Citizens Advice ranks best and worst energy suppliers, including British Gas, E.ON, EDF, and Octopus

Some of Britain's largest energy suppliers have been put to the test following an investigation from Citizens Advice. The charity has created a ranking system for both familiar energy firms and some lesser-known ones based on the quality of their customer service. It highlighted that there has been "sluggish improvement" in terms of the quality of customer service across the energy industry.

Some major firms that were hit by notably low rankings include Utilita and EDF which both landed at the bottom of the ranking, only being slightly surpassed by Octopus Energy. Ecotricity, which specialises in selling green energy, was the most favourable, surpassing major firms such as Ovo and Scottish Energy.

Dame Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: "We're bracing ourselves for another challenging winter. Whilst suppliers' customer service improved in the spring, firms need to continue upping their game to ensure people can access support in the colder months.

"With energy debt at a record high and the removal of previous support packages, the government must also urgently introduce targeted bill support that reflects the realities of people's energy needs."

The charity, whose data is based on information collected from April to June of this year, hihglighted that 60 per cent of customers were dealing with suppliers that landed beneath the average mark on its ranking. On average, ratings hit 3.07.

Full list of energy firms' customer service rankings

1. Ecotricity - 3.77
2. Utility Warehouse - 3.42
3. E (Gas and Electricity) - 3.42
4. Outfox The Market - 3.29
5. ScottishPower - 3.27
6. Ovo Energy - 3.27
7. Good Energy - 3.22
8. Co-operative Energy - 3.07
9. E.on Next - 3.07
10. So Energy - 3.05
11. British Gas - 2.94
12. Octopus Energy - 2.85
13. Rebel Energy - 2.68
14. EDF Energy - 2.41
15. Utilita - 1.86

It coms as industry regulator Ofgem looks into setting new rules so that it has more power to hold companies accountable for their quality of customer service. An Ofgem spokesperson said: "Energy consumers deserve an easy and reliable service from their supplier.

"We’ve been working hard with the sector to drive up standards and create a more customer-centric energy future. This includes strengthening our procedures to take firmer action against suppliers when things go wrong and toughening up the rules around customer bills for greater accuracy.

"It’s clear the work of government, regulator, consumer groups and suppliers is starting to make a difference and customer satisfaction is slowly rising. But there is lots more work to be done to ensure exceptional customer service is the norm across the board and the energy sector is among the best sectors for how customers are treated. We will use all the powers at our disposal to get there.”