aeeg presentation 2013

Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas 1

The role of the Italian Regulatory Authority for

Electricity and Gas (AEEG) in the promotion of ADR procedures

Ettore Ponz de LeonConsumers Affairs Department

Rome, 4 April 2013MEETING WITH BALTIC CONSUMER ASSOCIATIONS

This is not an official AEEG document

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• The Italian Regulatory Authority forElectricity and Gas (AEEG)

• AEEG and customer policy

AEEG and ADR

Overview

Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas

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The Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas (AEEG)

• About us• Mission• Transparency• In the international context


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• AEEG is the independent body which regulates,controls and monitors the electricity and gasmarkets in Italy– With the law November 2011, n. 214 AEEG has now

competences also in regulating, controlling andmonitoring water services

• It has been established by Law November 14th1995, n. 481 with the purpose to:- promote competition- empower and protect users and customers- ensure efficient, cost-effective and profitable

nationwide services with satisfactory quality levels

The Italian energy Authority (AEEG) About us- 1


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• An independent Authority is a public body whichmakes its own decisions under the terms of itsfounding law, procedures and regulations

• The Authority operates with full autonomy andindependence of judgment within the generalpolicy guidelines laid down by the Governmentand Parliament and taking into due account therelevant European Union legislation

The Italian energy Authority (AEEG) About us - 2


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• AEEG mission includes:- defining and maintaining a reliable and trasparent tariff

system- reconciling the economic goals of operators with

costumer protection and empowerment- promoting environmental protection and the efficient

use of energy- promoting information and customer empowerment

and protection• AEEG provides an advisory and reporting service to the

Governmnent and Parliament and formulates observationand recommendations concerning issues in the regulatedsectors of electricity and gas

The Italian energy Authority (AEEG) Mission


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• The general decisions are published on the officialwebsite

• AEEG involves its own stakeholders(customer system operators, suppliers and DSOs -Distribution System Operators -, trade unions andindustrial associations) in the decisionproceeding, through public consultations andhearings

The Italian energy Authority (AEEG) Transparency


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• In the international context, AEEG:‒ takes part in the regulatory board of the Agency for the

Cooperation of Energy Regulators (ACER)‒ is a founder member of the Council of European Energy

Regulators (CEER)‒ holds the vice-presidency of the Association

of Mediterranean Regulators for Electricity and NaturalGas (MEDREG)

‒ takes part in The Energy Community Regulatory Board(ECRB)

‒ maintains bilateral relations with all the EuropeanRegulators and cooperates with many non-EURegulators to exchange best practices and shareexperiences

The Italian energy Authority (AEEG) In the international context


9Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas

AEEG and customer policy

• A regulatory perspective• A conceptual map• Information• Regulation• Focus on:

‒ Quality commercial standards‒ Complaints handling

‒ADR

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• The 3rd Package includes new provisions on customerempowerment and protection, and in particular as regardscomplaint handlings and ADR

• Member States are invited to set up new tools forthe protections of household customers, amongwhich:‒ single points of contact to provide information on their

rights‒ information about the means of dispute settlement‒ independent mechanisms for the treatment of

complaints and disputes‒ financial compensation for customers‒ complaint monitoring

AEEG and customer policyA regulatory perspective


• TO SET RULES ABOUT CONTRACTS TERMS AND CONDITIONS,

BILLING TRANSPARENCY, PRE-

CONTRACTUAL INFORMATION,

COMMERCIAL CODE OF CONDUCT

• SET AND MAINTAIN GUARANTEED

QUALITY STANDARDS (E.G COMPLAINTS)

• INDIVIDUAL COMPENSATIONS FOR

STANDARD MISMATCHING

• COMPLAINTS HANDLING

• ADR MECHANISMS

• ENSURE TRANSPARENCY

AND INFORMATION

• PUBLISH ACTUAL QUALITY LEVELS

RANKING

• PRICE COMPARISON

TOOLS

CUSTOMER

POLICY Empowerment - Protection - Enforcement

AEEG and customer policyA conceptual map

Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas 11

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• One of the three AEEG website sections is dedicated“for customers”, with non-technical summaries of regulation(other sections: Operators and Press releases) (e.g. “Atlas” forEnergy Consumers’ Rights), leaflets

• Sportello per il Consumatore (Energy consumers helpdesk): call center

• Papers, presentations and, generally, promotion ofinitiatives for transparency and information (e.g. pricecomparison service “Trova Offerte”)

