EU PRIVATE LAW W1 Reading Notes “Martijn W. Hesselink: setting the scene” First definition: Private law is the law applicable to private (or horizontal) relationships Second definition: Relating only to private interests, as opposed to public interests >> sometimes inspired by a concern to keep private law ‘pure’ in this specific and controversial sense of being concerned only with private interests and preventing the infiltration of public concerns into disputes governed by private law Increasing Europeanisation (1980s) effect on private law - Most directives in the field of private law, including the entire body of EU consumer law, have had Art 114 TFEU (or its predecessors) as their legal basis - Regulations, that bring uniform EU law, are less frequent in the field of private law, but there exist some prominent instances, eg in EU financial law - Fundamental rights have had an increasingly important impact on private law relationships already governed, directly or indirectly, by EU law - The Court of Justice of the EU has played a prominent, sometimes plainly activist, role, especially with regard to consumer protection and to fundamental rights • Preliminary rulings Inequality: - Positive and normative questions • Positive: How much inequality is there? What types of inequality are there? • Normative: how much equality ought there to be, or, put differently, how much inequality is acceptable? - Equality of what? • Income - policies aiming at reducing inequality (or wealth) of income include income tax (plus capital tax and inheritance tax) and various social security measures (eg unemployment benefits, a universal basic income) • Needs - Theory 1: everyone is entitled at least to the satisfaction of their needs (basic needs). - Theory 2: people are equally entitled to just as much as each of them needs, nothing more • Opportunity - Prominent instruments for reducing inequality of opportunity are measures (including quotas) aiming to improve equal access to school, to healthcare and (other) essential services, or to high-ranking positions • Power Interpersonal (or relational) inequality and injustice occurs when, in a relationship between two or more persons, one is in a better position than the other(s) in terms, for example, of bargaining power, negotiation skills, expertise, experience, independence, cognitive biases, or luck Who should breach inequality? What of the recipients? EU citizens? Formal equality is usually considered a basic or minimum requirement of justice and rationality — Formal equality then simply means that people are treated equally already when all individuals are treated the same way, whatever their specific characteristics or situations >> however: frequently regarded as insufficient Substantive Inequality: new doctrines such as unconscionability, economic duress, abuse of circumstances or unfair exploitation, and, especially, the sets of rules aiming at the protection of certain categories of weaker or vulnerable parties, such as workers, tenants, consumers, and the rules against the discrimination on grounds of gender, ethnic background or religion Course Objective: Identifying the EU’s private law as an agent of inequality and equality in Europe Reading 2: Laura Burgers, Marija Bartl, and Chantal Mak, “Introduction: The Evolving Concept of Private Law in Europe”, Handbook: Uncovering European Private Law (2022) Public/private divide >> privatisation of public function Private autonomy as general principle of private law — Substantive side: (eg. freedom of contract) - promotion of material or substantive equality. This can be called the ‘social’ or ‘societal’ dimension of private law. >> To the extent that the promotion is taken up by the judiciary, this is often called the ‘materialisation’ of private law - Constitutionalisation of private law (second half of 20th century) Procedural side: one of the parties decides what part of their conflict they want to take to court, and whether they want to do that at all. - Party autonomy: This means that parties who enter into a contract, are free to negotiate what law applies to their contract and to which court or arbiter they will resort in case of conflict. Private Law-makers in EU - We understand private law as law made by public authorities, i.e. legislatures and judiciaries - Rules made by private parties - fall within the sphere of freedom of contract or self-regulation - ‘Civil law’ is frequently used a synonym of ‘private law’. Civil procedural law is typically laid down in codes of civil procedure. It refers to procedural rules in private legal disputes and contains rules on, for example: evidence, possibilities for appeals and enforcement of judgments. What is EU private Law? — EU law impacting private legal relations, i.e. law emanating from the EU level, or ‘EU private law’ >> For over two decades, from 1989 onwards, attempts were made to draft a civil code for the European Union. However, no consensus could be reached, which in turn exposed how legal- politically salient issues of private law are, and what importance civil codes have for national identities >> Idea that EU law threatens the coherence, essence or autonomy of national private laws Lochner Case: >> Lochner allowed an employee to work more then 60 hours in a week >> ‘violates bakeshop Act’ >> Lochner claims it should have been interpreted to contain the freedom to contract among the rights encompassed by substantive due process - Does the Bakeshop Act violate the liberty protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment? 5-4 Majoritarian decision: The New York law violated "liberty of contract" protected by the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment - The statute interfered with the freedom of contract, and thus the Fourteenth Amendment's right to liberty afforded to employer and employee - New York law failed the rational basis test for determining whether government action is constitutional - The Bakeshop Act had no rational basis because long working hours did not dramatically undermine the health of employees, and baking is not particularly dangerous

