Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask His Majesty's Government what conversations Ministers of the Department of Business and Trade have had with major companies, including former publicly owned utilities, about withdrawing provision for customers to talk to staff directly via telephone, rather than via online communication such as “chat bots” or live online chat services; and what plans they have to ensure that accessible forms of communication are maintained so that companies comply with the Equality Act 2010.

Ministers maintain a regular schedule of business visits and meetings, with firms of all sizes, including on the topic of customer engagement. Outside of this routine engagement the use of chat bots has not recently been recorded as part of these discussions. However, the Government expects all businesses to treat their consumers fairly, and businesses are required under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 to provide contact information in a clear and comprehensible manner which is easily, directly and permanently accessible.

Furthermore, former publicly owned utilities are matters for the relevant regulator or sponsor department and most utilities will be subject to specific sector licencing conditions and are bound by the Equality Act.