VULNERABLE CUSTOMERS & SOCIAL RESIDENTIAL TARIFF

INTRODUCTION

The Social Residential Tariff (SRT) is a special tariff, which is applied to vulnerable groups of consumers and is provided by all electricity suppliers.

This document is drawn up in accordance with the No. Δ5-ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/16027/6.8.10 decision of the Deputy Minister of the Environment, Energy and Climate change on the “Application of the Social Residential Tariff program (GG B’ 1403/06.09.2010)* as in force, but also based on the Electricity Supply Code (KPIE) as in force (GG B’ 832/09.04.2013) and especially with the provisions on the Payment of bills.

*as amended by the decisions Δ5−ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/οικ.26884/ 15.12.2010, Δ5−ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/οικ.2036/31.1.2011, Δ5 − ΗΛ/ Β / Φ29 / οικ.4541/28.2.2011,Δ5−ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/οικ.6713/24.3.2011, Δ5 − ΗΛ /Β/Φ29/οικ.29891/ 29.12.2011, Δ5-ΗΛ/Β/Φ.1.20/οικ. 878 / 17.1.2013, Δ5/ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/οικ. 21235/ 20.11.2013, Δ5/ΗΛ/Β/Φ29/οικ.23823/23.12.2013, Δ5/ΗΛ/Β/Φ.29/οικ. 10205/12.6.2014, ΥΠΕΝ/ΥΠΡΓ/892/152/2018 and ΥΠΕΝ/ΥΠΡΓ/72919/1459/12-8-2019

DISCOUNTS

The discounts of the Social Residential Tariff are defined as the discounts mentioned in the following table depending on the category in which each beneficiary belongs:

That discount is applied on the supply charges for day consumption. If the application of the discount results in a negative commission charge, the supplier applies zero charge and informs the Administrator of the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network (HEDNO SA) on the amount of the actual discount (where the real discount is the household tariff commission charge) granted to his customers. For the rest, the charges of the supplier’s applicable residential tariff and the regulated charges imposed by the applicable law on the residential customers apply, with the reservation of the more specific provisions related to the exemption of the SRT beneficiaries from part or all of certain categories of regulated charges. Especially the beneficiaries of the SRT Category A are also fully exempted from use-of-system and use-of-network charges for electricity consumption within their quarterly consumption thresholds.

WATT + VOLT, as it offers its customers more than one (1) household tariffs, combines them all with the SRT discount when the application conditions are met.

REQUIREMENTS FOR APPLICATION

The SRT is applied to the total quarterly consumption and up to the quarterly consumption thresholds for each category of the beneficiary, provided that:

A) the electricity consumption covers the needs of the beneficiary’s principle residence;

B) the consumption is bigger than or equal to 200 kWh per four months (otherwise, for the specific four months period, the SRT does not apply);

C) the total quarterly consumption (120-day daily consumption) based on actual readings does not exceed the consumption thresholds, as set for each beneficiary category.

If these four-month consumption thresholds are exceeded then:

A) for over 10% excess, and provided that the average quarterly consumption on an annual rolling basis, based on actual readings, exceeds the consumption thresholds set for each beneficiary, the SRT does not apply for the specific quarterly period;

B) for over 10% excess, provided that the average quarterly consumption on an annual rolling basis does not exceed the consumption thresholds set for each beneficiary or for up to 10% excess, the SRT is applied to the consumption within the set thresholds and the Supplier’s applicable residential tariff is applied to the excess consumption according to the scales of total consumption.

For the calculation of the exceedance of the consumption thresholds of each category of the beneficiary, the consumption of electricity on the basis of night tariff is not taken into account.

In the case of an SRT beneficiary with a night electricity consumption meter:

a) If the sum of the day and night consumption lies within the daily consumption thresholds of article 2, the SRT discount is applied to the night consumption as well as the exemptions from the regulated charges of both the SRT and the night tariff.

b) If the sum of the day and night consumption exceeds the daily consumption thresholds of article 2, the SRT discount and the exemptions from the regulated charges of the SRT and the night tariff apply for the night consumption within the above limits, and the excess night consumption is charged with the Supplier’s applicable residential night tariff using the scales of total consumption.

For the application of the discount of SRT on the night consumption, according to the above, the charge of electricity supply is defined as the commission charge for the day consumption of the supplier.

