A Budget Energie Customer No Longer Has to Pay Feed-in Tariffs For Their Solar Power Accordance to the Amsterdam Court and May Continue Net Metering After 2027. He won the Lawsuit Automaticaxy The Supplier Stayed Away. What is Such a ‘default Judgment’ Worth and what does it mean for solar panel owners?
Solar Panel Owners would prefer the Net Metering Scheme to Remain and for the feed-in Tariffs for Their Electricity to Disappear. Suppliers Charge these costs because solar power comes in the time of Hours with Enough Energy.
Due to Net Metering, This Power Must Be Offset Against The Consumption of Solar Panel Households. This Energy is Usualy Much More Exensive. The Judge Ruled in favor of a budget Energie Customer, But Can Other Solar Panel Owners Now also Get Their Feed-in Tariffs Back Through This Judgment?
Consumer Program Kassa Spoke in the Last Episode of Last Weekend About “Possible Far-Reaching Contheques” For Other Households with Solar Panels. Lawyer Roelof de Nekker, who represented the client, says that the right to network was in the budget energy contract. Accordance to him, a Supplier Cannot Suddenly Stop that. “It also States That Feed-in Tariff Must Be 100 percent of the Bare Electricity Price (Without Energy Tax).”
The Judge Did Not Handle This Case Substantely because Budget Energie Stayed Away and Could Not Defend Itself. The Company Says in A Response to Kassa That “The Financial Interest in This Case Is Small”. It also Questions the Calcalses that the Nekker Made in the Broadcast. The Customer Saves Hundreds of Euros per year due to the ruling now that does not have to pay feed-in tariffs.
Accordance to Civil Law Lawyer Arno van Kooten, The Judgment has Little Value for Future Lawsuits by Customers Against Their Energy Company. “The Supplier Can Still Notify the Court Within Four Weeks That It Wants The Case To Be Retried. Then He Can Easily Win.”
‘Read your energy contract carefully again’
Other Solar Panel Customers Should Therefore Be CareFul with Cheering, also Accordance to Joyce Donat of the Consumers’ Association. “I Understand That Solar Panel Holders Are on the Edge of Their Seats, But Unfortunately the Flag Cannot Be Raised Yet.”
She Emphasizes That the Current Net Metering Scheme will end anyway. “The Outgoing Cabinet is Dealing with That Scheme. The House of Representatives and Senate Have also Approved That It Will Stop from 2027.” The Customer Will Still Have To Pay Vat And Energy Tax On His Net-Metered Electricity From That Year. “What Remains is the Net Metering of the Bare Electricity Price. That Is Less, But Still A Nice Bonus.”
Donat advises Solar Panel Owners to Read Their Energy Contract CareFully, Especiate the General Terms and Conditions. With his Judgment, The Amsterdam Judge Annulled Part of the Passage in the General Terms and Conditions. These give suppliers a lot of freedom to change prices or conditions, for example.
Last year, the court of appeal also Annulled the Passage on Price Changes in a ruling against Vattenfall, which had Wrongly Increased a Customer’s Variable Rates. Vattenfall is now trying to reverse that Judgment at the supreme court. If that successeds, it would go nullify the rulings of Lower Courts.
Unknown How Many Energy Contracts Have the Same Passage
The General Terms and Conditions May Differ per Energy Supplier. Among Others, Umbrella Organization Energie Nederland Has Cooperated in Drawing Up These Conditions. The Organization does not know how many energy contracts may be eligible for a similar lawsuit.
“Anyone Considering a Lawsuit should special read their own general terms and conditions,” Says van Kooten. “It is Certainly An Interesting Ruling, But I Think This Customer Has Been Lucky.”