The Spanish government approves price caps in emergency situations

MadridCoinciding with the crisis in the rail sector, where the prices of some alternative transport options like air travel came under scrutiny from consumer organizations due to fears of abusive price hikes, the Spanish government has approved a royal decree-law with a mechanism to "limit prices of services or products" in an emergency situation that has disrupted the social and consumer situation. This was announced by the Minister of Social Affairs and Consumer Affairs, Pablo Bustinduy, at a press conference this Tuesday, after the Council of Ministers meeting.

The reform, which will require the approval of Congress, provides for the incorporation of a maximum price limit in emergency situations on an extraordinary basis. A situation will be considered an emergency when declared by Civil Protection, although it can also be determined by the Council of Ministers, according to the Ministry. The Spanish government will have the power to set the limit: it cannot exceed the maximum price of the service or product during the 30 calendar days prior to the emergency situation. Furthermore, if the maximum price during the 30 days prior to the crisis is 50% higher than the average price during that period, the reference price will become the average price of those 30 days.

The objective, Bustinduy explained, is "to strengthen consumer protection against potential abuses in emergency situations," such as those reported in disasters like the DANA storm in Valencia, the wildfires of summer 2025, or following the recent train accidents. The Council of Ministers will also set a start and end date for the price cap on services and products. Furthermore, the law opens the door to requiring consumers to be informed about the maximum and minimum prices prior to the emergency, at least for the 30 days preceding the crisis. Finally, consumers will have the right to an automatic refund of any amount charged in excess of the applicable maximum price.

Another measure aimed at strengthening consumer protection, which was approved by the Council of Ministers this Tuesday, affects so-called spam. The Spanish government has taken another step to tighten regulations on calls from electricity companies. The Council of Ministers has approved a royal decree that prohibits, for all intents and purposes, telephone calls from electricity retailers for advertising purposes unless a household has previously requested it or the consumer is calling the company to request information or change products. The prohibition modifies the general regulations for the supply, marketing, and aggregation of electricity—the modification does not require congressional approval—and "strengthens and complements" the current telecommunications and customer service legislation recently approved by Congress. which already pursues these types of calls

"The new decree generally prohibits commercial calls for the sale of electricity unless there is an express and unequivocal request from the consumer," stated the Third Vice President and Minister for Ecological Transition, Sara Aagesen, at a press conference. In fact, the Spanish government has long sought to limit these commercial calls, and last December Congress already approved the Customer Service Law, which already addresses this type of call.

But the approved decree goes further. To begin with, consumers must be fully informed about the electricity products being sold before they decide whether or not to subscribe. It even prohibits the telephone contracting of an electricity product without an express request from the consumer. Penalties for contract termination are also limited, as are minimum commitment periods; the processes for switching electricity suppliers are streamlined; Autonomous communities and municipalities will be able to declare the electricity supplies of social bonus recipients as "essential" to prevent their power from being cut off in case of non-payment; a specific figure for the protection of electricity consumers is created, and the disconnection of electricity supply to electro-dependent consumers is prohibited, among other measures. "Electricity regulation will be more protective and offer greater consumer protection, and will complement other legislation," the Ministry for Ecological Transition has reiterated. To safeguard all these measures, sanctions for non-compliance with the decree by some electricity suppliers—those with the largest market share—are being toughened. Failure to comply with any measure, such as the prohibition of calls spamThis may result in a fine linked to the sanctions regime of the 2013 Electricity Sector Law. In this regard, the penalty can range from €600,001 to a maximum of €6 million. Failure to comply with a consumer protection measure may constitute a serious infringement. The National Commission on Markets and Competition (CNMC) will be responsible for resolving these types of situations, and therefore for initiating a fine.