Florence, 1 July 2024 – It is a historic date for the electricity market in Italy: today, Monday 1st July, marks the end of the protected energy market, as happened for gas at the beginning of the year. Everything changes, there are more possibilities for users but it also means many different contracts to evaluate and thus risks that can be run if you don’t have a guide to navigate the new rules. Especially for those who are defined as ‘vulnerable’ customers, fragile or elderly individuals who need protection. Let’s try to clarify some of the main aspects and news together with the lawyer Francesca Galloni, vice president of Confconsumatori Toscana.
End of the protected market (photo Ansa)
What should we do and how can we choose the best offer for us?
«To find your way around the free electricity market, we strongly recommend looking for the best offer available by accessing the Offer Portal from the Arera website, the body that regulates the electricity, gas, water and gas markets. waste in Italy. It is a portal where you just need to enter your postcode and your annual consumption, anonymously, without the risk that some company knows your access, to see the various offers available from all the companies on the free market appear on the screen. ».
What do we need to check and what are the selection criteria?
“The first thing to check is obviously the price per kwH (kilowatt hour) of the offer and choose between the fixed price throughout the day or the different price depending on the time slots, which varies depending on our type of consumption. But that’s not all. We also recommend checking the duration of the proposed offer, whether 12 or 24 months, whether there are discounts for direct debit, the price of the annual fixed costs which are very important because they can significantly increase our bills and whether there are particular discounts, especially if you are a new customer. In fact, very often companies apply lower prices to new customers. At this point, just call the toll-free number indicated or access the company’s website and request the activation of the new contract with any change of operator which will happen automatically without interruption of supply”.
Does this apply to everyone?
«There is a particular type of customer, defined as ‘vulnerable customers’ who have the right to request the application of the vulnerable tariff, an ad hoc tariff designed for them in which the price is established monthly by Arera and normally has a higher price lower than the offers on the free market”.
