Presentation of the Activity Report to Catherine MacGregor

On 19 June 2024, the Ombudsman

presented his 2023 annual report to

Catherine MacGregor, CEO of the

ENGIE Group. Published every year,

this report outlines the results of the

Ombudsman’s work and is governed

by the French Consumer Code. The

Ombudsman for the ENGIE Group has

been accredited as an independent

Consumer Ombudsman by the State

Consumer Mediation Assessment

and Control Commission (CECMC)

since 25 February 2016. His State-

and European-level accreditation was

granted in 2016 and then renewed in

February 2021 for an additional f ive

years.

Highlights of 2024

Club agenda

The Ombudsman attended the 2024

general meeting of the CMSP (a

non-profit association), of which he

is the secretary and vice-chairman

responsible for the website and rela-

tions with consumer associations.

The Ombudsman attended the

Club’s five plenary meetings on 25

January, 28 March, 30 May, 26

September and 21 November 2024.

On 30 May, he led the Club’s meet-

ing with consumer associations.

As a member of the association’s

Board, he also took part in six

pre-meetings conducted remotely.

The Club of Public Services Mediators (CMSP)

EEMG event in Lisbon on innovation and AI

Meeting with

consumer

associations

On 23 April 2024, the Ombudsman

for the ENGIE Group met with con-

sumer associations to present the

2023 annual report amid the energy

crisis. He presented the 2024 outlook

report and its recommendations, as

well as the follow-up work carried out

on last year’s recommendations. He

also unveiled the new mediation refer-

ral form, which can now be accessed

via smartphone, thus avoiding the

need for a computer or scanner. Some

consumer associations have been

actively involved in this project, which

has facilitated direct access to medi-

ation services.

33,000 visits to the website in

2024!

Chaired by the Ombudsman for the

ENGIE Group, vice-chairman of the

Club of Mediators, the management

committee for the website of the

Club of Mediators proposes updates

and changes to the site’s content

and monitors their implementation.

The committee met three times in

2024, on 24 January, 26 March and

4 November.

In 2024, the committee continued

developing the “News” section to make

it more appealing to visitors and build

a loyal community of internet users,

whether they are mediation special

-

ists, users or customers looking for a

mediator.

The legal texts that constitute the

framework for the various types of

mediation are gradually being pub-

lished on the website, to supplement the

library of members’ annual reports.

ENGIE Consumer Division (DGP)

January 2024 Working together to fix issues

23% of mediation cases are still the result of problems with the escalation process.

There has been an improvement since 2023 (30% of cases), but more progress is

needed. Consequently, the Ombudsman met with the National Consumer Service

(SNC) of ENGIE’s Consumer Division to address issues around managing the energy

crisis and the “tarif f shield”, f ixed-price contracts from 2023, and complaints han-

dling. The aim was to discuss the progress that needs to be made.

TRAINING

The Ombudsman and several members

of his team attended another session of

this ongoing training course organised

by the Club of Public Services Mediators

on 13 and 20 March 2024.

Training event to shed light on devel-

opments in consumer law

As part of its ongoing training pro-

gramme on the French Consumer Code,

each year, the Club organises one-day

Triangle led by CEMA and on Dominic

Barter’s restorative circles and sys-

tems with Véronique Gaspard-Meriau.

This training was an opportunity for the

entire team to broaden their outlook

on mediation and amicable resolution

techniques.

sessions for Club Mediators and their

teams, led by Ms Sauphanor-Brouillaud,

Associate Professor of Law and

Professor of Private Law - University

of Paris-Nanterre. She analyses new

case law and legislation during these

sessions.

Learning and adopting new methods

In November 2024, the Mediation team

attended training on the Karpman Drama

External training courses

Contributing to IGPDE

training courses

On 28 May 2024 the Consumer

Ombudsman lectured at the train

ing sessions organised by the IGPDE

Bercy training body on the subject

of The fundamentals of consumer

mediation as part of the training

programme led by Ms Sauphanor

Brouillaud Associate Professor of Law

and Professor of Private Law Paris

Nanterre University

Meeting with magistrates

On 13 May 2024 the Ombudsman

for the ENGIE Group accepted an

invitation from the organisers of

the Consumer Code and Consumer

Mediation training course at the

École Nationale de la Magistrature

French National School for the

Judiciary ENM to provide infor

mation and share experience on

consumer mediation and compare

this amicable method of resolution

with judicial conciliation

Sharing the ethos of Mediation

Deputy Ombudsman Sandrine Hohl

has worked with several ENGIE sub

sidiaries to provide awarenessraising

sessions on active listening nonvio

lent communication

CNV©

and the

mediation process These sessions

help to promote and advocate the

skills developed and the ethos of medi

ation Sessions were held on 24 June

27 September and 20 December

2024

Ongoing team training

Eighth “Consumer law and mediation” training session

MEETINGS

Meeting between

the Ombudsman

for the ENGIE Group

and the National Energy

Ombudsman

The agreement between the two

independent ombudsmen on their

mediation work over the past year

was the subject of an annual review

on 28 March. It should be noted that

their views were completely aligned in

2024, particularly on disputes relating

to the energy crisis (tarif f shield, con-

tracting issues, etc.) (see p. 25).

AI in mediation: Gilles Moyse enlightens the Club

(3 July 2024)

Gilles Moyse, holder of a PhD in Artificial Intelligence, CEO of

ReciTal and author of: “Donnons-nous notre langue au ChatGPT?

L’impact de l’IA sur notre avenir”, spoke at the Club's annual seminar on 3 July.

It is essential to monitor and explore the use of AI, particularly its impact on media-

tion processes and the quality of case management.

On 7 and 8 November 2024 the

European Energy Mediators Group

EEMG met in Lisbon at the invitation

of the Ombudsman of the EDP Group

formerly Electricidade de Portugal

its current Chairman This annual

meeting provided an opportunity for

European ombudsmen to review their

activities and discuss the impact of the

energy crisis on customer relations

Each member presented their innovative

projects including EDPs use of artif icial

intelligence to optimise case manage

ment For its part ENGIE unveiled its

new digital referral form which can now

be accessed directly via smartphone The

meeting concluded with a discussion with

the Portuguese Energy Regulator

View

all our

2024

highlights

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