"Incorrect commercial practice": Abbanoa fined for 5 million euros
According to the Competition Authority, the Sardinian water manager has failed to comply with the information obligations to users in issuing invoices and payment reminders.
Symbol image (from Agcom website)
"The Competition and Market Guarantor Authority has imposed on Abbanoa SpA ., Manager of the integrated water service for the Sardinia Region, a fine of 5 million euros and on the Sicilian Aqueducts Authority in LCA, already manager of the integrated water service in some municipalities of the Sicilian Region, a fine of 500 thousand euros ".
Agcom itself announces it, in a note, which reads: "From 1 January 2020 the discipline of the two-year prescription (or short prescription), introduced by the 2018 Budget law and amended with the 2020 Budget law, also applies to water services. From this date, therefore, consumers can object to the prescription for amounts referring to consumption dating back more than two years from the date of issue of the bill and the operators must highlight, on the invoice or in the attached document, the presence of amounts referring to consumption dating back to more two years earlier, differentiating them from the other items, according to the specific procedures established by the regulation ".
"From the procedures carried out by the Authority - continues Agcom - it emerged, however, that Abbanoa and EAS have disregarded, in issuing invoices and payment reminders, the information obligations prescribed by the Water Operators towards users in terms of two-year prescription ; in addition, they systematically rejected the limitation exception regarding charges invoiced after January 1, 2020 and relating to water consumption dating back more than two years prior to the invoice itself ".
“The Antitrust has ascertained that these behaviors integrate an unfair commercial practice as they are contrary to professional diligence and capable of appreciably distorting the consumer's conduct in relation, moreover, to a service of primary interest. For the two managers, different conduct and different economic situations were ascertained which led to a significant difference between the sanctions imposed ".
“In particular - concludes the Authority - for Abbanoa various profiles of illegality were found, characterized by a significant degree of offensiveness due to the lack of respect and / or obstacle to the exercise of the main rights of consumers. For this reason, the Authority has decided to impose the maximum penalty envisaged by the Consumer Code on Abbanoa ”.
