10/12/2024

On 6 December 2024,  as part of the "Comércio Seguro 2024" (Safe Commerce 2024) operation promoted by the National Republican Guard, ERSE - the Energy Services Regulatory Authority, took part in an 
awareness-raising and information campaign for traders and customers in the town of Sintra. 

The awareness-raising campaign was organised by the Crime Prevention and Community Policing Department of the Sintra Territorial Unit, as part of the Cooperation Protocol concluded between ERSE and GNR. 

The 'Comércio Seguro 2024' operation, which began on 24 November and will continue until the end of the year, is being carried out throughout mainland Portugal by soldiers from the GNR's Crime Prevention and Community Policing Detachment, with the aim of raising awareness among local businesses and their customers on how to avoid being the target of crime during the festive season.

ERSE, as in the previous year, teamed up with the GNR to distribute a information leaflet with warnings aimed at increasing the energy literacy of traders and consumers in general and thereby enabling them to more easily identify any abusive or unfair practices.

This year, the GNR detachment and the ERSE team were accompanied by a team from CMTV. 

As part of Operation Safe Commerce, the GNR is reinforcing its contact with traders and customers by patrolling commercial premises, which is why the GNR's information leaflet contains advice on procedures to be adopted by traders and customers for their physical safety and to protect themselves from fraudulent practices and scams.

The cooperation protocol between ERSE and the GNR was signed in 2021 and aims to develop joint actions and initiatives to combat energy illiteracy and to identify abusive or unfair practices by energy market operators towards consumers, especially the most vulnerable. In addition to the ‘Comércio Seguro’ operation, ERSE and the GNR have collaborated annually on the ‘Censos Sénior’ operation, which targets the elderly population.

Access the information leaflet