Are npower delaying FiT payments deliberately?

Terrylw1, Andy_WSM,
I would, of course, wait until the payment was in the account before making the Ombudsman's complaint! My reason for pursuing it, if I proceed, would be because I don't think npower should get away with the way they have behaved without being answerable to someone. Since they don't seem to listen to customers perhaps the regulator may have more influence in making them conduct their business better.

I do understand that there was massive uptake of FiT and that companies (inc npower) may have been taken by surprise and overwhelmed and I would accept that could cause delays in the short term, but nearly six months later that is absolutely no excuse not to have responded appropriately.

Npower's own procedures (or lack of them) have contributed masssivley to the problem. It is extremely difficult to get through on the phone (0845 no!) so they recommend email - which they sometimes answer, sometimes not, so follow ups have to be sent and the snowball grows. Staff training appears to have been poor at best - I was once put through to someone in the "FiT Overflow Team" who told me he couldn't tell me about my application, couldn't tell me who could, didn't have a supervisor I could talk to and recommended I call in again and hope I "get put through to someone else"! When I politely said that wasn't very helpful, especially as I had bee waiting 20 minutesto talk to him, he hung up! That of course necessitated a follow up email etc

Requesting information on paper forms and then,once it has been sent, requesting it again, adds further to the paper mountain and customer frustration. Telling customers it's quicker to do things by email and then sending out paper forms and demanding their speedy return for information already sent electronically does more of the same. Sending out forms dated three weeks before the posting date suggests inefficiency somewhere along the line!
Promising to sort things out and failing to do so lets customers down further and adds to the workload ( when customer has to chase and another response is required), the delays and the customer dissatisfaction.

Npower has a very simple online system for submitting domestic meter readings. I can't see why a similar approach couldn't have been adopted for FiT, they can have all the other details they need when the account is set up. Their website could have been used much more effectivelyto convey basic general infromation and save unnecessary calls. It's basic management not rocket science.

They would have saved themselves much time and effort and their customer much delay and frustration if they had planned a more streamlined and efficient system and recruited and trained sufficient staff since the first rush. I assume they are smart enough to know that, so I have to wonder if they have other reasons for adopting such lousy, inefficient, repetitive processes which they know are causing customers, delay, frustration and anxiety.

Perhaps a few Ombudsman's complaints might help them think focus on how badly they are performing and help them to improve.

Drusy,
I'm quite calm and measured about, it, sorry if that didn't come across in the posts! But the more I think about it the more I think npower are knowingly letting customers down, since I find it hard to believe I'm the only one who has been in this situation. It is on that basis that I may well still make a complaint. Of course the other side of the coin is that these matters are so time consuming and wearing that one is tempted just to sigh deeply and move on...but perhaps that's waht the likes of npower are counting on!