The Energy Ombudsman has recorded Xcel Energy Ltd as an inactive member of its dispute resolution scheme, with the company's trading period listed as ending on 24 April 20261. The ombudsman's page for the company states that it cannot review disputes brought against it1.
Xcel Energy Ltd is listed on the ombudsman's site as an energy broker rather than a supplier, with membership number C35XCEL01 and company number 136805421. Its recorded start and leaving dates are 9 December 2022 to 24 April 20261. The ombudsman's page carries the following wording:
"This Energy Broker isn't signed up to our scheme, so unfortunately we can't review your dispute."
The same page adds: "If your broker is currently trading we would recommend contacting them directly to confirm their Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) provider."1
A second broker, Green Energy Connects Ltd, is listed with the same leaving date of 24 April 2026 and the same inactive status2. Its recorded trading period is much shorter, running from 10 September 2025 to 24 April 2026, with company number 16342656 and membership number C35GREE302. Its page carries identical wording about the scheme and about contacting the broker directly2.
| Company | Status | Trading period | Company number | Membership number |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xcel Energy Ltd | Inactive | 2022-12-09 to 2026-04-24 | 13680542 | C35XCEL01 |
| Green Energy Connects Ltd | Inactive | 2025-09-10 to 2026-04-24 | 16342656 | C35GREE30 |
Neither page states why either company left the scheme, and no reason has been reported1. The ombudsman's pages do not say whether either business is still trading, nor what arrangements, if any, have been made for customers with unresolved complaints1.
Why it matters for households
The Energy Ombudsman is the body that can order a supplier or broker to put things right when a complaint cannot be settled directly, and its decisions are binding on members. Membership is not automatic for every business in the energy chain, and the ombudsman's own page for Xcel Energy Ltd makes clear that it cannot take on a dispute about a business that is not signed up1. For a household, that removes one route to a resolution and leaves the ordinary courts or another ADR provider as the remaining options, if one exists.
Brokers sit between a household and a supplier, often handling the switch, the contract terms and the commission. Where a broker is no longer in the scheme, a household that believes it was mis-sold a tariff, switched without consent or left with a contract it did not agree to has no ombudsman route against that broker1. The ombudsman's guidance points to the broker's own ADR provider where the broker is still trading, which means the household has to establish first whether the business still exists and then which scheme, if any, covers it1.
The wider point concerns energy independence: a household's control over its own supply depends on being able to hold the businesses in the chain to account. Where a broker drops out of the dispute scheme, that accountability narrows.
What happens next
No next steps have been reported for either company. The ombudsman's pages record the leaving date of 24 April 2026 and the inactive status, and give no further detail on what follows for customers1. Households with an unresolved complaint against a broker can read the ombudsman's explanation of what it is and what it can decide, and its guidance on the evidence needed for a complaint.
Sources2 cited
- Xcel Energy Ltd Complaints: Raise a dispute | Energy Ombudsman, energyombudsman.org
- Green Energy Connects Ltd Complaints: Raise a… | Energy Ombudsman, energyombudsman.org