Lecture 1

-

Setting the scene

Lecture Objective: What is European private law? // Understanding inequality as an analytical

framework // Connecting inequality and (private) law

Lectures:

1. Introduction

2. Energy poverty, price and just transition

3. Labour, Private Law, and social Justice

4. Housing justice and specialised inequality

5. Non-discrimination in Private Law

6. Posting of workers in the EU

7. Inequality and the constitutive role of private Law

Assessment:

20% Group Task — discussion questions

- 2 questions submitted to the group

- 5 Questions submitted via canvas

- Deadline 12pm Thursday (of assigned week)

80% Exam

- What is meant with European Private Law?

• EU rule which affect horizontal transactions (example: the covid restrictions >> airlines

reimbursing consumers)

• Private law is the law that applies to private parties (eg. exchange, conclude a contract, sue

each other in tort)

- Entities acting in their private capacity

- Private law adopted by the European Union:

• Primary and secondary legislation

• Especially directives (as implemented by the MSs?)

- Mostly Consumer Law

- Or private laws of 27 MSs

• Comparative approach: similarities and differences?

- How countries differentiate their private laws

- Why are MS differentiation interesting: understanding that it demonstrates the human-

made nature of private law, countries have differing ideologies = create different private law

• Creates area for ‘Intervention’

• EU cannot be too restrictive

- EPL as rules governing private disputes in a multi-level EU legal order

Private Law ‘in real life’

- applied in civil courts (and ADR), mostly about ‘patrimonial’ interests

- Core topics: contract, tort, property, family, succession, company, PIL

- Emerging areas by “subject”: finance, information (data copyright)

- Contract as rule-making; private regulation (means of private law)

- Private law and “public” dimension

• Constitutionalisation: horizontal effect of fundamental rights: public values?

• Instrumental private law: concerns with

- Groups: eg. Tenants v landlords, patients, etc.

- Goals: efficiency, growth, sustainability

- Europeanisation

• 1800-1980s >> private law in Europe = Nation state or State Building

- Civil codes and some statutes

• 1980s-Early 2010s

- Acquis communautaire: internal market, social europe, especially consumer law

- EU Civil Code?

• 2010s-present

- Consumer law

EU critique >> instrumentalisation of Market and focus on economic objective in private law

Most prominent Legal basis: 114 TFEU // Legal realm governed by CJEU (non democratically

elected) >> distancing of private law-makers from private-law recipients

Public/private divide

- Is private law really a ‘private’ law?

- What issues of private life should be regulated by private law and which by public law (if any)?

- What issues require European instead of National regulation?

Inequality

- What is inequality?

- Equality of what?

• Income // Needs // Opportunities // Power

- Social vs interpersonal inequality

• Social on a more aggregate level whilst interpersonal represents the “I in relation to you”

situation

- Inequality among whom?

- Formal and Substantive inequality in private law

• Course of 20th century revealed a shift >> people wanting to do away with feudalism and to

create rather egalitarianism (People being equal not only in words and formalities but rather in

the substantive plane)

Positive vs Normative Inequality

- Positive

• How much inequality is there? // what types of inequality are there? // Data, comparing

groups or on tendencies

- Normative

• What kinds and amounts of inequality are acceptable? // who ought to do what about

inequality?

• Theories of justice

- social, distributive justice

- Interpersonal ,corrective justice

Mapping Inequality:

- Ownership/Labour

- Graduate/non-graduate

- Citizenship

- Parenthood

- Categorical inequality (gender, race, religion, disabilities, age)

Why is inequality problematic?

- Economic and social welfare

- Social: Limited upward mobility

- Political: captured political processes, mistrust of institutions

- Dignitarian concerns: egalitarian aspirations as a backbone of society (in theory at least)

- Non-instrumental reasons: inequality as reproachable from a moral/ethical perspective

Equality as an ideal (normative aspects)

“Men are born and remain free and equal in rights”

Modern Law and the ideal of equality >> what is the role for private law?

Ancient law: “from status to contract”

What role for ‘Contract Law’?

