OpeOluwani Akintayo
Lagos — A review of the customer complaints statistics in newly released first-quarter report of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC has shown that complaints on estimated billing remains the most significant concern in the first quarter of this year as it had always been in previous years.
According to the report, during the first quarter of 2020, the eleven DisCos received a total of 204,506 complaints from consumers, out of which 22.69% were on estimated billing.
Following closely were metering and service interruption which accounted for 20.27% and 18.40% respectively.
Disconnection accounted for 12.06% of the complaints, load shedding 8.16%, voltage 7.29%, delayed connection 6.55%, while other complaints had 4.59%.
During the first quarter of 2020, the eleven DisCos received a total of 204,506 complaints from consumers, indicating 15.02% more complaints than those received during the fourth quarter of 2019.
In total, the DisCos attended to 188,749 complaints representing an increase of 1.84 percentage point from the preceding quarter.
The report shows that Ibadan and Port Harcourt DisCos had the lowest customers’ complaints resolution rates based on the proportion of complaints not addressed in the first quarter of 2020.
Similar to the categories of complaints received by DisCos, metering and billing issues dominated the category of complaints received by the NERC Forum Offices.
“This shows that billing and metering issues were mostly the complaints not satisfactorily resolved by the DisCos’ Complaints Handling Units in 2020/Q1” NERC said.
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The Commission said to ensure improved customer service delivery, the Commission continues to monitor and audit customers’ complaint handling and resolution process by DisCos as well as its Forum Offices which were set up to redress consumers’ complaints not adequately resolved to the customers’ satisfaction by the responsible DisCos.
The NERC established Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry, NESI situation room to address customers’ complaints and mitigate the impact of service disruptions
during the restriction of movement policy announced by the government to curb the spread of pandemic of COVID – 19.
The Commission said it is working towards establishing additional Forum Offices to be located in underserved states in a bid to achieve its objective
of establishing at least one Forum Office in each state of the federation and ensure that customer care is given adequate attention.
