Shocking Truth: How Poor Customer Service Costs Households Nearly £300 Million Annually

The Financial Toll of Poor Customer Service

Households are losing up to £230 a year due to poor customer service, according to recent research. An astonishing £298 million and 27.3 million hours are wasted by customers who cannot get their issues resolved, with many giving up entirely.

Researchers from Which?, a consumer magazine, surveyed over 4,000 people to assess the impact of customer service in the energy and broadband sectors on households.

In the energy sector, 17% of customers who reached out to a provider reported giving up on resolving their issues due to the difficulties faced. Of these, nearly 32% found themselves financially worse off, averaging a loss of £137.

For broadband customers, one in seven gave up seeking resolutions, with 30% of those reporting an average loss of £93.

The Scale of the Problem

Estimates suggest that 1.2 million energy customers lost £166 million due to poor customer service across the UK, while an additional 950,000 consumers lost £89 million after abandoning contact with their broadband providers.

Previous Bad Experiences

Which? also noted that some customers avoided contacting their providers due to prior negative experiences, adding another £43 million to the estimated losses, culminating in a staggering total of £298 million.

Around one-third of those who contacted a firm reported experiencing at least one problem that wasted their time, with common complaints including:

• Inability to reach customer service
• Disconnected calls
• Being passed between departments

Long wait times were also a frequent issue, with energy customers losing an average of 112 minutes and broadband customers losing 1 hour and 38 minutes.

Additionally, approximately 8.9 million energy consumers and 9.2 million broadband consumers suffered emotional distress due to inadequate customer service.

Rocio Concha, director of policy and advocacy at Which?, emphasized, “Our research highlights the dire state of customer service in the energy and broadband sectors, with nearly £300 million lost to poor service in a single year. The impact on wasted time and emotional wellbeing is equally concerning.” Concha asserted that sub-standard customer service is unacceptable, especially in essential sectors like energy and broadband that millions rely on daily.