BENEFICIARIES

The beneficiaries that are part of the SRT must meet the following conditions for each category:

a) Category A: Beneficiaries of SRT

The beneficiaries of the discount of SRT Category A shall meet all the criteria of income, property, and residence of article 235 of Law 4389/2016 (A 94) and of the delegated decision issued pursuant to paragraph 6, No. Γ.Δ.5 οικ.2961-10/24.1.2017 (B ‘128) of the Ministers of Finance, Interior, Administrative Reconstruction and Labor, Social Security and Social Solidarity on the “Determination of the terms and conditions for the application of the Social Solidarity Income program”, as applicable.

b) Category Β: Beneficiaries of SRT B

The beneficiaries of the discount of SRT Category Β must meet the following criteria:

b1) To have themselves and the members of their household, based on the definitions of article 2 of Γ.Δ.5οικ.2961-10/24.1.2017 decision on the “Determination of the terms and conditions for the application of the Social Solidarity Income program”, annual total actual (taxable, self-taxing or specially taxable or tax-exempt) or imputed income, as derived from the last cleared income tax returns of submission deadline, up to the thresholds of the following table:

If households include one or more individuals who are sixty-seven percent (67%) or more disabled, the income thresholds above are increased by eight thousand (8,000) euro. If households include one or more individuals requiring mechanical support from medical devices provided at home, which are vital to keep them alive, the income thresholds above are increased by fifteen thousand (15,000) euro. For each additional adult, the income thresholds are increased by € 4,500 and for each additional minor by € 2,250, up to a total threshold of € 31,500, irrespective of how many people make up the household. The income threshold above is increased by € 8,000 for a household which has one or more individuals who are sixty-seven percent (67%) or more disabled and by € 15,000 for households than include one or more individuals requiring mechanical support from medical devices provided at home, which are vital to keep them alive.

b2) They or members of the household have based on the definitions of article 2 of the decision Γ.Δ.5οικ.2961-10/24.1.2017 on the “Determination of the terms and conditions for the application of the Social Solidarity Income program”, real estate property in Greece or abroad whose total taxable value, based on the calculation of the Single Property Ownership Tax (EN.F.I.A.), is up to € 120,000 in the case of single-member households, which increases by € 15,000 for each additional member, up to a maximum of € 180,000.

b3) Members of the household are not covered by the provisions on luxury tax and do not declare living expenses for the crews of pleasure craft, private school tuition fees, and household staff, chauffeurs, tutors, and other staff, based on the basis of the last cleared income tax returns of the members of the household for which the deadline set by the existing provisions has expired or the deadline for submission has been extended in any way.

FOUR MONTHLY CONSUMPTION THRESHOLDS

The 120-Day/4-month consumption limits for SRT categories A and B are the following:

If households include one or more individuals who are sixty-seven percent (67%) or more disabled and the consumption limits above are increased by 300 kWh. If households include one or more persons requiring mechanical support from medical devices provided at home, which are vital to keep them alive, the consumption limits above are increased by 600 kWh. For each additional adult, the consumption levels are increased by 200 kWh and for each additional minor by 100 kWh, up to a total threshold of 2,400 kWh, irrespective of how many people make up the household. The specific maximum threshold is increased by 300 kWh for a household which has one or more persons with sixty-seven percent (67%) or more disability and by 600 kWh for households with one or more persons who require mechanical assistance from medical equipment, provided at home, which is vital to keep them alive.

INCLUSION PROCESS

Applications for the inclusion into the new SRT shall be electronically submitted at any time during the year through the website of the program using the personal passwords of the TAXISnet information system of the Independent Public Revenue Authority (AADE), as specifically defined in the decision of the Ministers of Finance, Labor, Social Security, and Social Solidarity and Environment and Energy based on the delegated decision issued pursuant to article 34 of Law 3882/2010 (A ‘166) to determine the procedure for submission and control of data submitted by applicants for their inclusion in the Social Household Electricity Supply Tariff. The application is submitted by the adult taxpayer or his / her spouse who is required to file a household income tax return, with the additional condition that the electricity supply for which the deduction is requested be in his / her name. or his / her spouse. In case the supply does not correspond to the applicant or his / her spouse, before submitting the application for inclusion in the SRT, the procedures required each time shall be completed so that the invoice will be issued in the name of his / her spouse and will indicate the address of his / her main residence. With the application, the applicant provides authorization for search by the competent bodies for all members of the household of the data declared certifying the inclusion in the category of beneficiary. The applicant shall fill in the relevant fields of the application, the Tax Registration Number (TIN), the Social Security Number (SSN), and the number of electricity supply for which the discount is requested. All data available from the electronic databases are pre-filled in the respective fields of the application and the applicant fills in the missing ones. The status of an individual with a disability of sixty-seven percent (67%) and above arises from the corresponding codes of form E1 of the income tax return. In particular, for households that include an individual or individuals in need of mechanical support, the certification number of the insurance body to which the patient belongs must also be stated, certifying the need for home use of a mechanical support device necessary for the patient’s life or the protocol number of a certificate of relevant content from a state hospital, in case the patient is uninsured. Beneficiaries must keep the original of the relevant certificate and of all other relevant documents for as long as they are included in the SRT and submit them in case of relevant control. The existence and accuracy of the content of the certificate and the accuracy of the declared data can be checked by the competent authorities based on the file of other authorities. In case of a household consisting of guest members, the application is submitted exclusively by the individual liable or the spouse of the individual liable to file an income tax return of the host unit, for all members of the household. In this case, during the processing of the application, the consent of the guests will be requested through their TAXISnet codes to search for the data declared by the competent bodies. The submission of an income tax return by all members of the household who have such an obligation and the consent of all the hosted adults is a prerequisite for the completion of the application. After the completion of the application and in case there is no discrepancy between the declared data and the result of the cross-check, the applicant may submit the application definitively.

