The new Arera resolution introduces certain response times, direct compensation of up to 90 euros and stricter standards for call centers. Less waiting and more transparency for millions of domestic customers
Less endless waiting, more automatic rights and greater transparency in relationships with suppliers. The rules on complaints, compensation and call centers related to electricity and gas bills are changing. The new Arera resolution arrives in 2026 which introduces more stringent standards for the management of complaints, automatic compensation in the event of delays and a real crackdown on call centers. The new rules apply to low voltage electricity customers (therefore “home” and small business supplies) and gas customers with consumption of up to 200 thousand cubic meters per year. In practice, to almost all domestic customers and many small businesses.
Complaints on bills: certain times and fewer obstacles for customers
The first point of the reform concerns complaints. Simpler procedures. Each operator must make dedicated forms available on their website to submit a complaint, with clear indication of contact details and essential supply data, such as Pod and Pdr. However, there is still the possibility of sending the report via certified email or registered mail.
But the big news is about the timing. The reasoned response to the complaint must arrive within 30 calendar days. If the problem concerns a billing adjustment, the deadline increases to 60 days, which becomes 90 in the case of quarterly bills. The limit for double billing is even more stringent: maximum 15 days for correction. During the verification of reading or estimate errors, the obligation to suspend the collection of the disputed amounts is also triggered. A “system” standard is also introduced: at least 95% of written complaints must receive a response within 30 days. If an operator exceeds the same indicator for two consecutive years, a sanction may be triggered. Furthermore, from July 2026, sellers’ sites will have to allow the sending of complaints online without registration, with the issuing of a receipt certifying the date and practice code.
Automatic compensation and refunds on your bill in 2026
The second big news is the automatic nature of compensation. If the seller does not respect the expected deadlines, the customer will no longer have to submit further requests: the refund will be triggered automatically and will be in the first available bill. The basic compensation is set at 30 euros. The amount doubles to 60 euros if the response or correction arrives more than double the standard time but within three times, and rises to 90 euros if the delay also exceeds this threshold. In the event of bills amounting to less than the compensation, the customer will accrue a credit or receive a refund with direct payment. There are exceptions. Compensation is not due if the delay depends on causes of force majeure, such as declared natural disasters or strikes without notice, or on the responsibility of the customer or third parties.
Call centers: shorter waits and more human operators
The third chapter concerns call centers. General quality standards are also introduced for telephone assistance, especially for sellers with over 50 thousand customers. The average waiting time cannot exceed three minutes. Furthermore, the so-called “service level”, i.e. the ratio between calls actually handled by an operator and total calls, must be at least 85%. In other words, at least 85 out of 100 phone calls will have to come from a real person, even when an automatic voice assistant is present. Sellers are required to guarantee at least 35 hours of service opening per week with operators and to transparently communicate numbers and times both on the website and in the bill. Arera will carry out satisfaction surveys on call centers every year and will be able to give administrative sanctions in case of failure to comply with the standards, even if automatic compensation is not provided for calls as for written complaints.
