Complaints and compensation?? for energy supplier

Bob_3-3

I have been seeking an apology and compensation for a catalogue of problems with a national energy supplier regarding the fitting of a new central heating boiler. I wrote the letter below on the 26th June, and was eventually contacted on the 26th July by someone from this company's service department. Three weeks later I was offered 10% compensation of the £1850 bill. On the 14th August I wrote to the company as I still hadn't received a bill; on the 19th August I received a bill for £1892.38!

Given that my problems relate back to April, I would appreciate any advice on how to progress this complaint and views as to whether the initial level of compensation offered is appropriate.

(NB I have removed references to the name of the company and individuals within it)

Many thanks


"I am writing to express my disappointment with the extremely poor service provided by ... over the last 3 months, and to request financial compensation for the loss of time/earnings, inconvenience and distress caused.

In April 2005, my boiler broke down and I contacted ... to arrange a repair, under the flat rate £130 scheme. The boiler was promptly fixed on the 6th April by ... (engineer no. ...). On request, a quote was provided for a ... replacement boiler as we were advised that our then current boiler was nearing the end of its working life.

I followed up this quote two weeks later, speaking with ... (within the Combi-Express dept), to confirm that I would like to proceed with the purchase and installation as soon as possible. I was advised, however, that the engineer had not loaded the 'lead' details and the order could not be completed until these were supplied. I was assured that I would be called within a couple of days, once the engineer had been contacted and the necessary details loaded onto the system. Unfortunately this phone call never materialised and over the course of the next 6 weeks I spoke to numerous individuals, all of whom assured me that the problem was being dealt with, but none of whom actually found a resolution. By the end of May I was becoming seriously concerned that my boiler might break down again before a replacement was installed. I was particularly concerned as we have a 5 month old baby and therefore reliable heating and hot water are of paramount importance.

During the week commencing 30th May this problem was being be dealt by ..., who was clearly very sympathetic and was kind enough to call me each day. However, by Friday 3rd June, no resolution had been found and ... assured me the issue would be escalated to a more senior person within .... As I had feared might happen, on Saturday 4th June my boiler broke down for a second time. I immediately contacted ... but was directed from one department to another and spoke to a succession of phone advisers within customer services (...), sales (...), repairs (...) – none of whom seemed prepared to take ownership of the problem and assist me in finding a speedy resolution. I eventually spoke to ... at 3.40pm who, after a few hours, assured me that an engineer would visit that day by no later than 8pm to fix the boiler. As I had booked a restaurant and baby sitter, I cancelled both and waited for the engineer to arrive. However, by 8pm no engineer had att!
ended my property nor did I receive a phone call. The next morning (Sunday 5th June), at 10am, I called ... again, this time speaking to ..., who assured me that a manager would call back within 1 hour. I then spoke to ..., a manager in Stockport, who explained that due to competing demands the engineer had not been able to attend the previous day but had tried to call at 5.15pm. I queried this as I had been at home all day and not received a call nor had a message been left on the ansaphone.

I was promised that an engineer would attend by no later than 6pm that day. I explained that I needed to go out and asked that I be called on my mobile when the engineer would be due. I returned home at 5.25pm to discover that the engineer had left a calling card and a member of the customer service department had phoned my landline rather than mobile. Again, I phoned ... and was advised they had made an error but were unable to send another engineer that day. Finally, on Monday 6th June, the engineer attended my property and fixed the boiler.

I contacted ... on Monday 6th June to attempt to resolve the problem of the missing ‘lead’ details to secure a date for a replacement boiler. By Monday afternoon I had secured a date for the fitting of the ... replacement – Thursday 9th June. However, I was advised that the boiler would need to be brought to the property the day prior to fitting (anytime in the morning). I took Wednesday 8th June as annual leave in order to receive the boiler, but by 1pm no delivery had taken place nor had I received a call. I contacted ... and was advised that I had been misinformed and that the boiler would actually be delivered on the same day as the fitting, And therefore I had needlessly taken the Wednesday off work. On Thursday 9th June the replacement boiler was successfully fitted.

In summary, my complaint and claim for compensation is based on three related incidents:-

1. Failure to follow up quotation for a replacement boiler – in excess of 20 phone calls over 6 weeks, bureaucratic and inflexible system, lack of ownership and follow up by ..., lack of action resulting in no boiler for 48 hours

2. Failure to fix broken boiler – numerous phone calls and waiting, 2 failed bookings for an engineer to attend, a cancelled restaurant meal and baby sitter, no hot water or heating for 48 hours, unacceptable distress for my wife and 5 month old daughter.

3. Delivery and installation of new boiler – poor advise resulted in yet more wasted time and the unnecessary use of annual leave.

As a long-standing customer of ..., I am extremely disappointed by the standard of service and support I received. I was particularly disappointed by the fragmented and disjointed nature of your telephone support. Each phone call would be answered by a different operator (often in a different call centre); frequently information from previous calls did not appear to have been recorded on your IM&T system; I had to repeatedly provide the full chronology of events; I was repeatedly redirected to call different phone numbers (often to be sent full circle); and operators were reluctant to give their full names or follow up on actions personally. There some positive aspects – a few of the many people I dealt with seemed genuinely concerned and equally frustrated; my old boiler was eventually fixed with no charge; and the replacement boiler was eventually fitted successfully by two professional and courteous engineers. Although there were some positive attempts made to remedy problems these were severely overshadowed by the shortcomings of ....

Please respond to my complaint and request for compensation within 7 days."

mousegreatest388

I think if you are looking for compensation, I would start off with a friendlier tone to your letter and make it a lot shorter.

I would also make some payment towards the cost say 50% or 60% (depending on the compensation you are asking for) and enclose with the letter and bill.

I think you should also state how much your day's holiday is worth.
ie if you are paid £10 per hour for 7 hours, actually quote £70
You should do the same for phone calls and any other expenses.
Then any other costs or compensation you are claiming.

You can then state that you will pay the final balance when all your problems and expenses have been addressed.

I would also mention their promises and the names of the staff you spoke to if you have their names.