© Enedis
Should we trust comparison sites supposed to enable savings? The DGCCRF has just pinpointed the Selectra site which, according to the authority, has unduly benefited from the surge in energy prices following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine and its consequences on the price of electricity.
The site made it possible to compare the kilowatt-hour rate of a varied series of energy suppliers. However, the figures indicated most often misled customers. The DGCCRF explains that suppliers were essentially put forward when the site obtained a financial advantage.
Moreover, Selectra went so far as to favor a supplier whose offers did not exist and displayed (presumably to attract Internet users) a price below the regulated price – a priori impossible to obtain in such a context. These practices were not one-off and lasted for two years, between 2020 and 2022.
Before stopping when electricity prices began to stabilize. The total number of Internet users victims of the scam has not been specified, but several sources suggest “thousands” of customers. As a general rule, distrust is required when consulting comparison sites – whose economic model most often involves the payment of commissions by the suppliers themselves.
These sites can actually be useful to get a quick idea of the market. But it is essential to check each time the most attractive figures on the official website of each supplier, while examining the conditions which may be at the origin of apparently attractive characteristics.
It is indeed possible that costs are added at the last moment or that a particularly long commitment period is imposed – among other tactics potentially to the detriment of the customer. The suppliers offering the most attractive offers are often in the sights of the DGCCRF, as are the sites which recommend them.
If you come across an offer that is clearly too good to be true, it is advisable to report it on the SignalConso website. This helps draw the attention of the authority to the site in question. For its part, the fraud repression issued a fine of €400,000 to Selectra, which claims to have since implemented better control of its offers.
< p class="text-base text-neutral-700 dark:text-neutral-300">📍 To not miss any news from Presse-citron, follow us on Google News and WhatsApp.
[ ]
Photo: Valerian Mazataud Le Devoir Prime Minister Justin Trudeau insists he will lead his party…
© Primakov/Shutterstock.com As the iPhone 16 series presentation approaches, the analyst firm Trendforce publishes an…
© Porapak Apichodilok/Pexels While telephone scams are proliferating despite technological advances, particularly in artificial intelligence,…
Photo: Anatolii Stepanov Agence France-Presse A boy at Mykhailivska Square in kyiv, on September 7,…
Photo: Nhac Nguyen Agence France-Presse "It's been years since I've seen a typhoon of this…
kyiv claimed responsibility for a strike on a Russian munitions depot in a border region…