‘Pacta sunt servanda’ and the freedom of contract as a first principle

In what sense was freedom of contract revolutionary? Reaction against the lack of freedom from

slavery >> everyone is capable of concluding contracts (some exceptions eg minors)

How this transformation became manifested in legal rules of validity of contracts?

What conception of equality underlies this legal institution?

“Growing inequality and over reliance on the capacity of markets to bring about local justice

threaten the social contract in many countries” (UN World Social Report 2020)

- The prospect of inequality in a changing world

- Digitalisation: “the technological revolution”

- Anthropocene: “Climate change; exacerbating poverty and inequality”

- Urbanisation: “expanding opportunities but deeper divides”

- International migration: “a force of equality, under the right conditions”

Tutorial 1 - Lochner Case

Peckham opinion (majority) — textuality of “required” and “permitted” in the consideration of the

legality of the freedom to contract and freedom to perform labour (beyond what is contracted) of a

period surpassing what statue has deemed legal >> absolute prohibition on employer

>> State has some power to limit freedom to contact (under certain consideration)

>> Is it necessary and proportionate to curtail individuals’ rights to labour (Fourth Amendment)

over the primacy of New York’s Statute

“It is a question of which of two powers or rights shall prevail -the power of the State to legislate

or the right of the individual to liberty of person and freedom of contract.” Pg. 57

>> Does the labour of a baker constitute of a health-endangering concern sufficiently serious to

warrant a limitation?

Decision — “There is, in our judgment, no reasonable foundation for holding this to be necessary

or appropriate as a health law to safeguard the public health or the health of the individuals who

are-following the trade of a baker”

- The Lochner case as an anti-model

• A misguided intervention on the significance of ‘liberty’ in the ‘liberty to contract’

- There is a presumption of equality between employee and employer

- The employee is found to be free to demand inhumane hours

under this fourteenth amendment’s ‘liberty’ to do so.

- The Lochner case as a transformative movement

• Challenging the constitutionalisation of ‘freedom of contract’

• Disproving the notion that law could separate politics and legal

reasoning and that legal reasoning could be distinguished from

moral or political reasoning

• Politicising freedom of contract

- Formal vs Substantive Equality

- Social inequality >> level of abstraction >> what are the distributive effects of this power

dynamic (owners of means of production and workers ((marxist language)))

- Dissenting opinion: Private law as a means of achieving a certain social good

Majority opinion: “reasonable and rational” people — assuming that every individual is informed

and independent — individuals are most capable of deciding for themselves what they need >>

unnecessary for state paternalism - Liberal framework

Majority court place the power on the court // Justice Holmes places power on the legislator

Places power with the owners of capital

The legal transformation of Lochner:

Formal equality >> treating like cases alike - Minimal Justice (and rationality)

‘Classical’, late 19th century private law was ‘formalist’ >> treated parties as if they were equal in

spite of substantiative differences (bargaining power) // Laissez-faire

Materialisation of private law (20th Century) >> shift towards a more substantive notion of

freedom and equality - compensating for inequality, restoring equality

Contextual: via doctrines

- Various applications of good faith and fair dealing

- Introduction of new doctrines, eg unconscious ability, economic duress, abuse of

circumstances or unfair exploitation

Categorical: Rules aiming to protect certain categories of weaker or venerable parties

W2 Reading Notes

Marlies Hesselman, 'Energy poverty and household access to energy services in international,

regional and national law’

- The European Union (EU) has identified energy poverty as ‘a growing concern’ amongst EU

citizens, especially as a result of high energy prices, low incomes and the poor energy

efficiency of homes, as well as energy transition

- ‘right to access essential services of good quality’ and that support has to be ‘available for

those in need’

- The increased recognition of household energy access as a human rights concern

International Law

- (UN) Article 14 CEDAW >> recognition of health and safety to ensure the access of renewable

energies for ‘Rural women’ >> General Recommendations of UN human rights treaty

monitoring bodies (or ‘General Comments’) are not legally binding

- UN Human Rights Council experts have addressed the rights to adequate housing and health

on several occasions in some detail

- Stating that this right entails a ‘right to live somewhere in security, peace and dignity’ with

access to ‘facilities essential for health, security, comfort and nutrition’

- when private actors are involved in the provision of essential services, states must strictly

regulate and monitor their activities, including by imposing “public service obligations”’

(PSOs)

• universality of coverage, continuity of service, quality, pricing policies, user participation, non-

discrimination and access to information

• Public authorities responsible for delegating the necessary framework for private actors to be

held accountable

EU Law (regional)

