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Checklist · Energy suppliers & utilities

10 contact reasons that shouldn’t exist

Good self-service exists for every one of these reasons today. Your customers still call. In 15 minutes you’ll see where your money sits.

up to 40%

of calls to energy suppliers are standard requests like meter readings, bank details or invoice copies. One municipal utility puts the share at 40 percent, another supplier now handles up to 30 percent of its calls automatically.Sources: market studies and practice reports from the industry, details at the end of the checklist.

1 · TickCan your customers already handle this themselves, without calling?
2 · Enter the shareHow many of your calls are about this? From your ticket system, or one week of tally marks in the team.
3 · CalculateBelow, your ticks and shares turn into a range in euros.

	Contact reason	How it works without a call	Can your customers already do this themselves?			Share of your calls
	Contact reason	How it works without a call	Yes	Partly	No	Share of your calls
1	Submit meter readingPortal or app with photo, voicebot, QR code on the reading card	Portal or app with photo, voicebot, QR code on the reading card	YesSubmit meter reading: Yes	PartlySubmit meter reading: Partly	NoSubmit meter reading: No	%
2	Change instalmentAdjust it in the portal, voicebot	Adjust it in the portal, voicebot	YesChange instalment: Yes	PartlyChange instalment: Partly	NoChange instalment: No	%
3	Understand the billExplained bill online, explainer video, FAQs right next to the bill	Explained bill online, explainer video, FAQs right next to the bill	YesUnderstand the bill: Yes	PartlyUnderstand the bill: Partly	NoUnderstand the bill: No	%
4	Bill copy, documentsInbox in the customer portal with all bills and letters	Inbox in the customer portal with all bills and letters	YesBill copy, documents: Yes	PartlyBill copy, documents: Partly	NoBill copy, documents: No	%
5	Bank details, direct debitChange in the portal or via chatbot	Change in the portal or via chatbot	YesBank details, direct debit: Yes	PartlyBank details, direct debit: Partly	NoBank details, direct debit: No	%
6	Report a moveOnline form for moving in, moving and moving out	Online form for moving in, moving and moving out	YesReport a move: Yes	PartlyReport a move: Partly	NoReport a move: No	%
7	Payment status, plan, reminderAccount balance in the portal, request a payment plan online	Account balance in the portal, request a payment plan online	YesPayment status, plan, reminder: Yes	PartlyPayment status, plan, reminder: Partly	NoPayment status, plan, reminder: No	%
8	Pay out creditTrigger payout in the portal or via chatbot	Trigger payout in the portal or via chatbot	YesPay out credit: Yes	PartlyPay out credit: Partly	NoPay out credit: No	%
9	Price change, tariffTariff calculator, notice by email or app before the letter	Tariff calculator, notice by email or app before the letter	YesPrice change, tariff: Yes	PartlyPrice change, tariff: Partly	NoPrice change, tariff: No	%
10	Customer data, loginChange address and name in the portal, reset password yourself	Change address and name in the portal, reset password yourself	YesCustomer data, login: Yes	PartlyCustomer data, login: Partly	NoCustomer data, login: No	%

Outages are left out on purpose: in Germany they are usually the grid operator’s job, not the supplier’s. The order is typical but not measured. There is no public breakdown of contact reasons for Germany, so your own numbers are the best yardstick.

Your most common contact reason isn’t on the list? Bring it to the results check and we’ll work it out with your numbers.

Checklist · Energy suppliers & utilities

What these calls cost you

Your tick	Sum of your shares	of which realistically shiftable	cautious	optimistic
Yesself-service exists	%	30–40%	%	%
Partlyexists, but snags	%	20–30%	%	%
Nostill needs building	%	10–20%	%	%
= Shiftable share of all calls			%	%

Calls per yearall channels together, if you count themNo call numbers at hand? Work it out roughly with your service FTE →

×Shiftable sharefrom the table aboveMore than 20% of all calls? Then take a closer look: that’s the ceiling McKinsey publicly names for reducing contact volume.% to %

×Cost per callservice costs per year divided by calls per yearNot at hand? Service costs per year: €€

= Your lever per year

€ to €

Tick above, enter shares, then calls and costs here. A first order of magnitude, not a business case. We calculate on the cautious side: where self-service already exists, a bigger part of your calls counts as shiftable. Where it still needs building, a smaller part. What building it costs and what it brings, we work out in the lever analysis on site.

Worked example, all assumptions open: 100 service FTE × €50,000 fully loaded cost = €5m a year. At 720,000 calls a year that’s around €6.90 per call. Say your ticks split like this: yes 20%, partly 15%, no 10% of calls. Then a cautious 10% can be shifted (6 + 3 + 1), an optimistic 14.5% (8 + 4.5 + 2). That’s 72,000–104,400 calls, so around €500,000–720,000 a year.

Why customers still call

Can’t find it. The self-service exists, but the invoice, website and IVR don’t point to it.
Drop out. Forgotten login, form too long, photo not recognised. In the end there’s a call.
No confirmation. Customers don’t know if it worked and call to be sure.
The team doesn’t redirect. Agents who handle everything on the phone don’t bring customers to self-service.

Somewhere between the call and the invoice, your money is slipping away.

We’ll show you where, and how much. In unnecessary contacts, in the conversation or in your contract with the provider. Often a bit of each.

One figure in euros. The three biggest levers. One action for Monday.

30 minutes · free · confidential · directly with Matthias Werlich · Your checklist figures go straight into the booking.30 minutes · free · confidential · directly with Matthias Werlich · Just bring this checklist along.

Book a results check calendly.com/dstraticx/30min

Sources

ZfK, “Voicebot löst für Versorger aus Sachsen-Anhalt 70 Prozent seiner Servicefälle”, 04.03.2025 (Köthen Energie: share of standard questions “estimated 40 percent”).
cloudmagazin, “E.ON One: KI-Lösung aus der Branche für die Branche”, 31.10.2024 (EWR: “up to 30 percent of calls” handled automatically).
Worked example and assumptions: DStratiCX. 20% ceiling for avoidable contact volume based on public statements by McKinsey.