EDF Energy makes life easier for its 5 million-plus customers with OneVu

29th March 2006 – EDF Energy, one of the UK’s largest energy companies, is the latest business to sign up to the OneVu service, giving its more than 5 million customers nationwide the opportunity to view and pay their bills through the secure environment of their online bank. The decision is designed to boost efficiency and reinforce EDF Energy’s position as a forward thinking business, dedicated to customer service and with a clear e-billing strategy.

EDF Energy, which includes London Energy, Seeboard Energy and SWEB Energy generates around 7.6% of the UK’s electricity and currently issues around 20 million paper bills to its customers. EDF Energy issues bills four times a year, and receives over 9m customer service calls. It believes savings can be made with the OneVu service through a reduction in the processing and posting of paper bills and lower communications costs. Environmental benefits, including the desire to reduce wastage, were also a key driver.

Travers Clarke-Walker, Marketing and Sales Director at EDF Energy, Customers Branch said: “Over the past five years we've transformed into a major, national energy player and we need to ensure that this positioning is reflected in the way that we look after our customers by providing an efficient and cost effective service. The decision to sign up with OneVu is part of our overall billing strategy and is underpinned by our commitment to customer service. The fact that the technology is supported by Voca and CheckFree makes this solution easy for us to integrate and gives great peace of mind.”

Miles Quitmann, Commercial Director at OneVu said: “Many billers have already recognised the benefits of billing their customers electronically and have made large investments in eBilling infrastructure. The challenge for the vast percentage of these companies is that they are not getting the adoption rates or take-up required for that investment to be cost effective. The OneVu service dramatically improves any investment already made in e-billing. Our service provides a wider and more secure channel which offers consumers convenient and safe access to multiple billers’ websites through a single interface via their online bank. OneVu enables billing organisations to increase efficiency and improve customer service.”

Editor’s note:

OneVu is the UK’s first service which lets people see, track and pay all their bills from the familiar, secure environment of their online bank.

It is a joint venture between Voca (formerly BACS), which processes over 4 billion financial transactions each year, and CheckFree Corporation, the global leader in financial electronic commerce services and inventor of electronic billing.

EDF Energy

EDF Energy is one of the UK's largest energy companies. We provide power to a quarter of the UK's population via our electricity distribution networks in London, the South East and the East of England. We supply gas and electricity to over 5 million customers through our retail brands of EDF Energy, London Energy, Seeboard Energy and SWEB Energy. We generate about 5GW of energy from our coal and gas power stations, as well as combined heat and power plants and wind farms. The company is also a key player in national infrastructure projects, including the electrical upgrading of the London Underground, management of private electricity networks serving four London airports and the Channel Tunnel Rail Link, the country’s first new railway in 100 years. We employ nearly 12,000 people at locations across the UK. EDF Energy is a core part of EDF Group, one of the world’s largest power companies.

For further information please contact:

Lizzie Woolley, The Weston Partnership,
Tel: 020 8671 9031
07881 923 530
Lizzie@westonpartnership.co.uk