What a difference! Sainsburys Energy vs NPower customer service!

Lone_Northern_Lass

I'm sure most people on here already know this, but I just have to comment on how much better customer service is done by companies other than NPower, in this case Sainsburys. I've recently switched from NPower to Sainsburys. NPower, not knowing their bottoms from their elbows, have managed to mess this up for me. At my request, NPower changed me from pre-payment to credit metres a year ago. Despite them having done this and me then having pointed out they'd done it to them in numerous emails and phone calls to them since then, they've still got me listed as being on pre-payment metres and they haven't updated a central database about this either. So this morning, Sainsburys has sent me letters telling me they've switched me from a direct-debit payment plan to pay-as-you-go energy. One phone call to a Sainsburys member of staff, who clearly knew what she was doing (at one point she spoke to a different department to check what needed to be done but she handled the whole call herself), and she's taken all the details needed and assured me Sainsburys will now work on getting the databases updated to reflect that my house has credit not pre-payment metres. They did in one call, what NPower never managed in dozens of calls and emails. :T

Cardew

One swallow doesn't make a summer!


Many appear not to have been as lucky as you!


https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5205736

JJ_Egan

Who runs the CS Sainsburys or the supplier British Gas ??

Lone_Northern_Lass

Cardew wrote: »

One swallow doesn't make a summer!


Many appear not to have been as lucky as you!


https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/5205736

That thread seems to be about Co-op not Sainsburys??

I'm aware that I could still run into problems with my new supplier, but the conversation I've had with them so far, when compared to past conversations with NPower, seems indicative of a good standard overall. Compare and contrast:

Me to NPower: You took out my pre-payment metres 6 months ago, but are still telling me I have an electricity pre-payment metre.
NPower: Oh ... erm ... oh ... dunno what to do about that. [Member of staff does nothing to change the fact I'm showing as having a pre-payment metre.]

Me to Sainsburys Energy: NPower took out my pre-payment metres and put in credit metres a year ago.
Sainsburys Energy: Okay, let's have a look. Ah, yes, with your gas metre, it's incorrectly gone back to the old metre - can you give me the serial number and metre reading of the metre you've got now and I'll start the process to get that changed over. I'm not sure what's happening with your electricity metre, could you hold while I speak to the specialist department who'll be able to help with that issue .... [On hold] ... Okay, your electricity metre is still showing on the national database as being a pre-payment metre, so if you give me the serial number and metre reading for the credit metre you've got now, I'll send that info to the department who can start changing things over so it shows correctly on the database.

If the Sainsburys Energy member of staff was making up the fact that they'll now start the relevant processes to get the issues sorted, then she's a darn good actress and NPower could at least do with training their call centre staff in that line of bluffing and courtesy.

JJEgan - I'm not sure whether it's Sainsburys Energy or British Gas who run the call centre / customer services.

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays

The entire function is run by BG. Even the energy salespeople in Sainsbury's store with Sainsbury's uniform are BG employees.

[Deleted User]

Bluebirdman_of_Alcathays wrote: »

The entire function is run by BG. Even the energy salespeople in Sainsbury's store with Sainsbury's uniform are BG employees.

You are correct, BG run the same employees to run Sainsburys energy BG run a two tier tariff, a muggins rate and a Sainsburys rate..eg
BG cheapest tariff ( in my area ) is their direct debit fix and reward 3.97 p/kwhr gas 12.28 p/kwhr electric
Sainsburys Energy is 2.88p/kwhr gas, 9.47p/kwhr electric ..inc. VAT and same standind charge of 26p a day ( one year 2016 fix )
BG say the Sainsburys rates are a " no frills tariff "..what would that be, would they deliberately deal with Sainsburys Energy people slower on cust services.
Its a big difference in a price.Why can t they offer the same lower tariffs to all their loyal BG customers ?

macman

What would be the sense in offering a lower rate to 'loyal' customers? The ones you need to offer a lower rate to are those who are likely to leave.

nPower

Lone_Northern_Lass wrote: »

I'm sure most people on here already know this, but I just have to comment on how much better customer service is done by companies other than NPower, in this case Sainsburys. I've recently switched from NPower to Sainsburys. NPower, not knowing their bottoms from their elbows, have managed to mess this up for me. At my request, NPower changed me from pre-payment to credit metres a year ago. Despite them having done this and me then having pointed out they'd done it to them in numerous emails and phone calls to them since then, they've still got me listed as being on pre-payment metres and they haven't updated a central database about this either. So this morning, Sainsburys has sent me letters telling me they've switched me from a direct-debit payment plan to pay-as-you-go energy. One phone call to a Sainsburys member of staff, who clearly knew what she was doing (at one point she spoke to a different department to check what needed to be done but she handled the whole call herself), and she's taken all the details needed and assured me Sainsburys will now work on getting the databases updated to reflect that my house has credit not pre-payment metres. They did in one call, what NPower never managed in dozens of calls and emails. :T

Hi Lone Northern Lass,

Thank you for your post.

If you get in touch with us using the contact details on our page we'll get this updated for you and a correct final statement sent.

Kind Regards
Steve

Lone_Northern_Lass

Of course you will Steve.

If your company actually has the capacity to correct this issue why hasn't it done so on any of the multiple previous occasions I've contacted you by phone, email or your webpage messaging system? If I contact you again now, are your employees going to know by telepathy that I'm an ex-customer who's been complaining about you on the MSE forums and are they going to display vastly more competence than they have done in the past just because of that?

I have no confidence whatsoever in your company's ability to handle billing or customer services issues. You posting a couple of sentences asking me to contact you again isn't going to change that and isn't going to stop me telling people that I think you're abysmal and that you've caused me huge stress over the past 10 months.