Berlin.
If the price rises, it will be easier for consumers to get out of their electricity or gas contract. The number of special terminations has almost doubled.
According to new figures, more and more consumers can no longer put up with the persistently rising prices charged by energy providers. The number of special notices of electricity and gas contracts almost doubled in the first quarter of this year compared to the previous year with an increase of 82 percent.
At the same time, in more than one in ten cases, customers do not receive their cancellation confirmation from the energy supplier within the specified period – what the change to the new provider may be delayed. This was the result of an analysis by the consumer portal Aboalarm, which is available to our editorial team.
Electricity and gas providers: the number of terminations is increasing
About all kinds of terminations Between January and March, the portal determined an increase of a good third (34 percent) in electricity and gas contracts compared to the previous year. According to Aboalarm, one reason for the wave of terminations is the current pricing of the tariffs: On the one hand, numerous energy suppliers have increased the prices for existing customers. At the same time, the providers are now again trying to attract new customers with cheaper electricity and gas tariffs.
Die new customer tariffs are in many cases priced below the price caps set by the state for electricity (40 cents per kilowatt hour) and gas (12 cents per kilowatt hour). “Anyone who wants to benefit quickly from the falling wholesale prices can cancel their expensive contract and sign a cheaper new customer tariff,” said Aboalarm boss Jan Hendrik Ansink according to the announcement.
Special terminations almost doubled compared to the previous year
The online termination service has recorded a particularly high increase since the beginning of the year in its analysis in the area of special notices established. Between January and March, almost twice as many customers (82 percent) exercised this right compared to the same period last year.
In the case of the cancellation service Volders – which took over the former competitor Aboalarm in the summer of 2022 and thus belongs to the same company – “price increases” have also been the most common reason for cancellations since the beginning of the year energy contracts (29 percent, 2022: 24 percent). They are replacing “moving” as the most important reason for termination for years (27 percent, 2022: 30 percent).
“For many customers, the answer to a price increase is: termination, especially if they have cheap alternatives,” Ansink is quoted as saying in the message. He cites North Rhine-Westphalia as a current example: Since market leader Eon in the most populous federal state announced that it would increase the prices for basic electricity supply on June 1, 2023, subscription alarms have had one wave of layoffs between April 12 and 25, 2023 – the number of contract terminations has increased sixfold compared to the previous weeks (plus 503 percent) and more than tenfold compared to the previous year (plus 971 percent).
Special right of termination: When consumers can change the contract prematurely
But when can customers actually special right of termination end your electricity or gas tariff prematurely? As soon as the energy provider announces a price increase in writing, consumers can usually cancel. It doesn’t matter how long the contract is still running.
Important requirement: The special notice must reach the electricity or gas provider before the new prices come into force. The end of the contract is the day before the price change. An exception applies to tariffs in the so-called primary care (You get this automatically if you never change your tariff). These generally have a shortened notice period of just two weeks.
Confirmation of termination: Every tenth comes after the deadline
Another result of the investigation: customers can sign a new contract after submitting a notice of termination as soon as they have received confirmation from the old energy supplier. But it is here of all things that delays seem to be occurring more and more frequently. According to the Volders portal, more than every tenth person willing to change (13 percent) received the in the first quarter of 2023 Confirmation of termination only upon express request.
According to the switching service, this was not the case with any other type of contract. Across all sectors, only six percent of the terminations were delayed. Basically, energy providers have to confirm the cancellation within a week for household customers who are not in the basic supply.
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