Ofgem uplifted the Guaranteed Standards of Performance (GSOP) payment level from £30 to £40 in January 2025, the regulator has confirmed in a consultation on consumer outcomes published on 23 June 2026. The £40 figure has applied since that date, and Ofgem is now seeking views on whether to link future increases to inflation automatically.
The GSOPs set minimum service standards for suppliers, with consumers automatically compensated when those standards are breached. In the consultation, Ofgem states:
"The £40 payment level has been in place since January 2025, when we uplifted the previous payment level of £30 to account for inflation"
The document also sets out two further proposed changes to how the payments work. Ofgem says it is "proposing to introduce an automatic inflation-based uplift for supplier GSOPs based on the existing approach included in the network GSOPs"1, and that it is "proposing to introduce repeated payments for the two existing GSOPs that relate to restoring supply of gas or electricity to consumers"1. The consultation does not give a figure for what any future inflation-linked payment would be.
The GSOP review sits inside a wider move by Ofgem towards outcomes-based regulation of both domestic and non-domestic energy supply. The regulator has set out seven outcomes it expects suppliers to deliver, covering fair value pricing, accurate and understandable bills, support for consumers struggling to pay, fair complaint handling, clear information, switching without unnecessary barriers, and products and services that perform as intended1. Billing is the first area where Ofgem intends to change its rules, describing billing as "the single largest complaint category" at 29% of all domestic complaints made to suppliers, and noting that billing complaints represent almost 60% of all domestic complaints received by the Energy Ombudsman1.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Previous GSOP payment level | £30 |
| Current GSOP payment level | £40 |
| Date the £40 level took effect | January 2025 |
| Reason given for the uplift | To account for inflation |
Why it matters for households
GSOP payments are automatic compensation: a household does not have to complain or claim to receive one when a supplier misses a guaranteed standard, such as restoring supply within a set time. Raising the level from £30 to £40 increases the amount a household receives when a standard is breached, and the proposal to allow repeated payments for the two supply-restoration standards would mean a payment for each relevant breach rather than a single payment. The proposed inflation link, if adopted, would mean the payment level changes without a separate decision each time. The consultation does not state whether the £40 level applies across all GSOP categories or how the repeated payments would be counted, and no timetable for the payment changes has been reported. The rules themselves sit within the wider framework of Ofgem's role as energy regulator, and complaints that are not resolved by a supplier can be escalated through the energy complaints and redress process.
What happens next
The consultation opened on 23 June 2026 and responses are due by 19 August 2026, by email to FutureConsumers@ofgem.gov.uk1. Ofgem says that if it decides to change its billing rules or GSOP rules, it will issue a statutory consultation setting out the exact proposed changes1. It also states that it plans to implement billing rule changes from the start of next year and to implement all the outcomes over the next couple of years1. No date has been reported for a decision on the GSOP payment design.
Sources1 cited
- Consumer Outcomes – Implementation, ofgem.gov.uk