- ‘Services of General Economic Interest’, such as electricity, constitutes a ‘shared value’ and

needs to be provided in line with ‘a high level of quality, safety and affordability, equal treatment

and the promotion of universal access and of user rights

• Recognised as a right >> Charter Art. 36 // Principle 20 ‘right to access essential services of

good quality’ of the new non-binding EU Pillar of Social Rights

• EU concern for secondary energy Law: new electricity market design pursued through the

EU’s fourth legal reform package adopted in 2018–2019, households’ right to ‘competitive’

prices superseded their previous right to ‘reasonable’ prices under Directive 2009/72/EC (the

2009 Electricity Directive)

• EU allows for some derogations on the application of social tariffs ‘pursuit of a general

economic interest’

• Articles 27–28 of the 2019 Electricity Directive, as well as Article 3(3) of Governance

Regulation 2018/1999 >> further protection for vulnerable customers and energy-poor

households

• MSs are now legally obligated to define and assess the ‘number of households in energy

poverty’ as well

- “MSs have leeway to provide their own national definitions – however the level of

discretion is not unlimited >> it shall be of great interest to see how the notions of

‘necessary domestic energy services’ and ‘basic standards of living’ are defined and taken

into account”

• 2019 Electricity Directive >> must be interpreted in respects to the EU Charter of

Fundamental Rights

- ‘from the premise that any proportion of households in energy poverty’ may be significant

- The Commission will annually review the directive’s implementation, with a major

legislative review planned for 2025

National Law

- Differentiated conditions in a range of different States >> full electrification achieved,

privatisation of services, etc.

• Developing countries >> RISE indicators (developed by UN) to evaluate the desirable level of

electricity + affordability and etc. measures and plans

• Developed countries >> issues more concerning affordability, reliability and quality, as well as

protection against abuse by (private) providers or disconnections of electricity supply

- Civil society organisations grouped in a ‘Right to Energy Coalition’ (fairer pricing etc.)

- Indeed, a clear recent trend in national legislation has been the increased adoption of

‘rights to energy’ or ‘rights to electricity’ in law or through case-law

Conclusion questions >> interesting to note for assignment:

- How can universality of coverage for every household be guaranteed – including for those in

difficult to reach areas, or for people with difficulties in paying for even basic connections or

services?

- How can states ensure that all persons receive adequate, sufficient, reliable, continuous and

high-quality supply in line with their personal needs?

- How can ‘the overall financial viability of the supply system’ be squared with ‘reasonable

payment rates for electricity supply for every person’? How can relevant costs and benefits be

best distributed? In short, how to ensure affordability?

- How can regulations approach the protection of energy poor and vulnerable persons, including

people needing additional support to enjoy access to services on a par with others, or in light of

specific needs (e.g. age, health, disability)?

- How can non-discriminatory access to energy, user participation and access to information best

be guaranteed?

- How specifically can disconnections be protected against?

Exemplary of the requirement of public intervention in a privatised sector >> sphere of energy

market regulation, energy policy, taxation, the social (welfare) system, or otherwise — strong

independent regulators and oversight mechanisms

Hanoch Dagan and Avihay Dorfman. ‘Poverty and Private Law: Beyond Distributive Justice.’

Jonathan Symons and Simon Friederich, ‘Tensions Within Energy Justice’

Key principles >> distributional justice (equitable access to energy), procedural justice (fair

participation in energy decision-making), and recognition justice (acknowledging marginalised

groups in energy discussions)

— trade-offs between equity, sustainability, and economic efficiency arise

local versus global justice // short-term versus long-term justice

>> nuanced understanding of energy justice - acknowledges the uneven impacts of energy

transitions across different regions and communities, and the ways in which energy systems are

deeply connected to broader issues of environmental sustainability and social inequality

Lecture 2

-

European Consumer law, energy poverty and energy justice (in green energy

transition)

Lecture Outline (objectives)

EPL (qua consumer law) and energy law and policy

Understanding energy poverty and inequality

Energy justice and private law

Consumer in EU consumer Law

The set of rules that provide some sort of protection (…)

Consumer: Someone who enters a contract for the purpose that is not connected with the trade

business or profession

>> Consumer protection emerged as the corollary of the internal market >> legal basis in

consumer law is almost always Art. 114 - protection of consumers and markets by

approximating standards across Member States

- Average consumer >> normative image

- Unfair Commercial Practices Directive 2005: Informed, circumspect

- The average consumer is reasonably informed, reasonably observant and reasonably

circumspect (circumspect: someone who will not accept any provided information as truthful)

