opening process that would disappear imminently now that they'd agreed initial meter readings with EDF. It has not disappeared, but sits there still, which cannot be correct.

4. My SE account clearly looks "wrong" but there's no visible sign that SE are attempting to do anything to fix it. What they told me would happen 10 days ago still hasn't happened.

Conclusion: This outfit are a total shambles whose systems are unfit for purpose. These system faults don't appear to be anything to do with the number of customers, but seem to be purely because SE's billing/customer system is fundamentally broken.

nickinoo28

I was with Scottish Power and my deal finished at the end of February 2015 so I chose to switch to Sainsbury energy using the collective switch. I received my welcome pack on the 6th February which said they would be in touch in two weeks for my meter reading, after which I received an email asking me to set up my online user for my account which I did. Then nothing so I emailed the general email address on 17/03 asking them what was going on to which I got the automated reply saying they would be in touch within 5 days which never happened. So I then emailed the msecollectiveswitch email address on 23/03 and didn't even get an automated reply.


Finally I was fed up of waiting for a reply that I rang them up tonight 26/03, after a 15 minute wait with the same terrible song on loop I finally spoke to someone regarding my account. The customer representative took my customer ref no and I told her about what had happened so far and she said the system had not actioned the follow up letter asking for my meter readings after the welcome pack was sent and so if I had not rung up they would not have known about it-poor excuse if you ask me! I gave her the meter readings and meter numbers and then she asked the best number to contact me on and said someone from another department would ring me within 3 days to finalise the switching of my account-I wait with baited breath to see if this actually happens. I will be glad when the years up and I can switch again, I've never had such hassle before.

Puddylove

Oh God, me too.
I tried to switch, and then got a letter telling me they needed a Gas meter reading three days before I got the letter.
Then, they randomly took £20.50 out of my account.
And today - something like 6 weeks after I applied to switch I get told they are 'considering' my Electricity switch.

Avoid this supplier like the plague, people! I only switched because I trusted MSE. Wish I hadn't! £30 early exit fee...
AVOID SAINSBURYS ENERGY

bobbyl

I have spent many hours on the phone to British Gas and Sainsbury's Energy to try to find out what was going wrong with my gas transfer. My electricity went through in Feb without problems but not the gas although I had a confirmation letter for both. So I was still with Ovo for gas, but my bank statement showed that BG had taken two direct debit payments in March for my gas account (in addition to a correct electricity payment).

When I rang BG, they rudely insisted that I had transferred to them in Feb (not SE.) I asked for evidence of this, why I had not received any communication from them, and how they had my bank details-either from SE or from a separate account I foolishly have with BG for Homecare. No answers. Eventually BG acknowledged they had wrongly signed me up for BG instead of SE. Then it was going to be an erroneous transfer (6-8 weeks to sort out) but SE got high level approval to change my alleged BG account to SE as of 1 Feb.

It seemed that remained for me to do was to tell Ovo they were wrong in thinking I was still on the National Data Base as their customer. However, when I then spoke to Ovo, they advised that they were indeed my supplier, and they asked me what MPRN number BG/SE was using for me. Not one of the many people I had talked to at BG/SE had thought of this, but they should have. Ovo quickly established that BG/SE were using the wrong number; they had put my details onto a neighbour's supply. We have three flats in our house, but there has never been a problem with the accounts, and I had provided correct information to SE.

When I rang back SE to tell them this, they assigned me a 'complaints handler' to sort the issues who would ring within 48 hours. He has actually done so and seems to be resolving the matter. I am letting him get on with completing the switch because I can't stand the idea of more aggravation if I switch away from SE at this point.

I would not have learned any of this if I had not queried the mysterious direct debit payments. Perhaps other people thought of the issues that emerged long before I learned the hard way, but if not, I suggest making sure your switch is going to SE not BG and that SE is using the correct MPRN number for you.