Bad news for Brits stuck talking to AI chatbots
Key Points
- Citizens Advice said AI chatbots leave some customers stuck trying to get help
- Only 64% of broadband customers found it easy to locate complaint contact details
- Ofcom fined Virgin Media £28 million over cancellation and switching practices
- MPs want regulators to set out a plan for better supplier communication within six months
Broadband providers are increasingly using AI chatbots to handle customer queries, leaving some customers stuck in a cycle of trying to ask for help, MPs on the Committee of Public Accounts said in a report published on Friday (11 September).
Citizens Advice told the committee that its advisers struggle to reach creditors including telecoms companies, and that providers can be slow to act or hard to reach through different channels.
The committee found that only 64% of broadband customers were satisfied with how easy it was to find their provider’s contact details when making a complaint in 2024.
It said the shift to digital communication can leave behind older people and those with physical and mental health conditions who need or prefer other ways of getting in touch. Ofcom told MPs it requires providers to offer multiple channels, including email, phone and post.
MoneySavingExpert founder Martin Lewis told the committee that adding more information to bills does not improve transparency, because bills are complicated and customers rarely read them in detail. He said companies should communicate about available support in the same way they communicate when selling their services.
The report said regulators have only very recently started taking enforcement action over poor communication with customers.
Since the committee’s evidence session on 29 June, Ofcom has fined Virgin Media £28 million for repeatedly preventing customers from cancelling contracts or switching providers, including through unnecessary or excessive call transfers and repeatedly keeping customers on hold.
The committee said there needs to be far more urgency from regulators, and greater use of their powers, to ensure customers get the standard of service they deserve.
It recommended that Ofcom, Ofgem and Ofwat report back within six months with a plan for securing improvements in how suppliers communicate with customers, and set out when and how they will use their powers more forcefully.
