What changed between the adopted text of 14 Sept 2022 and the adopted text of 11 Jul 2023

Removed:Article 14

Removed:Sub-metering and cost allocation for heating, cooling and domestic hot water

Removed:1. In multi-apartment and multi-purpose buildings with a central heating or central cooling source or supplied from a district heating or district cooling system, individual meters shall be installed to measure the consumption of heating, cooling or domestic hot water for each building unit, where technically feasible and cost effective in terms of being proportionate in relation to the potential energy savings.

Removed:Where the use of individual meters is not technically feasible or where it is not cost-efficient to measure heat consumption in each building unit, individual heat cost allocators shall be used to measure heat consumption at each radiator unless it is shown by the Member State in question that the installation of such heat cost allocators would not be cost-efficient. In those cases, alternative cost-efficient methods of heat consumption measurement may be considered. The general criteria, methodologies and/or procedures to determine technical non-feasibility and non-cost effectiveness shall be clearly set out and published by each Member State.

Removed:2. In new multi-apartment buildings and in residential parts of new multi-purpose buildings that are equipped with a central heating source for domestic hot water or are supplied from district heating systems, individual meters shall, notwithstanding the first subparagraph of paragraph 1, be provided for domestic hot water.

Removed:3. Where multi-apartment or multi-purpose buildings are supplied from district heating or district cooling, or where own common heating or cooling systems for such buildings are prevalent, Member States shall ensure they have in place transparent, publicly available national rules on the allocation of the cost of heating, cooling and domestic hot water consumption in such buildings to ensure transparency and accuracy of accounting for individual consumption. Where appropriate, such rules shall include guidelines on the manner in which to allocate cost for energy that is used as follows:

Removed:(a) domestic hot water;

Removed:(b) heat radiated from the building installation and for the purpose of heating the common areas, where staircases and corridors are equipped with radiators;

Removed:(c) for the purpose of heating or cooling apartments.

Removed:Article 15

Removed:Remote reading requirement

Removed:1. For the purposes of Articles 13 and 14, newly installed meters and heat cost allocators shall be remotely readable devices. The conditions of technical feasibility and cost effectiveness set out in Article 14(1) shall apply.

Removed:2. Meters and heat cost allocators which are not remotely readable but which have already been installed shall be rendered remotely readable or replaced with remotely readable devices by 1 January 2027, save where the Member State in question shows that this is not cost-efficient.

Removed:Article 16

Removed:Billing information for natural gas

Removed:1. Where final customers do not have smart meters as referred to in Directive 2009/73/EC, Member States shall ensure that billing information for natural gas is reliable, accurate and based on actual consumption, in accordance with point 1.1 of Annex VII, where that is technically possible and economically justified.

Removed:This obligation may be fulfilled by a system of regular self-reading by the final customers whereby they communicate readings from their meter to the energy supplier. Only when the final customer has not provided a meter reading for a given billing interval shall billing be based on estimated consumption or a flat rate.

Removed:2. Meters installed in accordance with Directive 2009/73/EC shall enable the provision of accurate billing information based on actual consumption. Member States shall ensure that final customers have the possibility of easy access to complementary information on historical consumption allowing detailed self-checks.

Removed:Complementary information on historical consumption shall include:

Removed:(a) cumulative data for at least the three previous years or the period since the start of the supply contract if this is shorter. The data shall correspond to the intervals for which frequent billing information has been produced;

Removed:(b) detailed data according to the time of use for any day, week, month and year. These data shall be made available to the final customer via the internet or the meter interface for the period of at least the previous 24 months or the period since the start of the supply contract if this is shorter.

Removed:3. Independently of whether smart meters have been installed or not, Member States:

Removed:(a) shall require that, to the extent that information on the energy billing and historical consumption of final customers is available, it be made available, at the request of the final customer, to an energy service provider designated by the final customer;

Removed:(b) shall ensure that final customers are offered the option of electronic billing information and bills and that they receive, on request, a clear and understandable explanation of how their bill was derived, especially where bills are not based on actual consumption;

Removed:(c) shall ensure that appropriate information is made available with the bill to provide final customers with a comprehensive account of current energy costs, in accordance with Annex VII;

Removed:(d) may lay down that, at the request of the final customer, the information contained in these bills shall not be considered to constitute a request for payment. In such cases, Member States shall ensure that suppliers of energy sources offer flexible arrangements for actual payments;

Removed:(e) shall require that information and estimates for energy costs are provided to consumers on demand in a timely manner and in an easily understandable format enabling consumers to compare deals on a like-for-like basis.

