Building contractors’'representative The National Federation of Builders (NFB) has welcomed the £2.5 million fine imposed by utilities regulator Ofgem on British Gas for breaching regulations with an inadequate complaints procedure.
Ofgems' criticism was particularly directed at British Gas' treatment of micro-businesses and serves as a stark warning to all utility providers to ensure best practice when dealing with customers.
NFB members, many of which are small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) have traditionally faced problems when requesting connections from and dealing with utility companies, and since 2006 the NFB has conducted a survey every two years examining the experiences of its members in the construction industry.
Julia Evans, Chief Executive of the NFB, said: "We are pleased that Ofgem is demonstrating its commitment to upholding the highest standards among utility providers. Anyone falling short of these standards should rightly be penalised and this fine is a warning to the utility industry to speed up improvements. Difficulties dealing with utilities companies cost the construction industry millions of pounds a year in delays and lost productivity."
The 2011 NFB Utility Survey, the largest of its kind, is an important piece of research which will help to inform the industry and government about improvements and enhance relationships with providers. The aim is to quantify the cost, both in terms of resources and direct financial loss, of problems in dealing with utilities companies. It will also assess whether there has been any improvement in service within the utilities sector over the past two years.
The current survey is out in the field and the report is expected to be launched in the autumn of 2011. This will highlight the impact of any improvements or need for further change in the industry.
During 2006 and 2008, the NFB surveyed its membership along with the members of other trade federations in order to gather exact evidence of the problems caused by the utility network companies. The results showed that there were extensive problems. This work resulted in a major regulatory review in electricity connections, as well as action by Ofwat, the water regulator.
(CD/GK)
Construction News
29/07/2011
Ofgem Fine Is A Stark Warning For Others Says NFB
.gif)

30/06/2025
Places for London, Transport for London's wholly owned property company, has announced Ballymore as its joint venture partner for the transformation of the Limmo Peninsula in east London.
The partnership will see the creation of around 1,400 new homes, spanning affordable, market, and rental tenur

30/06/2025
Balfour Beatty, in partnership with Laing O'Rourke and Bouygues Travaux Publics, has officially signed the Programme Alliance Agreement with Sizewell C to deliver the main civil works at the UK's next nuclear power station.
The three companies will operate as the Sizewell C Civil Works Alliance (CW

30/06/2025
Morgan Sindall Construction and Southampton City Council have officially broken ground on the £36 million transformation of the city's historic Outdoor Sports Centre, marking a major milestone in one of the region's most ambitious regeneration projects.
A ceremonial event to celebrate the start of

30/06/2025
Doncaster Council has officially received a new collection of affordable homes at the Nutwell Grange development in Armthorpe, as part of a housing partnership with housebuilder Persimmon.
Deputy Mayor Glyn Jones and Councillor Majid Khan visited the site this week to mark the handover of eleven on

30/06/2025
Winvic Construction Ltd has announced the shortlisting of seven awards at this year's prestigious 'Inspiring Women in Construction and Engineering Awards' (IWCE).
The shortlist celebrates both individual excellence and Winvic's company-wide commitment to advancing equity and inclusion in the built

30/06/2025
Alder Hey Children's Hospital and construction partner Morgan Sindall are celebrating a significant milestone in the development of a new facility that promises to transform care for children and young people.
The structure of the new building, which will house a state-of-the-art surgical neonatal

30/06/2025
Henry Boot PLC has announced that its land promotion and planning arm, Hallam Land Management, has completed the sale of a freehold site in Yalding, Kent, to housebuilder Fernham Homes.
The site has full planning permission for 112 residential units.
The sale has generated an ungeared internal ra

30/06/2025
A St Mungo's care home in Islington for people affected by homelessness has reopened its doors after a transformative refurbishment delivered by volunteers from delivery consultants and construction specialists Mace.
The six-week project, led by 46 Mace volunteers, saw the complete redesign and re-

30/06/2025
Galliford Try has marked a key construction milestone at its flagship project, The Rise, with a topping out ceremony celebrating the completion of the building’s structure at Guildford Crescent in the heart of Cardiff.
Once completed, The Rise will become Cardiff's tallest building, delivering 272

30/06/2025
Thousands more young people in the North East will be trained for careers in the fast-growing green energy sector thanks to an £8.48 million investment approved by North East Mayor Kim McGuinness and her Cabinet.
The funding will support the expansion of Newcastle College's Energy Academy in Wallse