Urgent call for Ofgem to act after debt collectors contact 130,000 Spark Energy customers

MoneySavingExpert.com can reveal that following the takeover of Spark Energy by Ovo Energy, 130,000 customers have been contacted by debt collectors, even though many have continued making normal payments and had no idea they owed any money.

For more information on this issue, including case studies and what affected customers should do, please visit our news story.

Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert.com said: "This is an outrageous situation and we’re calling on Ofgem to urgently impose a freeze on all of this debt collection action.

"For many people who were simply operating their account as they were supposed to and paying their direct debits to suddenly get emails from debt collectors is intimidating, fearsome and at worst can risk impacting some people’s mental health and stress levels.

"You would expect to be contacted by the company that had taken over your supply and to see your direct debit being altered to make up for any debts. In the normal course of events if you run up a little bit of debt with an energy company then small alterations are made to your direct debit. You do not suddenly have the debt called in.

"The Ofgem safety net is supposed to ensure continuity of supply and operation. This clearly falls foul of the spirit of that safety net if not the letter of it.

"We know people who’ve got these emails and understandably their instincts are this is a scam or a fraud as they’re not aware of any debts. And we must be careful no action is taken against these people due to the collective dire communication.

"I would urge Ofgem not to be a passive bystander and simply allow energy users to come to harm due to prevarication. It needs to intervene."