According to the Consumer Ombudsman, the electricity company Lokal Energi ApS has charged an illegal fee of DKK 1,500 from customers who have terminated their fixed-price electricity contract during the binding period. Consumers may therefore be entitled to a refund, and Lokal Energi has informed the Consumer Ombudsman that the company will refund the illegally charged fees.
The Consumer Ombudsman assesses that the so-called "bridge fee", as Lokal Energi called it, is a switch-related fee in violation of the Electricity Supply Executive Order, as the amount is disproportionate and, as a rule, exceeds the financial loss that Lokal Energi has suffered from the customers' termination during the binding period. At the same time, it is assessed that the terms of the fee are unreasonable and invalid under the Contract Act, and that the company has not provided sufficient information about the fee prior to the conclusion of the agreement.
- It is our assessment that Lokal Energi has charged an illegal fee from customers who have terminated their fixed-price agreement during the binding period. Consumers may be entitled to a refund if they have paid the fee. Therefore, I would clearly recommend that consumers contact Lokal Energi as soon as possible and request a refund if they have been unjustifiably charged a fee of DKK 1,500 for terminating their fixed-price agreement during the binding period. And if a solution cannot be found with the company, there is the possibility of complaining to the Energy Appeals Board, says Torben Jensen, Consumer Ombudsman, in a statement.
Lokal Energi has announced that the company is no longer charging the fee and has changed its terms. Consumers who have previously paid the termination fee can contact Lokal Energi for payment to get the money back. However, the claim may become statute-barred after three years from the time the customer became or should have become aware of the refund claim.
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