- Vulnerable consumer

- 2005 UCPF

- 2016 Commission document: expands factors

- 2021 - digital markets (new drivers of vulnerability)

- “Responsible” consumer

- Eg. Financial services

- Engaging broadly with sustainability (economic, social, environmental)

What is expected of the ‘good’ consumer

>> to make good use of the provided information by comparing informations and avoiding ‘bad’

products by favouring ‘good’ ones and naturally rewarding the ‘good’ businesses

EU Energy Law and consumers

In the field of energy, consumer law has not become a very common purpose or topic of legal

discussion >> EU has historically intervened in the energy market by allowing MS to liberalise and

then proceeding with intervention

- European Energy law is mainly “public” law

• Liberalisation og formerly public provision

• Requirements for providers and infrastructures

- Consumer protection “in the silo”

• Assumption that competition will deliver

- deliver good prices

- deliver good energy - stable and sustainable energies

- Deliver safe energy

• Transparency, information

• Ensuring choice and the ability to change providers

- Plenty of sectoral regulation

• Electricity directive

• Gas directive

• Renewable energy directive

- And national laws

>> Consumers in Energy Markets

2016: Consumer-centred energy transition

What does the legislation do:

- Facilitate own energy production

- Free access to comparison tools (by suppliers)

- Facilitate provider change >> average consumer can switch with 24 hours

- Clear information in energy bills

The role and position of consumers in EU energy law and policy

- Active consumer:

• Fosters competition by monitoring and switching

• Responsible consumer who opts for greener energy

- Vulnerable consumer:

• Needs access to energy

• And protection against disconnections

• Prices?

- Prosumer >> a consumer who is also a producer (solar panels)

• More decentralised energy production

• Limited EU intervention but: consumers must enjoy same right as in standard settings

- Consumer as home-owner (or home dweller)

• Energy efficacy first “renovation wave”

• 'The most sustainable energy is the energy which is not used at all’

Push for renovation and green energy (energy poverty) took more place in the energy debate over

the last few years (2019-present)

>> Ukraine war >> more attention in the energy sector

Energy and Inequality

- Within Europe/individual countries/ communities

- Among communities/countries

- “Access to energy” - minimalist definition

- What do you use energy for?

• Lighting, computers, transport etc.

- CEDAW committee has found in General recommendation No 34 that rural woman and girls are

particularly vulnerable ti the absence of modern household energy supply, as well as increases

in energy costs and scarcity of resources, as they are typically primarily responsible for their

household’s rule use and collection

- “Vulnerable persons’ have been at risk of being disproportionally affected by disconnections or

price increases.. (children)”

Energy market in the EU

- Former public provision

- Gradual liberalisation/privatisation

- Different degree of concentration

- Price: regulation or market

2019: From ‘reasonable’ to ‘competitive’ prices >> requires liberalisation

Make-up of retail price >> includes a renewable energy surcharge

What is energy poverty?

- “Energy poverty is a situation in which households are unable to access essential energy

services” (commission recommendation 2020)

• “Inability to keep home adequately warm” / difficulty obtaining the necessary energy in their

home to meet their basic needs (France)

• “A household is said to be fuel poor init needs to spend more than 10% of its income on fuel

to maintain an adequate level of warmth” (UK 1991)

Energy poverty and law

“In more developed countries, concerns are likely to mostly focus on issues of affordability,

reliability and quality, as well as protection against abuse by (private) providers or disconnections

of electrical supply”

EU law: vulnerable consumers and energy poverty

Electricity directive 2019

Article 27 requires MS to nationally define a concept of ‘vulnerable customers’, which, as under

Art. 3(7) of the previous Electricity Directive 2009/72/EC, may relate to the notion of ‘energy

poverty’ and involve the prohibition of disconnection in critical times

Right v providers

Article 27 “Universal service”

(2019 Energy Directive) >> Article 28 “Vulnerable Customers" >> the MS shall define the concept

of vulnerable customers and this concept may refer to the prohibition of disconnection in “critical

times”

2023 Energy efficiency directive >> first EU-wide definition of energy poverty

“Household lack of access to essential energy services, where such services provide basic levels

and decent standards of living and health, including (…) in the relevant national context”

Electricity Market Design Directive 2024

Art 28(a)

- MSs shall ensure that vulnerable customers and customers addicted by energy poverty are fully

protect from electricity disconnection, buy tasking the appropriate measures, including the

prohibition of disconnection or other equivalent measures

- Energy poverty a problem of poverty?

