INFO EUROPE 1
The number of power outages for unpaid bills explodes. They increased by 18% in the first half of 2019 compared to last year, according to information Europe 1 and Le Parisien . The cuts in gas have increased by 10%. The energy ombudsman is worried about the numerous calls his services receive from people who are unable to pay their gas and electricity bills and who end up sooner or later without energy at home.
A fortnight ago, when Karim crossed the door of his small 16m2 apartment in Seine-Saint-Denis, he had the unpleasant surprise that the electricity had been cut. "I do not eat anymore, I can not heat myself, even my phone, I can not charge it, it's still strong!", He reports to Europe 1.
French people who have more and more trouble paying
Finally Karim was able to borrow some money to pay the 90 euros that his supplier asked him ... A case far from isolated: there are more and more power cuts which alert the mediator of the Jean Gaubert energy. "We have largely passed the 600,000 cuts for the year 2019, which is a bad sign," says he.
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"This is not to say that our citizens are not as good payers as they used to be, but they have a harder time paying, but government measures have not yet taken their full measure, whether it's incentives to insulation or payment aids for people in difficulty. "Jean Gaubert continues.
The energy ombudsman still regrets the lack of support of these customers in great precariousness by suppliers. Yet they have a legal obligation to refer them to a social worker.