Energy firms not respecting bills law
The energy mediator is warning that electricity and gas firms are sometimes not respecting the rules when it comes to billing for extra sums for periods more than 14 months ago.
It says people should not pay without checking their rights.
A 2016 law bans firms from sending rattrapage (‘catch-up’) bills for periods several years ago (due to readings not being taken, bills not being sent at the right time, incorrect calculations etc), which had seen some households billed thousands.
However, the Médiateur national de l’énergie said: “though it’s been forbidden for more than a year, suppliers are not always respecting the ban”.
The body states that when energy customers apply to it to resolve the problem, companies usually back down. “However a number of consumers continue to pay these catch-ups sums without contesting because they do not know their rights”. The médiateur has therefore called on firms to ensure they put in place measures to correct this.
For the 14-month rule to apply customers should have allowed firms access to their metres or otherwise passed on their readings to them. However the letter of the law (art. L224-11 Code de la consommation) goes further, stating for it to be set aside the customer should also have ignored a request sent by recorded delivery post, or committed fraud.
The rule also does not relate to matters outside the companies’ control, such as recent top-ups requested for 2014-2015 which followed a Conseil d’Etat ruling that regulated electricity tariffs had not been increased sufficiently for political reasons which had infringed the usual rules on how they are set.
If you were billed incorrectly and complaints to the firm have failed, details of how to apply to the médiateur (in French) may be found here: www.energie-mediateur.fr/saisir_le_mediateur
