The Moment Energy Utilities Lose Brand Trust Isn’t When Something Goes Wrong: Why the Most Trusted Utilities Win Beyond Service Reliability

This blog explores why Brand Trust is rarely lost because of the initial problem itself, but because of how energy utilities respond when things go wrong. Drawing on Escalent’s Cogent Syndicated Energy research and a real-world customer experience, this blog explains why energy utilities with the strongest trusted brands differentiate themselves through relationships and what energy utility brands can do to reinforce Brand Trust during their most important customer moments.

A few weeks ago, I opened a new stick of unscented antiperspirant I’ve used for years. It smelled like mildew. “Unscented” was not the word that came to mind. At first, I assumed the antiperspirant was from a defective batch. Every company makes mistakes. But after searching online, I found a few people on Reddit describing the same experience.

Surely, I thought, the manufacturer knew about this. Maybe there had been a quiet recall. I returned the antiperspirant to my shelf and later, when shopping, I opened a container before buying it. Same smell. No quiet recall.

Then I noticed something unexpected: an actual customer service phone number printed on the package. That’s rare enough that I decided to save the number to call once at home and offer my feedback directly instead of just adding another complaint to Reddit.

To my surprise, someone answered immediately. To my disappointment, they might as well not have.

The representative took down my complaint in the flattest, most disengaged tone imaginable. No apology. No explanation. No acknowledgment that others had reported the issue. No reassurance that the company was investigating or addressing it.

Just: “We’ll note your complaint.”

That was the end of a relationship that had lasted for years. I bought a competitor’s product the next day. The product problem didn’t lose the company my business. Its response did.

Trust in an Energy Utility Brand Is Built in the Second Moment

Companies often think trust is won through flawless execution. Escalent’s Cogent Syndicated Energy research suggests something different. Customers understand that things go wrong. Products have defects. Storms knock out power. Billing systems occasionally make mistakes.

What customers pay attention to is what happens next.

• Did you acknowledge the problem?
• Did you communicate openly?
• Did you demonstrate that you understand why customers are frustrated?
• Did your actions make customers believe you’re on their side?
• Did you help customers feel like they are making progress toward and ultimately resolving their inquiry or issue?

Those moments shape whether a customer views an organization as trustworthy far more than the original issue itself.

That’s especially true in the energy utility industry.

Escalent’s Cogent Syndicated Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Residential study found that overall Brand Trust has flattened after nearly two years of improvement. The leveling off wasn’t driven by deteriorating operational performance. Instead, customers reported weaker perceptions that electric, natural gas and combination utilities are customer-focused and maintain strong reputations.

That’s an important distinction.

Energy utilities continue to invest heavily in service reliability, infrastructure and customer communication. But customers are increasingly evaluating those efforts through a broader question: Does this company genuinely have my best interests in mind?

In today’s environment—where affordability concerns remain high—this question matters as much as operational performance.

Your Customers Are Redefining What It Means to Be a Trusted Energy Utility

The energy utilities recognized as Escalent’s 2026 Most Trusted Utility Brands didn’t separate themselves simply because they delivered electricity or natural gas more reliably.

Their biggest advantages weren’t operational. They were relational.

Customers were substantially more likely to believe these energy utilities:

• Do the right thing for customers
• Act ethically
• Consider customer concerns in business decisions
• Generate positive word of mouth
• Provide fair value for the service they deliver

Those are not operational metrics. They are human ones.

Every Customer Interaction Either Reinforces or Weakens Brand Trust in Energy Utilities

Somewhere, my complaint is probably sitting in a database. Whether anyone connected it to a lost customer is another question.

I didn’t stop buying that product because it smelled like mildew.

I stopped buying it because, when given the opportunity to reinforce trust, the company communicated that my experience didn’t matter.

That’s the lesson for energy utilities, too. Customers don’t expect perfection. They expect honesty, empathy and evidence that the company is on their side.

Trust isn’t built because nothing ever goes wrong. It’s built because customers believe you’ll do the right thing when something does go wrong.

Learn more about how leading energy utilities are strengthening Brand Trust by putting customer relationships at the center of every interaction. Connect with our team of energy and utility industry experts to explore what these insights mean for your organization by filling out the form below.