'Ban door-to-door sales in France', says consumer rights group

A leading consumer rights group has urged the government to ban door-to-door sales of energy- renovation schemes over fears householders are being ripped off.

UFC-Que Choisir analysed nearly 1,000 complaints received by its local associations since 2018, and found elderly and vulnerable people were particularly affected.

“The sums lost by victims are enormous – an average of €20,000 per case,” it said in a statement.

“This adds up to at least €20million lost overall just in the cases we have dealt with.”

UFC-Que Choisir included a statement from the grandson of a “very old” couple who had been subjected to enormous pressure for three hours from sales people they let into their home. The couple eventually paid them €9,000 on the spot.

UFC-Que Choisir president Marie-Amandine Stévenin described door-to-door selling as “dangerous”.

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“It is based on toxic and crooked principles with the aim of getting a signature on an order form for an excessive amount and for goods which are often not delivered.

“These are not just isolated cases but part of a massive phenomenon, and it is essential that parliamentarians take measures to protect consumers.”

Examples of the types of fraud committed include sales people pretending to be state officials and violating legal requirements giving customers adequate time to reflect before contracts are signed.

In addition, sales people often lied about levels of state help available for energy renovation. 

In 30% of insulation projects, 33% of heat pump installations and 37% of renewable energy equipment, work was found to be sub-standard. 

To support its call for action, UFC-Que Choisir launched a survey of members in March, asking if they had been subject to recent door-to-door selling.

Some 300 people said they had, with one member reporting that door-to-door fraudsters had tried to sell him a solar panel installation for €60,000 – at least three times the price of most solar panel installations. They also gave him false assurances that the sale of the electricity would more than cover the cost of the panels.

However, a case for door-to-door selling has been made by the electricity trade body Union française de l'électricité (UFE). In 2021, it lobbied for the practice to continue for electricity and gas suppliers in the face of opposition from the energy ombudsman.

UFE spokesman Rudy Cluzel told The Connexion that a voluntary charter of good conduct was still in place – but that UFE would not oppose the proposed ban for the energy renovation sector.

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The 13-point charter includes training for all sales staff, leafleting households ahead of a visit to warn them, a ban on talking to over-75 year-olds or minors, and paying sales staff based on the quality, not the quantity, of their sales.

Mr Cluzel said it was “impossible” to say what proportion of new contracts by electricity suppliers came from door-to-door selling, but that the trade body was still convinced it was a necessary tool to boost competition among suppliers.

The Médiateur national de l'énergie, which has been campaigning for an end to door-to-door electricity sales since 2020, without success, said it still wants to see a ban.

“Since the UFE charter was put in place in 2021 there has been a fall in the number of complaints, but we still get some,” a spokeswoman told The Connexion.

“We think the fall in complaints has more to do with the energy crisis hitting companies rather than any significant clean-up in the sector from the voluntary charter.”