Ofgem has launched a new consultation on the development of an industry-wide consumer consent mechanism that will make it easier for consumers to consent to sharing their energy data. When shared securely with trusted third parties, this data will be key to reducing consumer bills, reducing energy and focusing on when people use energy, ultimately enabling net zero. We’re pleased to have been recommended as the ‘delivery body’ for governance under the Retail Energy Code (REC) and the digital solution.
The work towards consumer consent so far
In 2021, the Energy Digitalisation Task Force (EDiT) identified the need for a consumer consent portal to enable future market innovations, deliver Net Zero, and reduce consumers’ energy costs. By introducing consumer consent to the market, consumers will be able to share their energy data with trusted market participants in a transparent and proactive manner, who can provide them with services to lower their bills and carbon footprint.
However, there is currently no single, standardised process for obtaining consent to share consumer energy data, which creates barriers to entry for new beneficial services and reduces clarity, via inconsistency, with consumers on who has access to their data and for what. Therefore, Ofgem has proposed overhauling the mechanism and creating a robust solution for obtaining informed consent.
We’ve been active in the open data and consumer consent conversation since 2022. Our paper, ‘Consumer Consent: Consumer-focused findings,’ builds on the work of EDiT. It identifies the key barriers to introducing a consent mechanism in the energy market and proposes five key principles that we believe should be applied to its development.
Our 2024-27 Forward Work Plan also highlighted our consumer consent plans as a central part of our Data and Digitalisation priority, noting, “We support the Energy Digitalisation Task Force (EDiT) recommendations, including the need for a consumer consent portal. We have been working collaboratively with industry partners Ofgem, DESNZ and Innovate UK to build collateral that will facilitate the development and implementation of this mechanism. This work has taken a ‘consumer first’ approach to identifying the issues and potential remedies associated with obtaining consent, incorporating various consumer personas.”
Ofgem’s consultation
In November 2023, Ofgem published a Call For Input titled ‘Data Sharing in a Digital Future’’, seeking input from interested Parties on the need for and best approach to addressing issues surrounding Consumer Consent. Based on the responses received, Ofgem is now consulting on the development of a digital solution that will “enable consumers to share their energy data with trusted third parties to receive tailored services to manage their energy bills.”
As part of the consultation, Ofgem has proposed that RECCo act as the Delivery Body responsible for developing a digital solution that aligns with their design principles. RECCo scored ‘green’ in all their rating categories, positioning us as the best place to deliver the solution. The REC Board fully supports Ofgem’s proposal, and we will be submitting a response to emphasise that including governance within the REC alongside appointing RECCo as the Delivery Body for the consumer consent mechanism strongly aligns with our Mission Statement and REC Objectives to:
- “ensure customers’ interests and data is protected“; and
- “deliver positive consumer outcomes”.
You can read the consultation fully here; responses are due by 4th October 2024.
Preparing for the future
Based on our work in the consumer consent space, Ofgem’s recommendation, the strong positive use case for consumers, and alignment with REC objectives, we are preparing to become the delivery body aligned with Ofgem’s ‘minded’ position. This means we will set up a consumer consent project, build a business case, identify the required resources, milestones, and risks, and develop our consultation response.
We welcome any feedback and input to our consultation response and planning to best prepare for successful delivery.
Find out more
We’ll update our news channels as more information becomes available. You can respond to Ofgem’s consultation by emailing digitalisation@ofgem.gov.uk.
If you have any queries about our role in this project, please reach out to Pete Davies, Director of Data, Technology and Transformation: Pete.Davies@retailenergycode.co.uk. You can also access the resources below for further information:
