Case C-371/22, G (Early termination fees): Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 11 January 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Sąd Okręgowy w Warszawie — Poland) — G sp. z o.o. v W S.A. (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Internal market in electricity — Directive 2009/72/EC — Article 3(5) and (7) — Consumer protection — Right to switch — Non-household customer — Fixed-term, fixed-price electricity supply contract concluded with a small undertaking — Contractual penalty for early termination — National legislation limiting the amount of that penalty to the ‘costs and damages resulting from the contract’)
Date: 2024-01-11
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: consumer protection, electrical energy, electricity supply, energy grid, energy law, energy supply, supplies contract, termination of a contract








C_202401506EN.000101.fmx.xml












Official Journal of the European Union


EN
Series C













C/2024/1506


26.2.2024





Judgment of the Court (Fifth Chamber) of 11 January 2024 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Sąd Okręgowy w Warszawie — Poland) — G sp. z o.o. v W S.A.
(Case C-371/22, (1) G (Early termination fees))
(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Internal market in electricity - Directive 2009/72/EC - Article 3(5) and (7) - Consumer protection - Right to switch - Non-household customer - Fixed-term, fixed-price electricity supply contract concluded with a small undertaking - Contractual penalty for early termination - National legislation limiting the amount of that penalty to the ‘costs and damages resulting from the contract’)
(C/2024/1506)
Language of the case: Polish

Referring court

Sąd Okręgowy w Warszawie

Parties to the main proceedings


Appellant: G sp. z o.o.

Respondent: W S.A.

Operative part of the judgment

Article 3(5) and (7) of Directive 2009/72/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009 concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity and repealing Directive 2003/54/EC,
must be interpreted as:
not precluding national legislation under which, in the event of early termination by a small undertaking of a fixed-term, fixed-price electricity supply contract, with a view to switching supplier, that undertaking is required to pay the contractual penalty stipulated in that contract, which may amount to the full price of the electricity which it had undertaken to purchase, even if that electricity has not been and will not be consumed, although that legislation does not lay down any criterion for the calculation of such a penalty or for its possible reduction, in so far as that legislation, on the one hand, ensures that such a contractual stipulation must be clear, comprehensible and freely consented to and, on the other hand, provides for the possibility of administrative or judicial redress, in the context of which the authority before which the matter is brought may assess the proportionality of that penalty in the light of all the circumstances of the case and, where appropriate, require the reduction or annulment of the penalty.


(1)  
            OJ C 359, 19.9.2022.


ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2024/1506/oj
ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)