Free market for electricity and gas, here’s what you need to know to save money

There is still a significant portion of Italians who have a “partial or incomplete knowledge” of the Free Market. That’s the conclusion she reached ARERAthe Regulatory Authority for Energy, Networks and the Environment, x-raying the results of an opinion survey conducted between October and December 2023.

This study is summarized in the latest “Monitoring on the evolution of the electricity and gas retail sales markets” sent by ARERA to the Ministry of the Environment and Energy Security in February 2024.

The evidence from the survey acquires greater relevance also and above all if we consider that the end Greater gas protection for “non-vulnerable” domestic customers it has already started (in January 2024), while the stop to the Protected Electricity Market is on the horizon (July 1, 2024).

Free Market: what Italians think (wrongly)

What are the operating dynamics of the transition to the Free Market that domestic and non-domestic customers are still struggling to understand?

First of all, the 18.5% of domestic customers interviewed (+0.8% compared to the July 2022 survey) and 23.3% of non-domestic customers (-3.9%) do not know that it is you can choose freely the electricity supplier and natural gas.

Furthermore, there are those who still think that changing energy companies entails replacement of the meter. An erroneous awareness which, according to the data cited by ARERA, belongs to:

• to 13.1% of domestic customers interviewed (down by 4.9% compared to the previous survey);
• to 31.4% of non-domestic customers interviewed (up by +18.5% compared to July 2022).

And again: there is a segment of Italians (albeit decreasing) who fear (erroneously) that, when changing supplier, there may be interruptions in supply of electricity or methane. The fear was expressed by:

• 22.7% of domestic customers interviewed (-5.8%);
• 19.7% for non-domestic users interviewed (-6.6%).

Free Market: less known in the South and on the Islands

According to the ARERA document, the incorrect knowledge of the Free Market is uneven across the national territory. It is greater in the South and in the Islands for domestic customers and also in the Center if we consider the responses of Italians with non-domestic users.

“Even among the interviewees who have already changed suppliers in the past, therefore having direct experience of supplier change procedures, there is a significant share of interviewees who do not know that it is not necessary to replace the meter nor that the alternation of suppliers cannot generate physical interruptions of supplies”, we read in the ARERA document.

Free Market: the correct information to know

Below, one mini-guide edited by the experts at Segugio.it with everything that is essential to know about the transition to the Free Market.

First of all, you can switch to the Free Market at any timejust as “migration” is an operation that:

• it is free;
• does not lead to an interruption in the supply;
• does not require any technical intervention on the meter or its replacement.

It is possible to activate electricity and gas offers directly online, but keep the following ones handy documents:

• the data of the holder of the supply (name, surname and tax code);
• the supply data (the POD for electricity and the PDR for gas);
• contact details (telephone or email);
• the IBAN code of your current account for those who choose direct debit.

Before activating an electricity or gas offer from the Free Market, it is always advisable to proceed with an online comparison of tariffs. This step can be done in just a few clicks using the Segugio.it comparator for electricity and gas offers.

In fact, this tool allows you to compare the electricity and gas tariffs proposed by partner energy managers in March 2024 and find the cheapest offer based on your energy needs.