Ofgem Investigation Into ScottishPower to Probe Four Areas of Customer Treatment

An Ofgem investigation into ScottishPower is under way, with the energy regulator examining whether one of Britain’s major suppliers has met its obligations to customers who are vulnerable or struggling to pay. The probe was announced on 5 November 2026.

What the Ofgem investigation will examine

According to reports from the Press Association, the regulator is looking at several distinct areas of ScottishPower’s conduct as a supplier.

The first is whether the company complied with its licence conditions on treating domestic customers fairly. That includes customers in vulnerable situations and those having trouble paying their bills.

The second is backbilling. Under the rules, suppliers face restrictions on billing customers for energy used more than 12 months earlier. Ofgem will check whether ScottishPower stuck to those limits.

The third is the company’s work with the Priority Services Register. This is the scheme that allows certain vulnerable customers to receive extra support from their supplier.

No findings yet

The announcement does not mean ScottishPower has done anything wrong. Ofgem stressed that opening an investigation does not imply it has made any findings of non-compliance. Investigations of this kind are a way of gathering and testing evidence, and the outcome could go either way.

An Ofgem spokesman set out the regulator’s expectations in general terms. “Ofgem expects suppliers to treat their customers fairly and respectfully, including ensuring bills are accurate and that appropriate support is offered for people in vulnerable circumstances,” he said. He added that Ofgem would “report on our findings after all relevant evidence has been assessed”. No timetable for that report was given in the coverage.

ScottishPower’s response

ScottishPower responded briefly. A spokesman said the company “confirms that it is working with Ofgem in relation to its customer service obligations.” The statement did not address the specific areas under scrutiny, and the company did not comment on the substance of any concerns.

Why the focus matters

The areas Ofgem has chosen reflect long-running pressure points in the retail energy market. Accurate billing, sensible limits on retrospective charges and proper help for people who cannot easily pay are core consumer protections. Priority Services Register arrangements matter most to households where a loss of supply or a billing error could cause real hardship.

The sources do not say what prompted the investigation, whether complaints triggered it, or what penalties might follow if breaches were found. Those details will probably emerge only as the process continues. For now, the key facts are the scope of the inquiry, the regulator’s insistence that no conclusions have been reached, and ScottishPower’s statement that it is cooperating.

Customers of ScottishPower do not need to take any action as a result of the announcement. Ofgem says it will publish its findings once it has assessed the evidence.

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File photo: Reflection of Scottish Power HQ Building in Santander Building at Vincent St, Glasgow, Scotland 04.jpg by Michal Klajban, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.