The price of tobacco is increasing significantly, while that of fuel should be partly contained by a cap decided by TotalEnergies.
Many upheavals in sight on this Wednesday, March 1st. While the cabinet of Olivia Grégoire, the Minister Delegate for Trade, feared a few days ago a “red march” in supermarkets against the backdrop of a tug of war between manufacturers and large retailers, tobacco prices will experience a further rise. On the other hand, the cost of fuel should be partly contained, after the recent announcements from TotalEnergies.
Franceinfo goes into detail on everything that is changing at the start of March.
The liter of gasoline and diesel capped at 1.99 euros in TotalEnergies stations
Its CEO, Patrick Pouyanné, announced it on February 22: from March 1, TotalEnergies will cap a liter of gasoline and diesel at 1.99 euros in its network of approximately 3,400 service stations in France. This measure, which should last until the end of 2023, does not however concern the group’s “premium” fuel range, called Excellium.
This decision comes after an exit from Emmanuel Macron, who had claimed on February 21 “a gesture” to TotalEnergies to limit the rise in prices at the pump.
Tobacco prices on the rise again
Smoking kills, and now costs even more. A new increase in the price of tobacco comes into force on Wednesday, pushing the package of the best-selling brand of cigarettes above the eleven euro mark. This increase concerns both traditional cigarettes and rolling tobacco, and can go up to more than one euro per pack. French customs website (PDF document) lists this price increase brand by brand.
Telephone canvassing prohibited on weekends and supervised during the week
As of March 1, cold calling is prohibited on weekends and is strictly regulated during the week, according to a decree published in October in Official newspaper. From Monday to Friday, calls must be made between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., or between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. in the afternoon. In addition, a company will no longer be able to call the same consumer more than four times a month and in the event of refusal, the latter will no longer be able to call him for two months.
In the event of non-compliance with these new rules, the fines will range from 75,000 euros for a natural person to 375,000 euros for a legal person. In 2022, 20,000 reports were recorded each month on the SignalConso site, set up by the administration to help consumers report abusive procedures.
Third-party payment applied to Covid-19 screening tests
Third-party payment now applies for PCR and antigen tests, thus approaching the rules of common law care. This decision is made “in the face of the improvement in the health situation and the gradual easing of measures to respond to the epidemic”, says the Ministry of Health. Health insurance will cover 70% of the cost of the test if it is carried out by a doctor or pharmacist, and 60% if it is carried out by a nurse. The remaining charge, 30% or 40%, will be zero for all those who have additional cover.
On the other hand, the most fragile people will be able to continue to benefit from 100% care, specifies the general direction of health. This concerns patients with long-term illness, the over 65s, minors, professionals in the medical and medico-social sectors, as well as people undergoing collective screening.
Supplementary pensions for retirees up or down
More than 13 million retirees will be affected by a retroactive regularization operation by Agirc-Arrco, which manages supplementary pensions for private sector employees. “This change entails (…) either an increase or a decrease in social security contributions on your supplementary pension”can we read on the organization’s website.
Concretely, if your CSG rate has increased, the January and February pensions have been paid to you without taking this increase into account. The pension you will receive in March will therefore be lower, especially since its amount will take into account an adjustment for the months of January and February.
Conversely, if your CSG rate has fallen, “in February you will receive a transfer to your bank account corresponding to the reimbursement of the excess social security contributions” And “from March, your pension should increase since the social security contributions applicable in 2023 will be deducted”writes the Agirc-Arrco.
The usury rate is changing, that of the Housing Action loan rate is increasing
Since February 1, the Banque de France has been revising the usury rate monthly, which corresponds to the maximum rate at which a bank has the right to lend money to its customers. For the month of March, this rate of wear increases to 4% for loans of 20 years and more.
The rate of the “accession” loan from Action Logement, which allows low-income private sector employees to access property, rose from 0.5% to 1.5% in March. This loan grants a maximum amount of 40,000 euros.