Outfox does a U-turn on bills, now it must put customers first
IT SEEMS that a little common sense has finally returned to the heads of those who run energy supplier Outfox the Market. About time too. For the past couple of months, this Leicester-based company has been seriously testing the patience of customers with a series of moves that would score zero if committed on Strictly Come Dancing – Bruno Tonioli, for sure, would have a tantrum.
It has resulted in the formation of a 1,000-strong ‘protest’ group on Facebook, a deluge of complaints on review website Trustpilot and many customers quitting the company in anger. A far cry from late 2017 when Outfox burst on to the scene like an energetic cub with some of the most competitive tariffs in the market.
As revealed in last week’s edition of The Mail on Sunday, Outfox has angered many customers by increasing the amount it collects from them via direct debit through the introduction of a ‘new variable scheme’. This meant higher monthly payments during winter, lower ones over summer (April through to September).
The move has been woefully executed, resulting in some customers being told their
monthly payments would increase sixfold. This is despite their accounts being in credit. When they have tried to get the company to see sense, they have often been met with a wall of silence – or threatened with £25 fines if they cancelled the direct debit.
One customer who contacted The Mail on Sunday last week said he had received three emails from the company since September informing him of payment changes – £900 a month (from £545), then £763 (after complaining) and finally £1,054. Based on usage, he believes the monthly sum should be nearer £735 (he has a six-bedroom house). Pointedly, he adds: ‘They [Outfox] seem like kids playing at running a business. They refuse to answer calls or respond to emails.’
He is spot on. Customer service standards have plunged with website EnergyHelpline giving it a ranking of one (five being best) – its worst score. Thankfully, Outfox is now in reverse mode.
Late last week, it started emailing customers telling them it would be abandoning the new variable payment scheme and returning to a fixed payment direct debit policy. The return of the old payment scheme, it says, will apply to all customers on its fixed and variable tariffs from February next year. They will be told of their new direct debit payment next month and from February it will remain the same for 12 months. Interestingly, the email is sent in the name of Keith Bastian, Outfox’s chief executive. He uses it to apologise for the slip in customer service standards, saying: ‘As a consequence of the initial change in our direct debit policy, the company has experienced a significant demand in its customer care services (call volumes and emails) and we have worked hard to meet this. However, I accept this has had a negative influence on our standard of service and for this I personally and sincerely apologise.’
He ends his missive by reassuring customers that ‘normal service will resume in time for the new year’. Judging by the mountain of correspondence I have received from disgruntled Outfox customers over the past few days (some of whom were so angry they were even emailing me on Christmas Day), Bastian has a monumental amount of work to do in order to restore his customers’ faith in the company.
For a start, the revised payments need to be fair. Secondly, customers must be allowed to claim back large credits on their accounts. Finally, customer service standards must improve tenfold.