Removed:Article 17

Removed:Billing and consumption information for heating, cooling and domestic hot water

Removed:1. Where meters or heat cost allocators are installed, Member States shall ensure that billing and consumption information is reliable, accurate and based on actual consumption or heat cost allocator readings, in accordance with points 1 and 2 of Annex VIII for all final users.

Removed:This obligation may, where a Member State so provides, save in the case of sub-metered consumption based on heat cost allocators under Article 14, be fulfilled by a system of regular self-reading by the final customer or final user whereby they communicate readings from their meter. Only where the final customer or final user has not provided a meter reading for a given billing interval shall billing be based on estimated consumption or a flat rate.

Removed:2. Member States shall:

Removed:(a) require that, if information on the energy billing and historical consumption or heat cost allocator readings of final users is available, it be made available upon request by the final user, to an energy service provider designated by the final user;

Removed:(b) ensure that final customers are offered the option of electronic billing information and bills;

Removed:(c) ensure that clear and comprehensible information is provided with the bill to all final users in accordance with point 3 of Annex VIII;

Removed:(d) promote cybersecurity and ensure the privacy and data protection of final users in accordance with applicable Union law.

Removed:Member States may provide that, at the request of the final customer, the provision of billing information shall not be considered to constitute a request for payment. In such cases, Member States shall ensure that flexible arrangements for actual payment are offered.

Removed:3. Member States shall decide who is to be responsible for providing the information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 to final users without a direct or individual contract with an energy supplier.

Removed:Article 18

Removed:Cost of access to metering and billing information for natural gas

Removed:Member States shall ensure that final customers receive all their bills and billing information for energy consumption free of charge and that final customers have access to their consumption data in an appropriate way and free of charge.

Removed:Article 19

Removed:Cost of access to metering and billing and consumption information for heating, cooling and domestic hot water

Removed:1. Member States shall ensure that final users receive all their bills and billing information for energy consumption free of charge and that final users have access to their consumption data in an appropriate way and free of charge.

Removed:2. Notwithstanding paragraph 1 of this Article, the distribution of costs of billing information for the individual consumption of heating, cooling and domestic hot water in multi-apartment and multi-purpose buildings pursuant to Article 14 shall be carried out on a non-profit basis. Costs resulting from the assignment of that task to a third party, such as a service provider or the local energy supplier, covering the measuring, allocation and accounting for actual individual consumption in such buildings, may be passed onto the final users to the extent that such costs are reasonable.

Removed:3. In order to ensure reasonable costs for sub-metering services as referred to in paragraph 2, Member States may stimulate competition in that service sector by taking appropriate measures, such as recommending or otherwise promoting the use of tendering and/or the use of interoperable devices and systems facilitating switching between service providers.

Removed:CHAPTER IV

Removed:CONSUMER INFORMATION AND EMPOWERMENT

Removed:Article 20

Removed:Basic contractual rights for heating, cooling and domestic hot water

Removed:1. Without prejudice to Union rules on consumer protection, in particular Directive 2011/83/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council and Council Directive 93/13/EEC, Member States shall ensure that final customers and, where explicitly referred to, final users are granted the rights provided for in paragraphs 2 to 8 of this Article.

Removed:2. Final customers shall have the right to a contract with their supplier that specifies:

Removed:(a) the identity and address of the supplier;

Removed:(b) the services provided and the service quality levels offered;

Removed:(c) the types of maintenance service offered;

Removed:(d) the means by which up-to-date information on all applicable tariffs, maintenance charges and bundled products or services may be obtained;

Removed:(e) the duration of the contract, the conditions for renewal and termination of the contract and services, including products or services that are bundled with those services, and whether terminating the contract without charge is permitted;

Removed:(f) any compensation and the refund arrangements which apply if contracted service quality levels are not met, including inaccurate or delayed billing;

Removed:(g) the method of initiating an out-of-court dispute settlement procedure in accordance with Article 21;

Removed:(h) information relating to consumer rights, including information on complaint handling and all of the information referred to in this paragraph, which is clearly communicated on the bill or the undertaking's web site and includes the contact details or link to the web site of the single point of contact referred to in Article 21.