UK energy companies’ reputation salvaged in 2023 with jump in customer praise after price falls - but no let up in negative reviews for water utilities

• New data from Trustpilot has revealed energy companies in the UK have witnessed a dramatic increase in positive sentiment in reviews so far this year as bills have started to fall  

• But there’s no let up in negative reviews for water companies in 2023 as they face criticism for customer service and difficulty over meter readings    

• 36 million service reviews were submitted to the platform by consumers across the globe in the first three quarters of 2023 - a 15 percent increase on the same period last year 

• The data comes from the Trustpilot’s ‘Online Review Index’ which is a quarterly deep dive tracking consumer sentiment across reviews in different retail sectors 

LONDON, UK - 8 November 2023, for immediate release New data from global review platform Trustpilot has revealed a dramatic turnaround in the fortunes of energy companies as the price of gas and electricity has fallen in 2023. Over the first three quarters of this year positive sentiment in reviews of energy companies has risen by 14 percent, whereas negative sentiment has halved, down from 28 percent to just 14 percent. It represents a tangible reversal of fortune for a sector that has faced intense scrutiny ever since prices started to spiral in late 2021. 

In 2022, negative sentiment in reviews increased by 5 percent as the cost of living crisis, exacerbated by energy price cap increases, continued to place financial strain on households across the UK; but it appears that trend has been reversed this year. The reduction in prices has undoubtedly helped to increase positive sentiment in reviews, but it appears that energy companies have also improved the way they interact with their customers. Negative reviews that mention customer service have fallen by just under a quarter in 2023 so far, compared to last year as a whole. 

The outlook for energy firms may be changing, but water companies still have a long way to go. In the utilities sector, they have bucked the positive trend with negative sentiment in reviews remaining at the same level this year, and positive sentiment dropping slightly. Continued problems with customer service and issues over reading meters are some of the biggest factors contributing to negative sentiment. 

Mieke De Schepper, Chief Commercial Officer at Trustpilot, said: “The fall in energy bills we’re seeing in the UK is helping to turnaround the reputation of energy companies, but analysis of our data suggests they are listening to the concerns of their customers in greater detail than ever before. Having a trustworthy reputation is still, and will always be, one of the biggest factors influencing which companies consumers choose to spend their hard earned money with across all sectors. Customer service in the energy industry appears to be improving, whereas water companies need to take note and up their game, focusing on listening to the concerns of their customers to improve trust and transparency.”     

To find out more, visit www.trustpilot.com. 

-ENDS-

Methodology

Insights for the ‘Online Review Index’ were drawn from aggregated consumer review data held by Trustpilot. Review texts and the selected keywords or relevant topics were analysed within their contexts and scored for sentiment (positive, neutral or negative), using cutting-edge Natural Language Processing techniques that draw on advanced statistical methods.

About Trustpilot

Trustpilot was founded in 2007 with a vision to create an independent currency of trust.

A digital platform that brings businesses and consumers together to foster trust and inspire collaboration. We are free to use, open to everybody, and built on transparency.

Trustpilot hosts reviews to help consumers shop with confidence and deliver rich insights to help businesses improve the experience they offer. The more consumers use our platform and share their own opinions, the richer the insights we offer businesses, and the more opportunities they have to earn the trust of consumers, from all around the world.

Over 213 million consumer reviews of businesses and products of over 893,000 domains have been posted on Trustpilot, and those numbers are growing by more than one review per second.  

Trustpilot has over 850 employees and is headquartered in Copenhagen, with operations in New York, Denver, London, Edinburgh, Melbourne, Berlin, Vilnius, Milan, and Amsterdam.