1. PEER Regulatory Roundtable on Bundled Products
- Energy case from a multi-sectoral authority -
Remko Bos
October 2nd 2017 | Brussels

2. The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets
ACM
The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets
The authority with combined powers in consumer protection, competition and sector-specific regulation
Consumer Competition Post and Telecom
authority (CA) authority and regulator (OPTA)
Energy regulator (NMa)

3. ACM strategy Goal: “To enhance consumer welfare” Mission:
“ACM promotes opportunities and options for businesses and consumers.”
Strategy:
Consumers are central
Problem-solving approach
The effects come first, the choice of instrument follows
Contribute to consumer welfare (short and long term)
Keeping an eye out for public interests

4. ACM: reaching synergy
Foundation for integrated oversight – effective use of toolbox
Easier cooperation across domains
Exploit interaction between consumer protection, competition law enforcement, and sector-regulation
Reduce the risk of regulatory capture
Share and increase (market) information and knowledge

5. Case: Information Standards Energy
Goal: Seamless information flow throughout the complete consumer lifecycle
Information should be:
Understandable
Comparable
Consistent
Problem: Not one supplier fully complied with the general consumer protection rules
Orientation
phase
Contratual phase
Information on price changes
Billing/
Termination

6. Case: Problem

7. Case: Approach Take a consumer life cycle approach
Combine consumer protection law and energy specific legislation
Translate the consumer protection rules to the practice of the energy sector in a guidance document
Explain the rules clearly and simple
Check compliance and enforce where necessary

8. Case: Approach Orientation Contract Price changes Billing
- Personalized offers (yearly usage and address)
- Based on total expected annual costs
- Matching contract to the offer
- All essential information in the contract
- Start date of supply, monthly costs, cooling-off period
- Timely advance notice of price changes
- Bill follows seamlessly from the offer, contract and price changes
- Bill can be used to check if the consumer has gotten what was offered and what was agreed on in the contract

9. Energy and bundled offers
Approach based on general consumer protection law is equally applicable to energy contracts with and without bundled offers
Offers are based on total annual costs for the total bundle:
Including an energy management tool
Including a cashback or loyalty scheme
Including a maintenance contract
This way comparability of offers is ensured

10. Concluding remarks
Combined approach proved very efficient in the energy case:
Sector specific legislation complimented with consumer protection law
Guidance
Enforcement
This will also hold for bundled goods
But also for other fields of oversight and enforcement
Privacy
Data protection
Precondition for this approach:
Very close cooperation between NRA and consumer protection authority or other authorities
In the energy case the founding of ACM has made this relatively easy for us

11. Thank you for your attention