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Customer service at some Northern Ireland energy suppliers has fallen well below acceptable standards, the Utility Regulator has said.

The regulator said it had been made aware of poor call centre performance over an extended period.

It has not named the companies but it is investigating if the poor performance means a regulatory breach.

More people have tried contacting suppliers due to high energy prices and the energy bill support scheme.

But the regulator's chief executive Kevin Shiels said that cannot be used as an excuse.

In an , he said: "It is precisely during uncertain times that supplier contact centres play their most vital role.

"Suppliers represent the customer-facing element of the energy market.

"It our expectation that suppliers must be accessible, make it easy for consumers to contact them, and ensure that their customer service arrangements are fit for purpose."

Urgent meeting called

Mr Shiels has called an urgent meeting of all domestic energy suppliers and the major Northern Ireland consumer bodies to discuss the issues and look at options for the resolution of the problem.

He added that in the medium term he would be seeking to "strengthen our regulatory framework in the area of customer service levels".

That would include call centre performance and suppliers' processes for setting customers' direct debits.

It is understood that one of the issues is that some direct debit customers have built up large credit balances but their supplier has moved slowly when there is a request to repay that money.

Poor customer service could lead to companies being fined by the regulator.

In 2019 SSE Airtricity agreed to donate £450,000 to charities after an investigation by the regulator.

That investigation focused on SSE Airtricity's treatment of customers in areas such as billing and handling complaints.