- Shifting framework

- Energy poverty a problem of energy market design?

- Energy consumers throughout the world require device standards that allow them to have

‘effective opportunities to undertake the action and activities that they want to engage in and

be who they want to be’

- Exercising meaningful self-determination >> getting closer to making energy a matter of

private law

- Appropriate energy provision

- Positive obligation of states

- A right viz providers?

- AAAQ standards (Human rights): access to essential public goods and services according to

sufficient ‘availability/quantity’ for all ; adequate geographic and economic ‘accessibility for

all’; the ‘acceptability of services’

Where consumer contract law shows up:

- Access to good quality, reliable provision

- Universal Service Obligations: right to be supplied with electricity of a specified quality within

their territory at competitive, easily and clearly comparable, transparent and non-

discriminatory prices'

- Distribution system iterators are obliged to connect customers under specific terms,

conditions and tariffs, and states may appoint suppliers of last resort

- Contract standards: obligation contractually to provide a certain amount, reliability etc.

- Affordability

- Price control? >>

- Fourth legal reform package (2018-2019), households’ right to ‘competitive’ prices instead of

‘reasonable’ prices under 2009 Electricity directive

- Protection against disconnection

- Art 27 2019 Energy directive: MS need to identify vulnerable consumer, protection may entail

prohibition of disconnection at “critical times”

Commission proposals

>> provide emergency income support for energy-poor consumers, for example through vouchers

or partial bill payment, which can be supported with EU ETS revenue;

>> Authorise temporary deferrals of bill payments

>> Place safeguard to avoid disconnection off the grid

Private law provides terms of interaction

To what extent are aspects of energy poverty distributive justice and corrective justice?

Corrective justice >> relationship between equals “what I owe you and you owe me” >> relational

justice (a matter of private individuals >> possibly addressed by private parties)

Distributive justice >> relationship between differentiated people - collective provision — creating

equality based on differing needs >> traditionally considered a matter of state (not contract law)

How to accommodate for (energy) poverty?

- direct accommodation: lower prices for poor users

- Who pays?

- Problems with poverty accommodation

- Discreetness // hybridity // fungibility

- Indirect (structural) accommodation: affordable energy

Energy poverty as poverty?

- “Socially constructed”

- Ability to participate in society

- Ability to interact on equal terms

Electricity market design directive 2024

- consumer not treated disadvantageously on the basis of ack of smart meter

- Right multiple meters in the household

- Right to participate in energy sharing, also for vulnerable7energy poor consumers

- Right to fixed-price, fixed term contract for at least one year

- Protection against disconnection

What about profit?

Access to affordable energy during an electricity price crisis

Tutorial 2 - Inequality, Energy Poverty and Energy affordability

Learning Objectives: (slides)

The evolution of consumer law >> protecting vulnerable peoples from disconnections and energy

poverty — legislatively defining the meaning of ‘responsible consumers’, ‘energy poverty’,

‘vulnerable consumer’

Viewing energy as a basic need, a public good - the tool of private law within the field of energy

(contract law)

How to square energy with private law (privatisation of a basic need)

How to square energy poverty (and equalising measures) with freedoms of contract

Role of private law >>

EU Law

- From ‘reasonable’ to ‘competitive’ prices

- MS can pose social tariffs

- The Electricity Directive (conditioning the liberalisation of energy markets)

- Protection of vulnerable consumers: additional vulnerability criteria, such as ‘income levels, the

share of energy expenditure of disposable income, the energy efficiency of homes, critical

dependence on electrical equipment fir health reasons’

BEUC Document

1. Give consumers the right to always access a fixed price contract (Electricity Directive (EMD),

article 2(15a) and 11(1))

• Does not achieve distributive justice as it provides a 'level playing field’ allowing the rich to

pay a bill of the same proportion to those suffering energy poverty

• From the interpersonal justice perspective however it relates to ‘what the fixed price is’ >>

In the interpersonal dimension this may be a favourable idea if the playing field is seen as

malleable to relation contract collusions

• Possibly argumented as a reverse distribution where the poor only get poorer (level playing

field increases poverty disparities)

2. Allow consumers who cannot pay, to pay in instalments and protect vulnerable and energy-

poor consumers from disconnections (EMD article 28a),

3. Suppliers should not be allowed to unilaterally change or terminate fixed price contracts

4. Improve pre-contractual information