Complaints Procedure

At BES Commercial Gas we value our customers and endeavour to solve any issues surrounding your account as quickly as possible. In order to ensure complaints are handled in the most efficient way we have a published structured approach and this helps us provide consistency in servicing any customers that have a reason to complain.

This procedure also allows us to measure our performance in dealing with complaints from customers and quantify customer satisfaction once the complaint has been resolved.

Making a Complaint

At BES Commercial Gas we resolve the majority of our customer issues within our Customer Services Team and we aim to resolve these at point of contact wherever possible. If you have any reason to complain you can make a complaint in writing, by fax, email, telephone or by visiting our office in Blackpool.

If you are writing, faxing or emailing your complaint please provide your telephone number if a response by telephone would be convenient. If you are emailing, please state if a reply by email is required and, if not, please provide a full postal address.

Contact Details

By Post:
Business Energy Solutions Ltd,
3 Darwin Court,
Hawking Place,
Blackpool,
Lancashire
FY2 0JW

By Telephone: 0844 5678 427 (during office hours)
By Fax: 0844 5678 428
By Email: customerservices@besgas.co.uk

Our office hours are between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday to Friday.  You can fax, e-mail or write to us at any time.

What are the possible outcomes from a complaint?

We will deal with all complaints quickly, courteously and fairly. BES Commercial Gas always aims to provide the highest standards of service and account management but at times mistakes can happen If after receiving your complaint it becomes clear a mistake has been made you can expect any one, or a combination, of the following:

1. An apology
2. A full explanation
3. Details of any appropriate remedial action taken
4. An award of compensation in appropriate circumstances.

If you are not happy with the Initial Response

We realise that although our business target is to solve all issues to the full satisfaction of our customers this is not always possible at a Customer Services level. Therefore if you wish to make a complaint regarding an issue we have not resolved to your satisfaction please follow the steps of our internal complaints escalation procedure below.

Complaints Escalation Procedure

Step one

Discuss the complaint with our Customer Services Team Leader. The team leader will review your account and all correspondence surrounding your issue. The team leader will then issue you with a resolution timescale (maximum 10 days) and will update you throughout the review should a resolution be reached or the original timescale need extending. Unfortunately the Team Leader is unable to look at your account until the Customer Services Team has been given the opportunity to resolve the issue.

Customer Service Team Leader
0844 5678 427

Step two

If once you have received the decision of the Customer Services Team Leader you are still not happy, you may escalate it to be reviewed by our Customer Services Manager. Any such escalation is to be requested to the Customer Services Team Leader and the Customer Services Manager will contact you by your desired communication method (normally phone) within 24 hours.

The Customer Services Manager will then work to reach an immediate resolution or advise you of our planned course of action to resolve your complaint (maximum 5 days). Unfortunately the Team Manager is unable to look at your account until the Customer Services Team Leader has been given the opportunity to resolve the issue (Step 1).

Step three

The vast majority of our complaints never reach this stage, but if for any reason you’re still unhappy with our decisions, or you have any suggestions on how we could improve our Customer Services, you can write to our Head of Customer Complaints. Unfortunately Head of Customer Complaints is unable to look at your account until the Customer Services Manager has been given the opportunity to resolve the issue (Step 2).

Head of Customer Complaints
customercomplaints@besgas.co.uk
Business Energy Solutions Ltd,
3 Darwin Court,
Hawking Place,
Blackpool,
Lancashire FY2 0JW

At this final stage we will endeavour to reach a satisfactory solution within 10 working days but if we are unable to do so we will send you a deadlock letter identifying our final position. You are then free to seek independent advice should you wish.

Arbitration

Consumer Direct
Consumer Direct is the government-funded telephone and online service offering information and advice on consumer issues. Consumer Direct is funded by the Office of Fair Trading and delivered in partnership with Local Authority Trading Standards Services.

Consumer Direct:
Telephone adviser: 0845 404 0506
Welsh-speaking adviser: 08454 04 05 05
Minicom: 0845 123 1384
Web: www.consumerdirect.gov.uk

Energy Ombudsman
The ombudsman service has been set up to sort out disagreements between gas and electricity companies (energy companies) and their domestic and small business customers. In order to qualify for the Ombudsman Services you must fulfil the following criteria:

• Complained to BES Gas and exhausted the complaints procedure above
• Received a deadlock letter or 8 weeks have passed since you first complained
• Employ fewer than ten people
• An annual turnover not exceeding 2 million euros
• A business that uses less than 200,000 kWh gas per year

Energy Ombudsman:
Telephone adviser: 01925 530 263
Fax: 01925 530 264
Web: www.energy-ombudsman.org.uk
Email: enquiries@energy-ombudsman.org.uk
Energy Ombudsman
PO Box 966
Warrington
WA4 9DF