Champion Energy regains Texas service title. Houston-based Champion Energy Services received the highest overall rating for Texas in the 2015 J.D. Power Retail Electric Provider Residential Customer Satisfaction Study. The annual survey rates retail electric providers in the areas of price, communications, enrollment/renewal experience, customer service, corporate citizenship, and billing and payment.
Champion Energy Rating
Champion Energy received an impressive score of 766 out of 1000 possible points. This was the highest rating of any retail electricity provider in any state. Green Mountain Energy (754), Bounce Energy (752) and Ambit Energy (747) ranked closely behind Champion in the customer satisfaction survey. Overall, Texas electricity providers scored well with an average of 715 points. The average score represents a 9-point improvement over 2014.
Champion Energy previously received the highest overall score in this customer satisfaction survey for four consecutive years from 2010 thru 2013. Green Mountain Energy edged out Champion Energy in 2014. Champion Energy regained the top spot in the 2015 survey due to its excellence in the areas of billing and communications. Green Mountain Energy ranked favorably in the areas of corporate citizenship and customer service.
Texas Electricity Providers
The Texas electricity market is highly competitive with electricity companies handling all aspects of the customer experience. In addition to providing energy, Texas electricity companies are responsible for marketing, enrollment, billing, payment processing, and customer service. This scope of services exceeds that of electricity companies in some states where the utility retains responsibility for billing, payment, and customer service.
When shopping for a Texas electricity provider, it is important to consider third-party satisfaction surveys like the one conducted by J.D. Power. State regulatory commissions sometimes publish complaint scorecards to assist consumers with selecting an electricity provider. Complaint scorecards, however, only reflect negative customer experiences. Customer complaints do not necessarily reflect the overall customer experience. For example, Champion Energy’s popular weekly usage communications receive no weight in a regulatory complaint scorecard.
Champion Energy Services was recently acquired by energy generation giant Calpine Corporation. It will be interesting to see if the acquisition has any impact on Champion Energy’s stellar customer service ratings. For the near term, however, customers are unlikely to see any changes affecting their level of service.