• Hearings of associations in which users and customersare organised and stable cooperation with ConsumerAssociations

• Publication of consultations, decisions, quality standards anddata on the website

• Publication of quality data in the yearly reports

AEEG and customer policyInformation


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• BILLING‒ AEEG has approved guidelines concerning transparency of billing

documents for electricity and gas consumptions‒ Transparent and customer friendly billing are one of the means to

enhance customer awareness of their rights‒ Only where bills are clearly understandable and customers are

provided with all the relevant information for switching, they’realso able to compare offers and to change supplier

• COMMERCIAL CODE OF CONDUCT‒ AEEG has approved rules that all gas and electricity suppliers

presenting offers to household and small business have to complywith

‒ Suppliers must provide household customers with a comparisonleaflet (a written document) that summarizes their rights andallows them to verify if the contract being offered complies withAEEG resolutions

AEEG and customer policyRegulation


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• COMMERCIAL QUALITY GUARANTEED STANDARDSFOR SUPPLY ELECTRICITY & GAS :

‒ specific and general standards‒ when guaranteed specific standards are not met by

fault of the supplier or DSO, users are entitled toreceive automatic compensation payments throughtheir bills

AEEG and customer policyFocus on: commercial quality standards


• Definition of complaint: a written communication, sent to thesupplier, regarding the non-compliance of the suppliedservice with the terms of contract or the regulation

• Complaints can be submitted by the customers individually or throughtheir organisations and have to be sent first to the supplier, whohas the obligation to respond

• If the supplier does not respond, or when the given answer isunsatisfactory, the complaint can be submitted to theAuthority. It can be sent directly to the Authority only if very urgentmatters are involved (e.g. safety reasons)

• The customer is requested to enclose all the relevant supportingdocuments

• First step of the complaint assessment process is outsourced tothe Complaint Unit of the Sportello per il consumatore

AEEG and customer policyFocus on: complaints handling

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• ALTERNATIVE DISPUTE RESOLUTION‒Support of “paritetiche”‒ The new Energy Conciliation Service‒ Information: web area on AEEG web

site

AEEG and ADR…

AEEG and customer policyFocus on: ADR


17Italian Regulatory Authority for Electricity and Gas

AEEG and ADR

• Definitions• European law• Italian law• Supporting and monitoring the

“Paritetico” model• The new Energy Conciliation Service

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• In general, Alternative dispute resolution (ADR) helpscustomers resolve disputes with traders orsuppliers

• ADR entities are out-of-court (non-judicial) entities.They involve a neutral party (e.g. a conciliator,mediator, arbitrator, ombudsman, complaints board etc.)who proposes or imposes a solution or brings the partiestogether to help them find a solution

• When these entities operate fully online, they arecalled online dispute resolution (ODR) entities. This canhelp solve disputes especially with online purchases, whenthe customer and the trader are located far from eachother

AEEG and ADRDefinitions - 1


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• ADR and ODR are usually low-cost or free ofcharge, simple and fast procedures and aretherefore beneficial to both customers and traders,who can avoid court costs and lengthy procedures

• ADR and ODR are not internal customer complaintservices run by traders

AEEG and ADRDefinitions - 2


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• On 12 March 2013, the European Parliamentvoted to support the new legislation onAlternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and OnlineDispute Resolution (ODR)

• The vote confirms the political agreement reached inDecember 2012 on the two legislative proposals putforward by the European Commission in 2011

• The new legislation will be adopted soon• Member States will have 24 months after the entry

into force of the Directive to transpose it into theirnational legislation (that takes us to mid-2015)

AEEG and ADREuropean law - 1


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• The Directive on ADR is to contribute to the functioning ofthe internal market and to the achievement of a high levelof consumer protection by ensuring that disputes betweenconsumers and traders can be submitted to entitiesoffering impartial, transparent, effective and fairalternative dispute resolution procedures

• Member States shall ensure that ADR entities have awebsite and enable the parties to exchange informationwith them via electronic means

• Expertise and impartiality of the natural person in chargeof dispute resolution

• Transparency, effectiveness and fairness of the procedure

AEEG and ADREuropean law - 2


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• AEEG is called by law (Lgs. Decree 93/11,implementing the Third Energy Package in theItalian legislation) to guarantee an efficienttreatment of ADR procedures between acustomer and an energy supplier or DSO

