Sumo Power Review

Sumo is a one-stop shop for energy and internet, with no lock-in contracts. Here's what you need to know before deciding whether to switch to Sumo Power.

CHOICE staff

Last updated: 09 February 2023

Sumo Power sell electricity and gas to over 60,000 customers. They also offer internet bundles to help their customers save.

On this page:

Which states does Sumo Power supply?
CHOICE Expert Rating on Sumo Power
CHOICE verdict on Sumo Power

Sumo Power was established in 2014, and is an Australian-owned company with head offices in Melbourne, Victoria and call centres in Australia. Though it was publicly listed, Sumo has since gone private.

Neither the organisation nor its products are carbon neutral.

Contact information for Sumo Energy

sumo.com.au/energy

13 88 60

Which states does Sumo Power supply?

CHOICE Expert Rating on Sumo Power

CHOICE verdict on Sumo Power

Environment

Sumo power has no carbon offsets or a stand on Energy efficiency/Demand response management, nor decarbonisation.
It has minimal support for renewable energy, have not taken an active stance on strong climate policy and has not committed to ending coal use by 2030.
It buys energy from open market where coal still dominates, but Sumo isn't involved in fossil fuel extraction itself.

Customer service

588 complaints were lodged against Sumo Power in 2021–22 (1%), according to data from the Australian Energy Regulator.
27% of people were answered when calling Sump Power within 30 seconds.
The average wait time for a customer service call made to Sumo was 151 seconds.
9.8% of people abandon calls to Sumo Power based on the AER data from 2021–22.
It was fined $1.2 million by the ACCC in 2021 for making false or misleading representations in selling electricity plans to Victorian consumers.

Sumo Power's energy sources

Sumo Power is not transparent about where the electricity comes from.

Green Electricity score

This score is based on the company's Green Electricity Guide star rating.

Complaints score

This score is based on the number of complaints measured as a proportion against the number of customers. The higher the percentage, the better. Data via the Australian Energy Regulator – updated annually.

Call response score

This score is based on how likely the retailer is to answer a call within 30 seconds. The higher the percentage, the better. Data via the Australian Energy Regulator – updated annually.

February 2022 – Sumo pays penalties totalling $500,000 after alleged wrongful disconnections – Sumo Power Pty Ltd and Sumo Gas Pty Ltd have paid penalties totalling $500,000 for arranging the alleged wrongful disconnection of 143 Victorian energy customers on 14 December 2020.

February 2022 – Power retailer fined for cutting off 'wall of shame' clients in disconnection blitz – Power and gas retailer Sumo Energy ran a disconnection blitz in 2020 during which staff allegedly taped the names of 1500 customers who had missed bills to a "wall of shame" and cut off 143 of them without proper warning.

June 2021 – Sumo Power to pay $1.2 million for misleading electricity plans – The Federal Court has declared by consent that Sumo Power Pty Ltd (Sumo) made false or misleading representations in selling electricity plans to Victorian consumers and ordered it to pay $1.2 million in penalties, and to pay consumer redress to affected consumers.

June 2021 – Sumo Power misled 7700 customers, to refund $800,000 – Electricity retailer Sumo Power has admitted to misleading 7700 Victorian consumers about its electricity price plans and must pay $1.2 million in penalties and $800,000 back to its customers.

December 2020 – 'Kick in the guts': Hundreds of vulnerable Australians cut from electricity before Christmas – Hundreds of Victorian families who lost income through the state's harsh lockdowns have been disconnected from their electricity supply as they prepare for a COVID-afflicted Christmas.

August 2020 – Sumo Power allegedly misled consumers about electricity pricing – The ACCC has instituted proceedings in the Federal Court against Sumo Power Pty Ltd (Sumo) alleging it made false or misleading representations to Victorian consumers in relation to its electricity plans.

June 2019 – ACMA hits Sumo Power with fine for breaching telemarketing laws – The telecommunications regulator, The Australian Communications and Media Authority, continues to clamp down on unlawful telemarketing and breaches of spam laws, with electricity, gas and Internet provider Sumo Power the latest company to be hit with a penalty for infringing the law on telemarketing.

February 2019 – Shopping around on power could save Victorian consumers $2000 a year – Some Victorians can still save more than $2000 by shopping around for electricity but new research shows the gap between the cheapest and most expensive retail offers is narrowing.

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