Fair Play for Electricity and Gas Customers: How Will Lex OZE III Protect Every Customer?

The amendment to the Energy Act known as Lex OZE III fundamentally changes the household energy supply landscape in favour of customers. Above all, the amendment limits suppliers’ ability to use unfair practices. What exactly does the law change?

Few amendments to the Energy Act have attracted as much attention as Lex OZE III. The spotlight was drawn mainly by individual inspections of operators of solar power plants. However, the law’s original purpose was entirely different – in addition to introducing storage and flexibility, it was intended to bring fundamental changes to the retail electricity and gas market.

From 1 August 2025, electricity and gas suppliers will have to be more transparent, will not be able to impose disproportionate penalties, and will also be required to provide information to the Energy Regulatory Office for electricity price comparisons.

Terminating a fixed-price product? Clear conditions now apply

The main change in the retail market is the setting of a cap on penalties that an electricity or gas supplier may charge its customer for early termination of fixed-price contracts. Until now, no cap on penalties had been set. Some suppliers exploited the absence of a limit and charged customers high penalties for early contract termination. In extreme cases, these penalties could amount to tens of thousands of Czech crowns.