Complaints Procedure
Customers are at the heart of our business at Ruby and we work hard to make sure you receive an excellent customer experience. However, we recognise that things can sometimes go wrong and if you feel like we have not succeeded, we want to hear from you. Not only will your feedback help us put things right, but it will ensure we continue to improve our service for other customers too.
We aim to resolve any problems in a fair and straightforward way and have put together the following Complaints Procedure to outline what you can expect if you raise a complaint with us. This procedure is designed to ensure complaints are handled in the most efficient way and to help us deliver consistency in the service we provide.
There are three key stages to our complaint’s procedure, details of which are set out below.
Stage One - Get in touch
Our specialist Customer Services team are available Monday to Friday, 8.30am – 5.30pm. They will work with you to resolve any issues.
Live chat: Please click ‘Chat to us’ at the bottom of the webpage.
Phone: 0344 5678 427
Email: complaintsupport@rubyenergy.uk
Address: Complaints Team, Ruby Energy, Parkside Stand, Fleetwood Town Football Club, Park Avenue, Fleetwood, Lancashire, FY7 6TX
Face to face: At the above address*
*Please contact us by phone or in writing in advance to arrange this. For security reasons, we cannot accommodate customer visits without prior agreement.
What to expect:
If we are unable to resolve your complaint straight away, we will provide you with a unique complaint reference number. A member of our Customer Services team will contact you by phone or email to provide an update or resolution within 3 working days.
If your complaint remains unresolved after this timeframe, your complaint will be assigned to a named complaint handler. Complaints reaching this stage are generally resolved within a further 10 working days.
Please note – some more complex issues may take longer to resolve and if we are unable to meet this timescale, we will contact you and advise on a new date for resolution, providing a reason for why this change is required.
What are the possible outcomes from a complaint?
If, after reviewing your complaint, we identify that a mistake has been made, we will try to work with you to put things right. You can expect anyone, or a combination, of the following:
- An apology
- A clear explanation of the circumstances surrounding your complaint
- Details of any remedial action taken to resolve the problem
- A goodwill payment in appropriate circumstances
Stage Two - Escalate your complaint
Our aim is to agree on a mutually acceptable resolution with you when you first contact us. If you remain unhappy and wish to progress your complaint further, or you have any suggestions on how we could improve our service, you can ask the Operations Director to assign your complaint to a senior representative for review via the postal address below:
Email: OperationsDirector@rubyenergy.uk
Address:
Operations Director, Ruby Energy, Parkside Stand, Fleetwood Town Football Club, Park Avenue, Fleetwood, Lancashire, FY7 6TX
You will receive an acknowledgement, from the senior representative appointed within five working days.
Your dedicated representative will then own, and aim to reach a satisfactory solution to, your complaint within a further 10 working days. If we are unable to do so, we will send you a ‘deadlock letter’ explaining our final position and your right to seek independent advice should you wish.
Stage Three - Independent Review
If you feel we have not resolved your complaint after stages one and two above, you may get additional support to help evaluate your complaint from the Ombudsman Services: Energy (OSE) if you are classed as a micro business*.
The OSE is there to help resolve disputes between energy suppliers and their customers. It is free to use their services, and they are totally independent – so they do not take sides, and make their decision based only on the information available.
You can take your complaint to OSE if it is not resolved within eight weeks since you first raised it with us or you have received a ‘deadlock’ letter from us (whichever is first). This letter may also be referred to as a ‘full and final position’ letter and it outlines our final position in relation to your complaint.
If you agree with their decision, we will be required to implement their final decision. This may mean we have to apologise, explain what has gone wrong, correct the problem or give you a financial award. You do not have to accept their decision.
* A non-domestic consumer is defined as a micro business, and qualifies to receive OSE services, if they meet one of the following criteria:
- employs fewer than 10 employees (or their full-time equivalent) and has an annual turnover or balance sheet no greater than €2 million; or
- uses no more than 100,000 kWh of electricity per year; or
- uses no more than 293,000 kWh of gas per year.
Phone: 0330 440 1624
Fax: 0330 440 1625
Email: enquiry@energyombudsman.org
Website: https://www.energyombudsman.org/
Address: Energy Ombudsman, P.O. Box 966, Warrington, WA4 9DF
Please remember to include your Ruby Energy account reference in all correspondence with the OSE. This number can be found on any of your invoices.
Additional Independent Information Sources
Citizens Advice
The Citizens Advice consumer service provides free, confidential, and impartial advice online over the phone, and in person for free. This includes advice on consumer rights on their consumer helpline.
Phone: 0345 404 0506
Website: www.adviceguide.org.uk
Business Debtline
A charity that gives free, impartial advice to small businesses and those that are self-employed.
Phone: 0800 197 6026
Website: www.businessdebtline.org
Ofgem
The way energy suppliers including Ruby must handle complaints from customers is set out by the gas and electricity market regulator, Ofgem. These rules are called The Gas and Electricity (Consumer Complaints Handling Standards) Regulations 2008 and you can view an online copy here. We would be happy to provide you with a hard copy, free of charge, upon request from our Customer Services Team.