After examining the relevant data, the applicant is included into the SRT from the day following the date of completion of the check and the sending to the Operator of the Hellenic Electricity Distribution Network (HEDNO SA) by the competent bodies of the beneficiary’s data and information on the amount of the discount, the maximum four-month consumption limits to which he is entitled and whether the composition of the household includes a person in need of mechanical support. If it has emerged from the check that he does not meet the criteria, then the applicant is informed of the reasons for the rejection of his application. Every household receives the SRT for a single supply.

BILLING

During the issuance of the first, after the initial inclusion of the beneficiary, actual bill for the supply of electricity, the counted kWh are divided by the number of days of consumption and the pricing with SRT applies for kWh calculated according to the product of the average daily consumption as above multiplied by the number of inclusion days. The same pricing apportionment is applied in cases of disqualification or transfer of a beneficiary from the category A of SRT in the category B of SRT and vice versa.

Those included in the SRT shall reapply every year within one (1) month from the expiry of the deadline for filing income tax declarations for natural persons, as set out in the applicable provisions or as extended in any way, in which case the inclusion in the SRT requirements are reviewed. If from this process it is concluded that the conditions for inclusion in another category are met, then the beneficiary automatically goes to it. If it turns out that the conditions for membership in any category are no longer met or no application is submitted, then the SRT shall cease to apply from the day following the expiry of the period referred to in the preceding subparagraph. Submission of an amendment application for a transition to a more favorable pricing regime due to a change in the data declared can be submitted at any time within the year.

In any case of inclusion, transfer to another category or change of supplier of SRT beneficiary, HEDNO SA within two (2) working days at the latest, informs the supplier representing the beneficiary about the date of inclusion, the amount of the discount, the maximum four-month consumption thresholds he is entitled to and whether the household includes a person in need of mechanical support. Relevant information is sent no later than two (2) working days to the supplier also in case of disqualification of the beneficiary. HEDNO SA keeps a Register of customers who are included in the SRT, in order to be able to check the data, as well as for automated checks.

IMPLEMENTATION OF MEASURES TO REDUCE PARTICULATE MATTER EMISSIONS  

If an announcement is released relative to the implementation of short-term measures regarding the reduction of particulate matter emissions (ΑΣ10) caused by heating sources and specifically, in case of recommendation released by the Minister of Environment, Energy and Climate Change for the Prefecture of Attica or by the competent Head of the Prefecture for the rest of the country’s Prefectures referring to the non-use of fireplaces, heating devices of solid fuels as well as biomass heating devices, the following will be applied for SRT beneficiaries living in the area where the above-mentioned measures are applied, for the four-month period within which the application of these measures was in force:

The energy consumption charge regarding the competitive part of the SRT is defined to zero for the double number of days during which the above measures were implemented.

The four-month consumption thresholds, as defined for each category of beneficiaries in article 2 of the Ministerial Decision No. Δ5-ΗΛ / Β / Φ29 / 16027 / 06.08.2010 (GG Β’ 1403 / 06.09.2010), as amended and in force are expanded based on the formula below:

Δ.Ο.Τ.Κ.i = Ο.Τ.Κ.i * (1+ 2*A.H.E.M./120) where:

Δ.Ο.Τ.Κ.i: Expanded limits of four-month consumption period for each category of beneficiaries

Ο.Τ.Κ.i: Existing limits of four-month consumption period for each category of beneficiaries

A.H.E.M.: Number of days for measures’ implementation

SETTLEMENT OF OVERDUE DEBTS

WATT AND VOLT provides Vulnerable Home customers with the possibility of partial and interest-free repayment of their overdue debts as follows:

1. Each monthly installment may not exceed 50% of the corresponding monthly expenditure of the customer for Electricity. For the calculation of the monthly expenditure, the charges of actual and estimated bills of the months of consumption to which the overdue bills of the customer correspond are taken into account.
2. The customer is not released from the obligation to repay his debts on time to the Supplier.
3. The first installment must be paid within five (5) days from the conclusion of the settlement. In case of a customer with an active Load Meter Deactivation Order, for the conclusion of the settlement and the withdrawal of the order, immediate payment of 30% of the overdue amount and settlement of the remaining amount is required according to the above.
4. For the validity of the settlement, the Customer is obliged to pay his installments and his current consumption bills on time.
5. If the customer defaults on two (2) settlements, the Supplier is entitled to reject a new settlement request and to demand the repayment of all overdue debts.