\u201cWe asked people to let us know if they had experienced big increases in their Powershop bills, and we received a record number of responses to a call out.<\/p>\n
\u201cMany people are unhappy because of large jumps in their Powershop bills, and there\u2019s ongoing concerns about the new app launched earlier this year too.<\/p>\n
\u201cConsumer runs independent power price comparison site Powerswitch – in recent months we have observed large numbers choosing to move away from Powershop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lisa Hannifin, chief customer officer at Powershop owner Meridian, apologised for its phone and email response times.<\/p>\n
She said the company had recently brought on new customer service staff to help, and wait times were coming down. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re working hard to turn things around as quickly as we can, and getting back to the service that Powershop is known for.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know the new app experience looks different and will take some getting used to, and we acknowledge that some of the new app experiences have created some confusion and frustration. The old Powershop app was much-loved by our\u202fcustomers,\u202fbut it was getting increasingly difficult to keep up with changes in products and services, including those now required by the market to be offered.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor those early customers,\u202fwe\u2019re\u202fsorry the experience\u202fwasn\u2019t as good as it should have been.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hannifin said the company had paused migration to the new app while it brought it up to what the\u202fprevious\u202fapp provided, and incorporated customer feedback. But she said the change had not affected Powershop\u2019s pricing, which was in line with what the company had communicated to customers earlier this year. It considered its pricing competitive. <\/p>\n
\u201cWinter is a time of high\u202fuse,\u202fand we know that some people are noticing larger-than-usual power bills. Our seasonal pricing has always gone up slightly in autumn and winter when demand is higher, and down again over spring and summer – it\u2019s a long-standing feature of Powershop. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut there are no surprises \u2013 you can always see what your prices will be month to month. A large proportion\u202fof the increase people are experiencing is due the energy increase, which is us, as well as increases to network and distribution charges, which are outside of our control.”<\/p>\n
She encouraged people with queries to speak to the customer team.<\/p>\n
On Friday morning, Powershop updated customers on Facebook. But nearly 200 customers had responded within hours on the post, the majority raising issues with incorrect bills. Others complained about being unable to get hold of anyone at the company.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe new app is horrible, you have doubled the power bill, taken away 300 credit and claim we now owe 300, none of it makes sense… I have emailed and complained but do better so many people are out here struggling and you guys have added to that stress,\u201d one post says.<\/p>\n
Another says: \u201cMy daily power cost has gone up $3 to $5 A DAY since the app changed. Zero answers from Powershop. No replies. No way to contact. The most botched roll out imaginable.\u201d<\/p>\n
And another reads: \u201cPowershop used to be amazing. We are in the process with a tonne of other customers switching out. Our bills went from less than 300 to almost 600!\u201d<\/p>\n
Others say they\u2019ve been trying to move houses and haven\u2019t been able to get hold of the company to do so.<\/p>\n
The \u201cFeature Friday\u201d post provided customers with an update on improvements to its app, including around billing and payment methods.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re still experiencing longer-than-usual wait times while we work through a high volume of enquiries,\u201d the company said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re continuing to grow the team and bring on more people to help get response times back to normal. Thanks for your patience while we get there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Consumer NZ said its data showed hundreds of people have used Powerswitch to move away from Powershop between April and June this year.<\/p>\n