The explosion in prices pushed UFC-Que Choisir to look into the issue again. A new operation to subscribe to electricity at a predictable and advantageous price was launched this Thursday by the consumer defense association, a pioneer in the field. However, it no longer offered such group purchases since 2021.
“We monitored and it has still declined in recent months,” relates Cédric Musso, director of political action at the association, whose group purchasing subsidiary, active since 2014, was able to relaunch suppliers so that they make their best proposal. The new offer is limited to the first 120,000 subscribers who must register by November 15.
A price set to rise in February
The offer makes the KWh excluding tax 12.1% cheaper than the regulated rate, or around -10% all inclusive, indicates the Energy Mediator. The price is fixed over two years while the regulated rate, which has increased by 31% since 2021, is expected to increase again in February, by a maximum of 10%.
“To select the supplier, there are two prerequisites: a secure contract, and support from UFC-Que Choisir in the event of a complaint,” assures Cédric Musso. The contractual conditions are classic, he says: “Only the supplier is committed for two years, not the customer who can cancel at any time and return to the regulated rate or elsewhere if he wants.”
An “attractive” offer
How can the supplier – Octopus Energy, heir to the Plum company taken over by the British group – charge such prices? “In group purchases, there is no marketing cost, this allows the supplier to return this saving to the customer,” indicates Cédric Musso. The association does not receive any commission, just a membership fee of 12 euros.
The offer “is attractive”, commented the Energy Mediator, emphasizing that there were currently “other offers cheaper than the regulated tariff” and recommending going to its online comparator. “We must also look at the quality of customer service and the rate of disputes to make the right choice,” we add to the Mediator. “It is a good signal that suppliers are able to offer offers with prices lower than the regulated sales price,” also underlines the Mediator.
Annual saving of 154 euros in 2019
Corsica and the regions distributed by local establishments such as Strasbourg, Metz, Bordeaux or Grenoble, are not affected by the offer which goes from the basic contract up to a power of 36 kVa. The offer is supported by SAS Que Choisir, a subsidiary of the association which originally published consumer guides and has developed into supporting consumers towards less expensive borrower insurance or mutual insurance contracts.
In energy, UFC-Que Choisir first offered a gas contract in 2014. Its last group purchase of gas and electricity attracted 120,000 customers in 2019, for an average annual saving of 154 euros. Every other Friday, the association also offers to buy fuel oil as cheaply as possible.