- Price monitor Stefan Meierhans presented his annual balance sheet.
- Last year, in 2023, he again received more reports from citizens – a total of 2,775.
- In around a fifth of the cases, these related to energy prices.
- Meierhans sees state-affiliated companies as having a particular duty in times of rising prices.
In the previous year, the price monitor received 2,368 citizen reports. Since the end of 2021, the number of citizen reports has almost doubled, according to a press release about the media conference.
The development is an expression of growing concerns and discontent among the population about the rising cost of living, explains Meierhans. The implementation of measures against the high-price island of Switzerland is far more urgent for large parts of the population than the national consumer price index suggests.
Most frequently, namely 20.4 percent of the cases, citizens’ reports were about the energy sector. Healthcare follows in second place in the rankings with a share of 13.4 percent, well ahead of public transport (5 percent).
Higher margins for refiners
When it comes to electricity, the price monitor also sees opportunities to reduce costs. The population and the economy have been paying significantly excessive usage fees for years, he complains in the communiqué. It’s a three-digit million sum every year.
As for gasoline and diesel prices, the press monitor examined the level of margins at refineries and gas stations. He noted that the price increase cannot be fully explained by increased crude oil prices. What is certain is that there have been increases in margins at the refineries. Whether this is a temporary disruption of the market mechanism or a sustainable phenomenon will be further investigated.
In view of the increase in prices, the price monitor also called on the public sector itself to show “greatest restraint and a sense of proportion” when it comes to any increases in fees for water, sewage and waste. It is pleasing that many of the recommendations have been heard.
As in previous years, Meierhans also warned that system errors in the healthcare system should be eliminated and, for example, that drug prices should be reduced to the level of other European countries. In 2023 he recommended measures worth one billion francs in the healthcare system – with the aim of slowing the increase in health insurance premiums.
Legislator required
Whether the potential identified in the healthcare system and the electricity market can be realized lies in the hands of the legislature, said Meierhans. The price monitor wants to convene a second purchasing power summit in the middle of the year. After a first round with the consumer side, this time businesses should also take part.
In addition, the price monitor monitors the effects of the VAT increase on prices and examines retail prices where abuses cannot be ruled out. In 2024, price monitoring will have three additional positions, making it over 20 full-time positions.
After years of negative interest rates and almost no inflation, we have to get used to the new reality, says price monitor Meierhans: Prices can rise, and they have risen. “It is becoming even more important these days to question prices and to demand justification and evidence when making adjustments.”