Relief for VERBUND electricity customers

VERBUND and the Upper Austria Chamber of Labour (AK OÖ) have reached a joint agreement that saves VERBUND customers money. In the coming weeks, VERBUND customers will receive a one-off payment of 20, 40 or 85 euros, depending on how much electricity they consume. “With this bonus payment, we are thanking our electricity customers for their solidarity in challenging times,” says VERBUND CEO Michael Strugl.

The one-off bonus payment was agreed by VERBUND in cooperation with the Upper Austria Chamber of Labour (AK OÖ) as a form of relief for electricity customers due to the increase in energy prices. All VERBUND electricity customers who were supplied with electricity by VERBUND on the cut-off date of 30/9/2023 (excluding floater customers) and have been supplied with electricity by VERBUND since 1 June will receive a bonus. The amount of the bonus is based on the most recent annualised consumption level. Thus electricity customers with an annual electricity consumption of up to 1,500 kWh will receive a bonus of 20 euros, with an annual consumption of 1,501 to 3,000 kWh a bonus of 40 euros and with an annual consumption of more than 3,000 kWh customers receive a one-off payment of 85 euros directly to their account. All VERBUND electricity customers will be personally informed. Those whose account details are unknown to VERBUND AG (those who pay using the payment slip on their bill) will be asked to provide their account details for the one-off payment by 31/3/2024.

Legal improvement with respect to changes to the price of electricity urgently needed

The statutory regulation newly introduced in the Electricity Industry and Organisation Act (ElWOG) in January 2022 stipulates that changes to the price of electricity must be appropriate to the circumstances surrounding the change. Furthermore, customers must be informed in writing about the reason, prerequisite, scope and start date of any price changes in a transparent and understandable way. This provision is too unclear to ensure legal certainty.

On this point, AK-OÖ president Andreas Stangl says: “The current law has not enabled the federal government to create successful, simple and secure rules for changing electricity prices in an appropriate way. The AK OÖ is therefore calling for an amendment that creates legal certainty over changes to the price of electricity.

VERBUND has also repeatedly called for legal certainty for customers and providers alike over price changes: “It is incomprehensible how such a basic economic process like changing prices in the energy industry is tied up with so much legal uncertainty,” says Michael Strugl, CEO VERBUND. “We need clear rules on which to base our customer relations.”

VERBUND loyalty scheme

The VERBUND loyalty scheme continues to offer customers an attractive fixed price without contractual obligation or risk. VERBUND guarantees an electricity price of 19.70 cents net or 23.64 cents gross per kilowatt hour for 12 months without contractual obligation. This means that customers can cancel at any time, but also that VERBUND is only allowed to reduce prices, not increase them, during this period.

VERBUND also offers further support measures via the VERBUND hardship fund or via the VERBUND Electricity Relief Fund in collaboration with Caritas:

Full information at: www.verbund.com/de-at/privatkunden/unterstuetzungshilfen

Further information:

VERBUND bonus payment at: www.verbund.at/bonuszahlung

VERBUND loyalty scheme: www.verbund.at/treueangebot