«Flyforbanna I sent a sharp complaint to Hafslund Strøm on the maximum price guarantee, when they set up to NOK 8.95. Which, of course, is a scam. “
And facebook group We who demand cheaper electricity, Nina Kristin Evensen recently posted the review. She could tell that after four weeks and two reminders, she finally received an answer to her complaint.
According to Evensen, the company has given her NOK 500 in compensation on the next bill.
Believes that Hafslund is cheating customers
– The guarantee tricks customers, and it is outright fraud, Evensen says to Nettavisen.
To have control over electricity costs, the family has for years paid a fixed additional amount to be guaranteed a maximum price.
Maximum price is an upper limit for the average price the customer must pay for electricity per month. The purpose is to give the customer a financial predictability on the electricity bill.
Evensen experienced the price guarantee agreement as a security against the sky-high electricity prices that hit Norway before Christmas last year. But at the same time as electricity prices skyrocketed, Hafslund Strøm constantly increased the amount.
– We thought the agreement secured us against price peaks, but it’s just silly, she says.
Evensen says that it went from 99 øre to 1.29 øre per kWh, and then ended up at almost 9 kroner per kWh.
Nine kroner per kWh is higher than the highest electricity price ever in Norway, a record that was set sat just before Christmas last year. On 19 December, electricity cost the most expensive NOK 8, including all taxes.
Also read: The power support starts at twice the normal price: – Pathetic and hypocritical
– This is the peak of impudence
And that was what made the cup overflow for Evensen.
On January 7, she wrote a harsh complaint to Hafslund Strøm:
“We feel cheated and actually cheated. When we signed the agreement, it was to be secured against price caps, so this is just the tip of the iceberg. Here we pay for an additional agreement that does not protect against price caps at all. Could just as easily have set fire to the money, because it helps absolutely nothing. “
Evensen wrote in the email that the treatment was unacceptable. She tells Nettavisen that she has been a customer of Hafslund Strøm for more than 30 years.
“We are shocked and embarrassed on their behalf. Is this thanks to being a loyal customer for decades? ” she wanted an answer. Evensen wondered if a steady increase in the maximum price guarantee was legal?
Read the response from Hafslund Strøm further down in the case
Also read: Electricity in the south is over ten times more expensive than in northern Norway
Critical of Hafslund’s customer service
Evensen is critical of Hafslund Strøm selling the agreement as a price guarantee to help customers towards price peaks.
– They should be honest with their customers, and not sell liquor products and castles in the air. This is poor customer service, and shows that loyal customers are not valued, she says.
After waiting for several weeks, she and her cohabitant received an answer to an email from Hafslund’s customer service:
“It is very unfortunate that you feel cheated and cheated. It is certainly not a feeling we want our customers to be left with. “
The electricity company agrees with Evensen that the maximum price guarantee has been very high, and writes that they have not been able to negotiate a better guarantee due to the unstable power market they are in.
Hafslund Strøm writes that the prices on the power exchange NordPool were abnormally high in 2021. Little water in the reservoirs and Norwegian prices that have been pushed up by the price in Europe, they explain with the high maximum price guarantee to customers.
– Has not been able to negotiate a better guarantee
Kristian Myrseth, PR Manager, press officer at Hafslund Strøm, responds to the criticism:
– Maximum price guarantee is a voluntary additional service without a lock-in period where spot price customers can secure a price cap for a period ahead, which ensures the customer more predictability. The maximum price guarantee means that the customer’s average price per kilowatt hour for the month will not be higher than the current maximum price guarantee for the period, and if the average price is lower than the guarantee, the customer pays the spot price, Myrseth tells Nettavisen.
In 2021, the maximum price guarantee took effect in four out of twelve months. Depending on a customer’s electricity consumption, the savings in these months could have been more than the annual cost of having the service, he says, and emphasizes that the price cap is controlled by the market.
– We ensure customers’ maximum price caps in the financial market, and when electricity prices vary so sharply over short periods of time, and in addition high prices are expected in the future, the ceiling level rises as it is possible to secure in the market, he says, and points out:
– The electricity market is now in such a special situation that few dare to predict what the electricity price may be in the coming months, and for that reason we have unfortunately not been able to negotiate a better guarantee for January.
– The agreement shall provide predictability and security
– How often have you changed the guarantee since October last year? Samt ii 2019?
– We do not go out with this information in detail, but secure the roof continuously for different periods at a time, from one month and upwards, Myrseth says.
When asked to what extent they believe the agreement provides a financial security guarantee for customers, he answers that the maximum guarantee has secured customers against price peaks on a number of occasions, most recently in 2021 where the guarantee took effect in four out of twelve months. The maximum price guarantee must be regarded as insurance. You do not take out insurance to make money from it, but to ensure predictability and security, he believes.
– The customer says that they had to wait for four weeks for a response from customer service. What was the reason it took so long?
– Our customer center is currently experiencing an enormous influx both by phone and email, and this unfortunately creates long queues. We work hard to help customers as quickly as possible, and also encourage customers to use the website and app for information and help to reduce queues, Myrseth concludes.
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