Scottish Power vows to resolve all 'harassment' cases

Scottish Power said it would look into every claim of harassment over debt

Scottish Power has vowed to resolve "every case" of alleged harassment after it was claimed the firm used aggressive tactics to chase debts.

A whistleblower said that call handlers working on behalf of the firm were told to threaten customers - even those with mistaken bills - with debt enforcement.

The firm ordered an investigation after concerns were raised with the BBC.

On Monday chief executive Keith Anderson said that all allegations were being taken "incredibly seriously".

Speaking to BBC Radio Scotland's Drivetime programme, Mr Anderson said there was "absolutely no way" Scottish Power would want customers treated in the manner described.

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He said: "There's no way we've ever instructed any organisation we work with to treat the customer in that way. I can absolutely tell you that is not our company's policy and it is not the way we operate.

"We're looking into all of the allegations, we have asked the BBC to provide us with all of the cases and all of the evidence they've had or the customers have contacted the BBC about.

"We're also speaking to customers directly ourselves and if they contact us and provide us with any background or any information, we will look at every individual case and we will sort out every individual case."

Mr Anderson later confirmed Scottish Power had spoken to the companies it works with on debt collection about the matter.

He also said Scottish Power was "still waiting" to receive all data collected by the BBC. However, the BBC's position is it will not hand over personal details of people who have contacted the corporation in confidence.

'Lock change threat'

Concerns about the firm's call handler tactics emerged in December last year.

The BBC heard from one woman who described her experience as a "living hell" and claimed the energy giant hounded her over money she insisted she did not owe.

Mrs Girvan said she felt she was not being listened to

Irene Girvan, from Glasgow, said she was threatened with debt collectors and missed a Covid booster jab waiting for enforcement officers she believed were coming to change her locks.

Scottish Power has apologised for distress caused to Ms Girvan and cleared the debt. Officials said there was "no excuse for our failures" in this case.

It also emerged that Edinburgh woman Lizzy Wilson, who had never been a customer of Scottish Power, had been pursued for a debt of more than £1,000.

At the time Scottish Power said it had stopped any further bills to Ms Wilson while it investigated the issue and apologised for any inconvenience caused.

Mental health toll

The BBC also heard from a man who was an employee of an outsourced company - he worked in a call centre in the west of Scotland dealing with people who call to query outstanding balances.

The employee, who wanted to protect his identity, said it was clear to see where errors had been made on an account.

He added the tactics he was asked to deploy had taken a toll on his mental health.

He said: "We've all raised concerns about it. I've had people screaming, crying, threatening to kill themselves on the phone.

"It does have a toll on you, yeah, definitely. Just as a normal human being because you've got morals, you've got principles."

In 2016, the firm was fined £18m by the regulator Ofgem over poorly-handled customer complaints.