FAQ

The national energy ombudsman was established by the law of 7th December 2006 relating to the energy sector, and is responsible for recommending solutions to disputes between consumers and suppliers of electricity or natural gas, and taking part in campaigns to inform consumers about their rights. It is an independent administrative authority.
Denis Merville was appointed national energy ombudsman for a six year term on 5th November 2007.

Any individual consumer, and professional consumers who have subscribed for electric power no greater than 36 kVA or who consume less than 30,000 kWh of natural gas per year, may apply directly and without charge to the national energy ombudsman to attempt to find an out-of-court solution to the disagreement between them and their electricity or natural gas supplier or in some cases, their network operator.

The mediator may be appealed to directly, or by the consumer's representative (consumer association, lawyer etc).

The national energy ombudsman 's mission is to help consumers to resolve disputes with their electricity or natural gas suppliers, or in some cases with their network operator. If you consider that you have not received a satisfactory response to a complaint, you may appeal to the ombudsman to help you.

It is a concrete problem that a consumer has encountered and whose solution is subject to a disagreement with his electricity or natural gas supplier, or in some cases, with his network operator. The dispute must derive from the performance of a supply contract.

It is the company from whom the consumer purchases his electricity or natural gas. It is the company with whom the consumer signed a contract for supply of electricity or natural gas. The supplier is also the company which sends the consumer his electricity or natural gas invoices.
Since 1st January 2007, consumers may choose their supplier of electricity or natural gas.
To consult the list of suppliers: www.energie-info.fr/pratique/liste-des-fournisseurs

The distribution network operator is the company which is responsible for delivering the energy (electricity or natural gas) and the related services. This company also provides metering services (meter reading, monitoring of the components of the metering device and servicing the parts if it supplied them) and guarantees an identical energy quality for all consumers regardless of their supplier.
Network operators have a monopoly in their territories. The two main network operators in France are: ERDF for electricity and GrDF for gas.
To find the network operator in your municipality:
  - For electricity : click here
  - For natural gas : click here

The term "appeal" is used for the presentation of a complaint to the national energy ombudsman. The appeal is free of charge, and the consumer may appeal directly to the ombudsman or via a consumer association or any other competent person (lawyer or advisor etc).

Before contacting the national energy ombudsman you should have made an initial approach, ideally by registered letter with acknowledgment of receipt, either to your electricity or natural gas supplier, or to your network operator (if the dispute concerns him directly).

If you consider that you have not received a satisfactory reply two months after the complaint was received, you may then appeal to the national energy ombudsman. You must prepare a complete case file (containing explanatory documents and supporting evidence): copies of approaches made, replies, invoices, contract, costs incurred etc) and send it to the ombudsman by letter to the following address:

National energy ombudsman
Libre réponse n°59252
75443 PARIS Cedex 09
FRANCE

It is not necessary to use a stamped envelope.

An appeal to the ombudsman must respect very strict time limits.
If you have not received a satisfactory proposal or you have not received a reply two months after receipt of your complaint by your electricity or natural gas supplier (or your network operator if appropriate), you may appeal to the ombudsman by letter within no more than two months.

The ombudsman has no authority for complaints concerning:
    • the form of the contract, such as "forced sales";
    • contracts for connection with network operators;
    • professional customers who consume more than 30,000 kWh of gas and
subscribe to more than 36 kVA of electrical power;
    • suppliers of bottled gas (propane, butane etc) or other forms of energy (fuel etc).

All correspondence from consumers is numbered on arrival to simplify exchanges with suppliers and ensure the security of appeal examinations.

In each case an acknowledgment of receipt is sent by letter to the consumer.

• If the appeal is not admissible the ombudsman explains the reasons within one month of its receipt. The consumer's complaint is then sent to the competent administrative authority and the consumer is informed of this.

• If the appeal is admissible the ombudsman then asks the supplier and/or network operator concerned to provide him with their comments on the situation of which he has been informed.

The examination of this initial information can lead to requests for additional comments being made to the parties concerned by e-mail, letter or telephone.

The consumer, the supplier and the network operator, as appropriate, are consulted during the drafting of the recommendation before it is finalised and sent within two months of the date of acknowledgment of receipt of the appeal.

The ombudsman makes his recommendation within two months of receipt of the appeal.

Recommendations made by the ombudsman are not enforceable. Each of the parties is therefore free to follow the ombudsman's opinion or not. However, electricity or natural gas suppliers must inform the ombudsman within two months of the follow-up made to his recommendations.

A recommendation is the written opinion of the ombudsman regarding the dispute, supported by detailed arguments. The recommendation contains proposals for a solution to the dispute.

Yes, an appeal to national energy ombudsman does not prevent recourse to a court of law. It even suspends statutory limitations on civil and criminal matters during the period in which the appeal is being considered.
If a recommendation which is in your favour is not applied by the supplier and/or network operator, you are advised to include the recommendation in the case file submitted to the judge for his consideration.

Disputes generally come under the jurisdiction of the civil courts. Two criteria should be taken into consideration to establish to which court you should apply:
  * attribution of jurisdiction : the competent jurisdiction depends on the amount of your dispute :
       - when the amount is greater than 10,000 euros the tribunal de grande instance (court of first instance, presided over by three judges) has jurisdiction ;
       - when your claim is less than or equal to 10,000 euros but greater than 4,000 euros you should apply to the tribunal d'instance (lower court) ;
       - in principle, when the amount of your claim does not exceed 4,000 euros you should apply to the "juge de proximité" (equivalent of a magistrate, hearing minor cases in local court).
  * territorial jurisdiction : to find the contact details of one or more courts : click here