The Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) has launched an online survey so it can get a clearer picture of the problems faced by consumers trying to contact utlitiy companies.

People are asked to report the experiences they had the last time they telephoned water, gas, electricity, phone (landline and mobile), internet service providers and digital, cable or satellite TV companies.

In the 2006/07 financial year the CAB dealt with more than 88,000 problems relating to utilities and communications. In September 2004, a report and survey conducted by Citizens Advice also found that over one in three people (39 per cent) were dissatisfied when ringing telephone, gas, water and electricity companies.

The Contacting Utilities by Phone survey asks about issues that enrage people, such as not being able to speak to a real person, being kept waiting on the phone for a long time and the mounting costs of these calls.

It will also aim to find out whether people had their problem sorted out during the call or whether they were passed around to numerous staff with no-one able to help or understand what needed to be done.

The information from the survey, which runs until the end of September, will help the charity compile a report about customer experiences. The plan is to use this data to promote good practice and improve customer service among utility companies.