• The company Polski Prąd i Gaz used unlawful clauses in their contracts with consumers," declared UOKiK President Tomasz Chróstny.
• The contested clauses concerned fees for early termination and automatic extension of contracts for another definite period.
• President of UOKiK Tomasz Chróstny ordered the company to reimburse consumers for the unduly charged fees and imposed a fine of over PLN 183 thousand  on the company.

The company Polski Prąd i Gaz (formerly Polska Energetyka Pro) is a seller of electricity and gaseous fuel. In December 2016 the Office of Competition and Consumer Protection imposed a fine in the amount of PLN 10 million on the company for practices violating collective consumer interests. Meanwhile, in March 2019, the Office initiated yet another proceeding for declaring 47 provisions applied by Polski Prąd i Gaz in contracts unlawful.

“We raised doubts about the clauses under which, in the case of early contract termination by the consumer or due to his/her fault - the consumer was charged a lump fee. This fee has no justification in the costs incurred by the company. The purpose of such a provision is to force customers to continue using the services of Polski Prąd i Gaz. This restricts the freedom of choice of the electricity supplier, which is unacceptable,” says Tomasz Chróstny, the President of UOKiK.

Polski Prąd i Gaz concludes fixed-term contracts for long periods: 48 or even 60 months. If a consumer wants to change the service provider earlier, the company charges them a One-off Fee of PLN 11 or 17 for each month left to the contract expiration date. In extreme cases, it may even be nearly one thousand Polish zloty. Meanwhile, the energy law in such a situation only provides for the possibility to claim costs and damages under the contract provisions, so the fee payable to the energy company for the early termination of the contract should be dependent on the value of the damage suffered by this company. The advance determination of the amount of the One-off Fee in a lump-sum form is, in turn, a manifestation of the abuse of the contractual position by Polski Prąd i Gaz and the protection of company's own interests without taking into account consumer interests, as it is intended to enable the company to seek redress without the need to demonstrate the circumstances of the damage suffered or the amount thereof. For this reason, the President of UOKiK recognized the provisions of standard contracts of Polski Prąd i Gaz as prohibited.

The second group of contested clauses concerns automatic extension of contracts for another definite period. Polski Prąd i Gaz automatically extends the contract for 36 months, unless the consumer makes a special statement on contract termination 45 days before the end of the first contract. “The consumer's tacit consent cannot be presumed here. In order to bind the consumer with another fixed-term contract, the customer should provide the company with a relevant declaration of intent. Due to the nature of the product, i.e. ensuring continuity of electricity or gas supply, I only allow for automatic extension of the contract for an indefinite period of time, provided that the customer can terminate it at any time, without any costs,” declares Tomasz Chróstny.

The President of UOKiK imposed a fine of PLN 183,506 on Polski Prąd i Gaz. He also instructed the company to compensate consumers for their losses. The company must inform all individuals who have paid the fee that they can reclaim it and must advise them how to apply for it. Polski Prąd i Gaz will have 4 months to return money, starting from the day when the decision of the President of UOKiK becomes legally binding. The decision is not yet legally binding.

The company must also inform consumers that the contested clauses are not binding. In practice, this means that the contracts have been extended for an indefinite period (and not for 36 months) and can be terminated at any time with one month's notice at no cost at all.

Consumer support:

Phone: +48 801 440 220 or +48 22 290 89 16 – consumer helpline
E-mail: porady@dlakonsumentow.pl
Consumer ombudsmen – in your town or district
Regional Consumer Centres: 22 299 60 90 – Dlakonsumenta.pl
Information Desk for Energy and Gaseous Fuel Consumers: 22 244 26 36, e-mail: drr@ure.gov.pl

Additional information for the media:

UOKiK Press Office
Pl. Powstańców Warszawy 1, 00-950 Warszawa, Poland
Phone +48 695 902 088, +48 22 55 60 246
E-mail: biuroprasowe@uokik.gov.pl
Twitter: @UOKiKgovPL