Two amendments aimed at facilitating the termination of his telephone or internet contract were adopted by the deputies within the framework of the discussions on the law for the protection of purchasing power.
While there are many no-commitment offers in the telecom world today, ending a contract with commitment before its term can be as expensive as it is complicated. This is why the deputies adopted, on Monday, two amendments to the bill on emergency measures for the protection of purchasing power, aimed at simplifying and reducing the cost of the operation. Let’s study all of this.
Complete the provisions of the Chatel law
Deputy LR Julien Dive took advantage of the part devoted to the termination of contracts of the bill to propose two amendments which would supplement the provisions of the Chatel law, passed in 2005, which for the first time simplified the procedures for termination of internet or mobile subscription to help consumers switch operators more easily.
Terminating a telephone contract before its term still entails termination costs, of the order of 25% of the amount remaining due if the customer wishes to terminate a subscription with a 24-month commitment during which he has less than 12 month commitment.
In the event that you wish to terminate a contract with a 24-month commitment and this time you have more than 12 months of commitment left, you must not only pay the reimbursement of the remaining monthly payments for the first year (because the Chatel law does not only applies from 13e months), but add 25% of the remaining costs for the second year. And it is this second particular case which is the subject of the amendments.
Amendments which remove the cancellation fees due for the second year of subscription
One of the two amendments, called CE67, adopted and notably supported by LFI, makes the case where a customer terminates, before expiry, a telephone or internet subscription contract effective for more than 12 months. This implies the end of part of the cancellation fees. ” Termination fees allocated to the second year up to 25% are removed says the amendment to article 7 of the purchasing power bill.
In other words, this means that once the law is adopted, if you want to terminate a 24-month telephone or internet contract before the end of the first year of the contract, you will only have to pay the costs. remaining in the first year.
Two examples of what you could save with the passage of the law:
1. If you terminate your 2-year mobile plan at 20 euros per month after six months of contract, you will only have to pay the termination fees for the first year, ie 120 euros.
With current legislation, these cancellation fees would amount to 180 euros:
- 120 euros for the remaining monthly payments of the first year,
- 60 euros for the 12 months before the end of the commitment, which is equivalent to three months of fixed price.
You would therefore save 60 euros thanks to the amendment.
2. Now imagine that you cancel your internet subscription with 2 years of commitment at 39.99 euros per month after six months of contract still. You will only have to pay the termination fees for the first year, ie 239.94 euros.
With current legislation, these cancellation fees would amount to 389.91 euros:
- 239.94 euros for the remaining monthly payments of the first year,
- 149.97 euros for the 12 months before the end of the commitment, which is equivalent to three months of subscription.
You would therefore save 149.97 euros thanks to the amendment.
Be careful, however, because operators can obviously apply administration fees, which are included in your contract.
MPs at the bedside of consumers in over-indebtedness proceedings
The second amendment also adopted on Monday, called CE68, provides for purely and simply exempting consumers registered in the over-indebtedness procedure from all termination costs for a mobile or internet contract, on the condition that the latter provide to the ISP or the operator concrete proof of their situation.
It will still be necessary to wait for the end of the debates in the hemicycle around this text, which will begin next Monday, and this, until the end of July, to confirm the proper application of these amendments and of the law , scheduled to enter into force in the coming months.
There is however a small point of debate, not to say a risk around these two amendments. Telecom operators could indeed see in this reduction (or elimination for citizens in a situation of over-indebtedness) of termination fees a boon to increase the prices of their offers and packages. This element will no doubt be the subject of discussions between the various parliamentary groups.
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Qualcomm takes another step towards so-called “standalone” 5G in Europe
Source : National Assembly
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