With the beginning of 2022, consumers who still rely on the Greater Protection Service found themselves in front of important increases in electricity and gas bills: for the first quarter of the year, the electricity bill will increase by 55% while that of gas by 41.8%.
For the Free Market, on the other hand, there is a more moderate growth in commercial proposals from suppliers and no immediate strong changes are expected: to take stock of the situation is Selectra (selectra.net) – the free service that compares offers of electricity, gas and internet. According to Selectra forecasts, in the next few weeks the average offers will remain lower than the rate of the Protected Market, both for electricity and gas, giving users the opportunity to save over 700 euros in their bills over the next 12 months.
It is no coincidence that in these first weeks of 2022, Selectra has registered a strong increase in searches for information on the change of supply through its portal.
Precisely to support consumers, who are evaluating the change of supplier with the aim of saving money, Selectra has drawn up a handbook answering the most common doubts and listing 6 things to know in order not to make mistakes.
The transition from the Greater Protection Service to the Free Market, Selectra further explains, can in fact be particularly convenient, and to prove it are the data: the Italians who in 2021 activated an offer on the Free Market, comparing tariffs with Selectra, in 2022 will save 4.8 million euros for the electricity bill and 7.2 million euros for the gas one.
1 – The change of supplier for the Free Market is free – One of the most common doubts concerns the possible penalties to be paid in the change of supplier: the transition from the Protected Market to the Free Market is free, as is the change of supplier within the Free Market . If you want to go back from Libero to Tutelato, it is always possible, but a 16 euro stamp will be charged.
2 – There are no interruptions to supplies – When switching from one supplier to another, there is no need to fear interruptions in electricity or natural gas. There are obviously some technical times for the passage, but there is no risk of running out of services. The manager change takes place on the first day of the month and you will be able to receive a final balance bill from the old manager.
3 – The meter does not need to be replaced – The supplier change is managed electronically: therefore no technical modifications to the electrical systems or to the electricity and gas meter are necessary. The electricity and methane gas supplied will in fact remain the same and the sales company will change, not the distribution company.
4 – What changes between the Free Market and the Protected Market – What are the differences between the Free Market and the Protected Market? First of all, the price of electricity and gas changes. In fact, in the Maggior Tutela market the price is established by the Authority and changes every three months, while in the Free Market the supplier can set his price. Furthermore, offers on Libero can provide for a fixed price for one or two years, while in the Maggior Tutela market it is not possible to block the price of energy for electricity or the price of raw gas for the gas bill. Unlike the Protected, in the Free Market the user can activate both utilities, both electricity and gas, with the same supplier, and manage them comfortably with a single app and a single customer service center. Finally, in Libero it is possible to choose offers that favor supplies from renewable energies.
5 – How to change manager – Changing manager to switch to a cheaper rate is simpler than you might think: the new electricity or gas contract can in fact be signed in a few minutes both by telephone and online, as well as in a store . Once the supply contract has been signed, the new operator chosen will take care of communicating the change to the local distributor and the old supplier.
6 – How to choose the best offer to save money – In this historical moment, Selectra’s advice is to evaluate an offer on the Free Market at a fixed price for the next 12 months, checking over the course of the year that it is always convenient compared to the market. It should be borne in mind that offers that provide for bank domiciliation and web bills are usually cheaper than those with postal order.