What Should You Do When Selling Energy to Vulnerable Customers?

One of the biggest responsibilities for an energy supply business is the protection of their vulnerable consumers. We look at some of the things you, as a business should be doing to support those who need it most and what you need to do when selling to vulnerable customers.

The UK population is getting older and by 2038 the number of over 65s will reach 24.2%.

In 2017-18, it was reported that one in five people in the UK (13.3 million) were living with a limiting mental or physical disability.

The most reported impairments by disabled people are; lack of mobility (49%), loss of stamina, breathing, fatigue (37%), dexterity issues (26%), and mental health problems (25%). It is also estimated that one million people in the UK will have dementia by 2025 and this will increase to two million by 2050.

Vulnerable customers are exposed to a greater risk of experiencing harm, loss, or disadvantage such as:

·Not being able to seek external assistance or advice

·Making uninformed or impaired decisions

·Unfair treatment

·Unable to choose appropriate tariffs

With more consumers expected to be in a vulnerable situation in the future, energy supply companies need to ensure they can support their needs effectively and in a sensitive manner.

Because of this, the government and Ofgem want the industry to create and deliver products and services with consumers who may need additional assistance in mind to avoid exacerbating vulnerable situations.

Suppliers are obligated to proactively identify their customers who might benefit from additional support.

Anyone can find themselves in a vulnerable situation either from ill health, loss of employment or other factors. As a result, energy companies need to ensure that they have the resources and services in place to support their customers in such positions.

What is the PSR? –

To attain a licence all suppliers and electricity distribution companies must maintain a Priority Service Register for their most vulnerable customers. Gas distribution companies must establish and implement operations and procedures to identify customers who may be eligible for extra support and services. All companies must ensure data is accurate and up to date.

The PSR is a free service provided by all energy suppliers and network operators to vulnerable customers. For a person to be added to the register they must fit the following criteria:

·Be of pensionable age (over the age of 65)

·Are disabled or suffer from a chronic illness

·Have a long-term medical condition

·Have a hearing or visual impairment or additional communication needs

·Are in a vulnerable situation including customers with certain mental health issues that may impact their understanding of their energy bills

·Temporary circumstances where they may need extra support

·Families with children 5 years old or younger

For more information about the PSR click here.

We’ve all been there, left waiting on the phone for what feels like an eternity just to get some answers from our energy supplier.

For the most vulnerable this is less than ideal. Urgent responses could be needed and long call waiting times can exacerbate stress and a feeling of helplessness. A recent report released by consumer watchdog Which? Showed that many customers are kept on hold for more than 20 minutes. Read more here

Energy suppliers also need to train their staff properly on how to deal with vulnerable customers as their needs are likely to be different from those of other customers. Rude and impatient customer service will do little for the businesses reputation and makes it more likely for customers to switch to another supplier.

Another common complaint faced by energy suppliers is inaccurate billing. This is annoying at the best of times, but for those who have difficulty with numeracy and literacy, this can be particularly stressful.

The links between mental health problems and financial difficulty are well-known. Energy suppliers need to be aware of mental health problems so that they can take a proactive approach to consumers with payment problems and understand consumers’ circumstances and their ability to pay arrears. Suppliers also need to ensure that their customers understand any repayment arrangements they set up and keep in regular contact.

In a report published at the tail end of 2019, the charity Citizens Advice highlighted that 60% of all complaints about energy suppliers was because of inaccurate billing.

As their chief executive said, “Every energy supply company should be able to provide its customers with an accurate bill. It’s the very least people should expect. The inability of some suppliers to get this right causes a great deal of unnecessary stress for customers.”

Introducing new processes and technology can help a supplier reduce the likelihood of making billing errors. Encouraging customers to adopt smart meters will also cut errors due to them no longer having to manually submit meter readings.

Suppliers should use Dyball’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) System to deliver more accurate billing. Dyball’s Energy CRM System manages customer billing by exception, with bill runs fully automated through the system, and errors and exceptions quarantined to be resolved by your billing team.

To experience our Energy CRM and Billing System via a demo please contact us today.

More and more energy suppliers are now implementing new and/or alternative services for those with disabilities or are vulnerable. For example, consumers that are hard of hearing will benefit from the option of online chat support.

Other options can include:

• Large-format or Braille bills
• Advanced notice of service interruption
• Priority in a power cut
• Quarterly meter readings
• Yearly gas safety checks
• Meter relocation for better access

Energy supply companies need to consider their consumers’ ability to pay their bills. Vulnerable customers, in particular, can struggle to pay on time or stay in credit. For most people, it doesn’t take much for them to fall behind. A redundancy or illness can easily cause difficulties. As such, suppliers need to take steps to effectively asses a customer’s ability to pay and must take these factors into account when it comes to creating debt repayment plans.

Ofgem’s six key principles for suppliers are:

1.Have appropriate credit management policies and guidelines in place

2.Make proactive contact with customers

3.Understand an individual customer’s ability to pay

4.Set repayment rates based on ability to pay

5.Ensure the customer understands the arrangement

6.Monitor arrangements after they have been set up

Your staff who work with vulnerable consumers daily will encounter a wide variety of different issues and their effects.

Issues such as domestic and family abuse, terminal illness, addiction to drugs and/or alcohol and even suicide are all things that staff can and do encounter.

Encountering these issues daily can and will have an impact on staff well-being. Those employees affected by these cases are less likely to be able to their job effectively or support consumers as well as they could.

Every organisation should ensure that its vulnerability strategy not only considers its consumers but also the staff working to support them through difficult and challenging circumstances.

Establishing links with charities that deal with the effects listed above will provide staff with a place they can turn to, but also a place they can, in turn direct, consumers who need specialised support.

With government figures predicting that one million people in the UK will have dementia by 2025 and two million by 2050, the need for energy supply companies to get their processes and systems in place to support the most vulnerable in our society has never been so important.

Add your customers to the Priority Service Register with Dyball’s CRM

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