- The absence of paperwork for customers to continue receiving the assistance – as long as they continue to meet the eligibility criteria defined by the Government – means the group of beneficiaries has grown. So far this year, there are already 26,000 more households that receive a Social Bonus compared to the end of 2021.
- Endesa's customers currently include 447,000 Spanish families who qualified for the Social Bonus, and this figure is expected to grow with the temporary creation of a new category called “energy justice” which offers discounts of 40% on the bill and is aimed at households with low-income workers who have been hit hard by the energy crisis.
- The special discounts on the bill have been extended and reinforced again until 31 December 2023. For vulnerable consumers, the reduction has increased from 60 to 65% and for severely vulnerable consumers from 70 to 80%.
- The assistance is aimed at pensioners, officially registered large families, people in vulnerable situations affected by the economic crisis derived from COVID-19, recipients of the minimum living wage and, for the first time, households with low incomes hit hard by the volatility of energy markets.
Around 219,000 Spanish families who are Endesa customers have benefited from the automatic renewal of the Social Bonus since Royal Decree Law 6/2022 came into force in April. This places the number of households receiving this assistance at almost 447,000, about 26,000 more than on 31 December 2021 and 75,000 more than the year in which the pandemic broke out.
Endesa attributes a large part of this growth to the fact that all the recipients of this discount – except officially registered large families, who are only eligible if their card is valid — no longer have to process a renewal application every 2 years to verify that they still meet the eligibility criteria defined by the Government, since the energy company directly checks with the Ministry for Ecological Transition to find out whether the household in question can continue to receive the discount on the electricity bill.
Those who had been assigned the assistance before the new regulations came into force will have an automatic extension for two years from the time their card expires. Two months before it expires, Endesa will notify them so that they will be able to submit the application and provide the new supporting documentation in accordance with the new requirements. From that moment on, renewals will also become automatic every two years, provided that the conditions are met.
Apart from the renewals, Endesa expects that the group of recipients of the Social Bonus will continue to grow in the coming months with the new category that the Government created at the end of last month, which is regulated under Royal Decree Law 18/2022: the Social Bonus for Energy Justice, aimed at low-income households particularly affected by the energy crisis. This new category involves a 40% discount on the voluntary price for the small consumer (PVPC) and will be valid until 31 December 2023.
People on an income equal to or less than two times the Public Indicator for Income for Multiple Effects (IPREM) of 14 payments and greater than 1.5 times the IPREM of 14 payments will be eligible for this assistance at their habitual residence. For example, in 2022 an adult with an income of less than 16,213 euros per year or a family of four with an income of less than 26,751 euros per year will be eligible for the new energy justice bonus.
Other significant measures under the new Royal Decree Law 18/2022
The new Royal Decree Law 18/2022 also extends the discounts until 31 December 2023. For vulnerable consumers the assistance increases from 60% to 65%, while for extremely vulnerable consumers it increases another 10%, from 70% to 80%.
In addition, the number of kilowatt hours (kWh) on which these bonuses are applied is also increased, with the annual energy volume subject to the discount increasing by 15% and in proportion to the number of people living in the same household. For example, in a household where one or two people live, the kWh on which the bonus is based is now 1,587 kWh per year (previously it was 1,380 kWh), while in a household formed by four people it is 2,698 kWh (compared to 2,346 kWh before the change in law).
An increase in the minimum aid per beneficiary for the Thermal Social Bonus from €25 a €40 has also been approved to help vulnerable consumers with thermal consumption such as heating, hot water and gas cookers. This assistance is granted automatically to all recipients of the electricity Social Bonus – with the exception of the new category establishing the Social Bonus for energy justice bond.
In figures: Endesa customers receiving the Social Bonus
Endesa currently has 446,000 customers eligible for the Social Bonus. Of these, around 210,600 are vulnerable families who receive a 65% reduction in their bill for electricity consumption, whilst a further 236,000 are severely vulnerable and receive a discount of 80%.
As regards types, 63.1% are people who were vulnerable in accordance with income criteria, 29.7% are officially-declared large families, 6.2% were pensioners, 0.7% groups hit hard by the economic crisis caused by COVID-19 who were able to benefit from this assistance and 0.3% received the minimum living wage.
Of the total number of customers, 52.91% were considered vulnerable by the Ministry and 47.21% were considered severely vulnerable.
Endesa Customers with a Social Bonus
Groups assigned to Social Bonus
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Profiles for Vulnerable Consumers
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Continuity of supply
The regulations also protect vulnerable households that, despite being eligible for the Social Bonus, cannot pay the bill. The Electricity Sector Act stipulates that service cannot be interrupted in a home where there is at least one child under the age of 16 in the household, or where the contract holder or one of the members of his or her household is a person with a disability equal to or greater than 33% or with a degree of dependency II or III. In these cases, customers should contact social services to issue the corresponding document accrediting the situation and then present it to their reference retailer.
Vulnerable customers at risk of social exclusion, that is those customers considered to be severely vulnerable and who are cared for by their social services, will not need to pay a bill, provided the social services give proof that at least 50% of the bill will be paid to reference retailer within 5 months of the bill being issued. The retailer will assume responsibility for the remaining 50%.
Finally, a recent regulation established the Minimum Vital Supply, a measure designed for beneficiaries of the Social Bonus who incur in non-payment. They will have an additional 6 months to make payment for their bill. During these 6 months, the supply may not be cut off, but, if they have a contracted power of more than 3.5 kilowatts, their power will be reduced to 3.5 kilowatts. This measure cannot be requested, but the consumer will receive notification from the supplier of the date from which the minimum vital supply will be applied.
About Endesa
Endesa is the largest electricity company in Spain and the second largest in Portugal. The company is also the second largest gas operator in the Spanish market. Endesa operates an end-to-end generation, distribution and marketing business. Through Endesa X it also offers value-added services aimed at the electrification of energy usage in homes, companies, industries and Public Administrations. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the digitalisation of grids through e-distribución and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR-related matters. Our workforce numbers around 9,260 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.