• Alternative dispute resolution represents thesuitable place where a national regulatoryAuthority may play an important role byenhancing customer protection and confidence inthe market

AEEG and ADRItalian law


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• Since 2007, consumer organisations andabout ten energy companies (the mostimportant in the market) have been arrangingspecific procedures of conciliation known as“paritetiche”

• This kind of procedure allows the resolution ofcustomers’problems

• One conciliator acts on behalf of a consumerassociation and the other one acts on behalfof the energy company: they arrange acommission, which tries to reach an agreement toresolve the dispute. Customer can sign theagreement or not

AEEG and ADRSupporting and monitoring the “Paritetico “ model - 1


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• AEEG supports the training of consumerassociations' staff/conciliators

• Consumer associations are granted a fee when theADR procedure is successfully completed (thecustomer and the company have reached an agreement).Projects financed by a specific fund fed by penalties paidby service providers when they violate the regulation.Projects approved by the Ministry of EconomicDevelopment

• Recently, AEEG has signed an agreement with themost representative small and medium enterprisesAssociations, also for promoting ADR for the benefit ofSME’s as energy consumers

AEEG and ADRSupporting and monitoring the “Paritetico “ model - 2


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• AEEG has recently launched an ADR procedure:THE ENERGY CONCILIATION SERVICE(Resolutions n. 260/2012, 475/2012, 93/2013)

• The procedure started 3 days ago (on April the first)• The procedure is operated by the Single Buyer

(Acquirente Unico S.p.A.)• Working groups with the associations representing

interested parties (suppliers, DSOs, customers, small andmedium enterprises) have been established: circulation ofdocuments, collection of written observations, debates anddiscussions, sharing ideas

AEEG and ADRThe new Energy Conciliation Service - 1


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• FEATURES

‒ The procedure is entirely on-line, from thebeginning to the potential signature of theagreement by the parties (electronic signature)

‒ The procedure is voluntary and free ofcharge

‒ The final agreement binds parties as acontract



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• The procedure regards disputes between acustomer and a supplier or DSO

• Before accessing to the procedure, customer musttry to solve the problem directly with theprovider by submitting the writtencomplaint (this procedure is only the secondstep in a complaint process)

• In case of lack of any answer by the supplier orwhen the answer given is unsatisfactory,customer can submit the dispute to the EnergyConciliation Service



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• Customer can’t benefit from this procedurewhen on the same topic:‒ the procedure known as “paritetica” or a legal

action are on-going or the dispute has alreadybeen handled by these procedures

‒ when customer has submitted a complaint tothe Consumer Help Desk or it has given ananswer about the dispute



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• Which customer?

– Electricity: all households; small businessesconnected at low voltage (with less than 50 employeesand a yearly turnover not exceeding 10 million euros)

– Gas: all households; condominium for residential usewith annual consumptions not exceeding 200.000 cubicmeter; small businesses with annual consumptions notexceeding 50.000 cubic meter



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• Customer starts the procedure individuallyor through a delegate (consumer associationsincluded)

• Consumer associations are granted a feewhen:‒ help customer to fill in the form‒ ADR procedure is successfully completed (the

customer and the company have reached anagreement)



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• Timing

‒ Start up: within 1 year from the submissionof the complaint (in case of lack of any answerby the supplier); within 6 months from theanswer

‒ Procedure can last maximum 90 days



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• Conciliator:

‒ is appointed on the basis of an agreementbetween the Single Buyer and Chambers ofCommerce of Rome and Milan

‒ is impartial (it’s a third party)‒ doesn’t resolve the dispute: he brings the

parties together to help them find a solution



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• The Energy conciliation Service’s structure:‒ The Responsible for the Service‒ The Administrative office

• Responsible for the Service: selectsconciliators for the procedures, supervisesactivities

• Administrative office: sets up theadministration of the procedure



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Energy conciliation Service web site: www.conciliazione.energia.it



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For further information about ADR for the energy customer: http://www.autorita.energia.it/it/consumatori/conci

liazione.htm



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THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!


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Web referenceshttp://www.autorita.energia.it/it/index.htm

http://www.autorita.energia.it/it/inglese/index.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/redress_cons/adr_en.htm

www.conciliazione.energia.it


aeeg presentation 2013

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