Any request received by the Ombudsman for the ENGIE Group is reviewed to determine its eligibility, i.e., whether it qualifies as a mediation case.
1
A consumer submits a request for mediation.
2
The Mediation team identifies the relevant ENGIE department(s) and assesses the admissibility of the request based on the information provided by the consumer and the relevant ENGIE department(s).
3
| Inadmissible case | Case to be re-examined by ENGIE | Admissible case for mediation |
| The consumer did not contact ENGIE’s customer or consumer service in writing before submitting the request to the Ombudsman for the ENGIE Group, as per Article L611-3 of the French Consumer Code. | The complaint is less than two months old. The consumer is not satisfied with the response from customer service (Level 1) and has not contacted consumer service (Level 2) | The consumer has not received a written response to their last request to customer or consumer service for over two months, or is dissatisfied with the responses received. |
A written notice from the Ombudsman is sent to the consumer confirming the handling procedures for their case (target: 80% of cases acknowledged within two working days).
4
Inadmissible case | Case to be Re-examined by ENGIE | Accepted Case for Mediation |
The consumer is informed that their request is not admissible. With the consumer’s consent, the request is forwarded to the relevant ENGIE department. | With the consumer’s consent, the request is forwarded to the appropriate ENGIE department for further review. | Information du requérant sur la recevabilité de sa demande The consumer is informed that their request is admissible and enters the mediation process. |
Request submission and eligibility verification
Any request submitted to the Ombudsman for the ENGIE Group must be made either via the online form or by postal mail.
Each request is analyzed to:
- Verify whether the dispute concerns an entity of the ENGIE Group. If not, the Ombudsman informs the applicant and, with their consent, forwards the request to the appropriate mediator when possible.
- Ensure that all eligibility conditions under Article L612-2 of the French Consumer Code are met, particularly whether the applicant has already contacted the appropriate service within the relevant ENGIE entity, as outlined in point 3.
- Confirm that the applicant has received a response to their complaint from the relevant ENGIE’s entity. If no response has been received within two months of a written complaint, the case is considered eligible for mediation.
Requests That Cannot Be Handled by the Ombudsman for ENGIE Group (Article L.612-2)
The following requests are not eligible for mediation:
- Requests where the consumer has not attempted to resolve the issue directly with the company or relevant service via a written complaint.
- Requests that are clearly unfounded or abusive.
- Requests already being handled or previously handled by another mediator, such as the National Energy Mediator.
- Requests where the last complaint to the supplier was made more than one year ago.
- Requests already being handled or previously handled by a court.
- Requests outside the Ombudsman’s scope of competence. In such cases, the Ombudsman will redirect the request to the appropriate mediator, with the applicant’s consent.
Note: As provided by the French Consumer Code, a formal agreement has been signed between the Ombudsman for ENGIE Group and the National Energy Mediator.